Miracles for Moose, the foundation that was started in order to help pay for Anthony Mustari’s medical expenses from having a rare form of Leukemia, hosted a benefit show on September 28th at Penny Road Pub. The foundation received all of the at-the-door proceeds and also held a raffle for sports tickets and gift cards. By the end of the night, the foundation had received over $2,000.
The show consisted of six different bands with genres ranging from metal to pop-punk, but all of the bands poured every ounce of energy into their performance leading to a great night. First on stage was a five-piece hardcore metal band from Skokie called Pray Macabre.
Second on stage was The Reserve. This four piece draws strongly from the likes of Nirvana and the Foo Fighters with heavy focus on melodic leads. Their drummer never missed a beat and the band members appeared to be having the time of their lives.
After swapping out the equipment and doing a soundcheck, the metal tinged pop-punk group Arkham played a killer set filled with gang vocals, catchy hooks and political lyrics. The singer took time in between songs to talk about the scene.
“We are here to support the bands, the community and most importantly, Anthony.”
In was incredible to watch Arkham band members move and jump about the stage while never stumbling or getting lost in the songs. They have just recently released an EP called “Still Standing” that is available for free on Arkham’s Facebook page.
Around this time the room started to fill up with people who were obviously here for this band in particular: Dog and Wolf. They are a three piece punk band from Chicago with vocals and guitar reminiscent of The Gaslight Anthem.
Upon hearing simply the first song, their music feels familiar but new, like an old glove newly discovered. Some songs were painful folk-punk while others were southern-tinged delight. With one guitarist and vocalist, a bassist, and a drummer the band sounds filled and melodic without being messy or over-layered. The choruses featured technical style drums and vocal harmonies.
Up next was a pop-punk band that just recently played the Chicago stop of the Leaving Forever Tour where the band Handguns headlined. From the Sidelines started out a little unsure of the stage, but then grew more comfortable and more powerful with each song. Every member was smiling and dancing for every song despite the musical complexities. Each song featured multiple part harmonies, gang vocals, and catchy choruses.
The fifth band is made entirely up of heavy metal Prairie Ridge graduates. Flames of Icarus featured Frank Mustari, Anthony’s brother, on guitar and vocals. This was a one-time comeback show as the band is officially broken up and had not played a show since October 2011.
During their solo-laden breakdown-heavy set a small mosh pit opened at the front of the crowd and continued throughout the set as a result of the loud, fast and aggressive songs with low screamy vocals. The last song was a cover from System of a Down.
“They are the only band my brother [Anthony] and I could ever agree on,” Frank explained.
At the end of their set, Mrs. Mustari came up on stage to thank everyone for coming and donating and caring. “My son will be okay,” she assured the crowd.
At the end of the night the raffle which had been open all evening was closed and the winners drawn. The prizes featured things like Cubs, Bulls and Chicago Fire tickets and an Area 51 Tattoo gift card. Overall the night was a success, the Miracles for Moose foundation raised over $2,000 for Anthony Mustari’s family.
The next fundraiser for Miracles for Moose is a walk on October 7 at 10am at Sunset park in Huntley.