The band Anberlin has proven they possess staying power. In a time where MySpace artists come and go, and top 40 music is saturated with comebacks from the pop stars of pre-millennium, Anberlin still retains a sense of depth in their creative output.Their career has spanned the past six years, with their initial recognition in support of their release of “Blueprints for the Black Market” in 2003.

The current line-up of five members, plus an auxiliary keyboard player, entertained the crowds at Asheville’s The Orange Peel, on Jan. 8. Between the Trees, Madina Lake and Asheville-based The Becoming, opened for the headliner.

Now, I’ve sat/stood through many a bands I didn’t particularly care for, but I couldn’t force myself to suffer through Madina Lake’s set. The matching haircuts and the awkward stage presence were too much for my violated retinas. The mesh of pop, new metal and screamo where a verbal assault on my ears. I had heard enough.

However, even when I contemplated buying a slice of pizza from the back, I could not escape the numerous count offs and off-key odes to whatever the lead singer found worthy to sing about. For a moment, I thought I had died and surely gone to hell … in a Hot Topic.

Thankfully, the set was quick and painful, and it wasn’t long before Anberlin gathered on stage and where greeted by a crowd composed of anticipated fans.

A fan of the band who have been pleased to hear such favorites as “Adelaide,” Godspeed,” “A Day Late,” “Paperthin Hymn,” “The Unwinding Cable Car, and their current single ” Feel Good Drag,” a re-worked version of a song featured on their sophomore album, “Never Take Friendship Personal.”

Lest us not forget however that their current tour is in support of Anberlin’s first major-label release, “New Surrender,” so plenty of new material was featured as well. Songs like “Breaking” and “Retrace” represent both the old and new direction of Anberlin.

“Breaking” reminds one of the upbeat riffs and powerful vocals of albums past, and while what makes the band so endearing is not lost, Anberlin now performs songs that are little less “pop” and feature lyrics that are of a more mature nature.

This is not to say that lead singer Stephen Christian ever sang about bathroom humor, but ambiguity is now replaced by lyrics about the homeless in Christian’s adopted city of Los Angeles, or the band’s long standing humanitarian efforts.

Drummer Nate Young and bassist Deon Rexroat combined their powers of percussion and delivered a powerful, but never overwhelming, backbone to the frenzied guitars and pitch perfect vocals of Christian – quite a feat in my opinion, considering the aforementioned anthem-like quality of their songs.

Anberlin’s performance was very professional, with the band playing smooth transitions between songs.

Christian also interacted with the crowd several times and encouraged the crowd to sing along, sometimes even for him, which was amusing considering the audience seemed to know the majority of the songs.

The audience seemed satisfied with the performance, as was I. All fans appreciate when bands play songs that induce nostalgia, while also presenting new material to dissect.

Their performance was energetic and again, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Christian even obliged his fans, who waited in the frigid weather to speak with him, and stayed after to chat and take pictures.

For more information on the band, visit their Web site at www.anberlin.com and to view upcoming shows at The Orange Peel, visit www.theorangepeel.net.

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