We’ve hit that lull. You know the one. Bands are posting teasers for upcoming albums, but few (if any) are actually on tour. That means for those of us who live in the pit, we seemingly have lost our ability to function. Luckily, we’ve been hoarding content and have some quick throwback tour reviews to keep your energy up and ready for when Tour Szn hits!
The Wonder Years
Let’s take it back to Halloween, kids. The Wonder Years are the only respectable way to start off this roundup. They birthed the modern pop-punk scene and made it the type of organized chaos that we love and (mostly) respect today. This show, though, had the weirdest energy. It was set up to be a costume show, meaning each act performed a set dressed up as an iconic band before doing their own set as themselves.
Typically The Wonder Years shows are a place of reclaiming what it means to be a human, especially when you feel misunderstood. Amongst costumes and cosplayers and chaos, what we found was instead people having a night where they didn’t have to think about all of their sorrows and worries, but instead just think about having fun and celebrating another year of laughter and fun. It wasn’t a bad thing to find a different atmosphere at any The Wonder Years concert, but it definitely wasn’t what we were used to.
Then again– Philly pop-punk is always best experienced in Philadelphia, so maybe the walls of this New York City venue just weren’t ready for legends.
Boston Manor
Don’t think too hard about Boston Manor, you’ll give yourself a headache. Instead, just accept their ingenuity at face value. Everything Boston Manor does is filled with such raw, but relatable emotion that you can’t help but be mesmerized by Henry Cox rocking his way across the stage. Boston Manor doesn’t have the most notable stage presence, traditionally speaking. Everything about the band shouldn’t work, but then it somehow does. Maybe it’s their indifference to molding to the practical pop-punk realm or maybe its the way the fans that come to see them lend their own energy to each other to keep the show so alive, but Boston Manor never fails to disappoint.
At Gramercy Theater, fans were packed wall to wall in an attempt to bring themselves closer to the on the rise icons. From the moment Boston Manor touched the stage to the split second they left, everyone’s attention was captivated to what they would do next.
Grayscale
First of all, “Beautiful Things” by Grayscale. That’s the review. Period.
Second of all, the energy at this show was the closest to underground pop-punk from an established pop-punk band that I have found in awhile. Maybe it’s because Grayscale fans all still think they’re underground or maybe its a desire to keep the scene alive and untouched, but whatever it is: keep it up. Grayscale was refreshing, rewarding, and made me forget every small thing that might be going wrong in the world.
The moment the pit opened up, it was unforgettable electricity that connected every single fan in the venue. Grayscale took everyone’s worries and turned it into on-stage energy. The dynamic between on-stage and off was truly unreal.
Conor Manyard
Okay, this isn’t pop-punk by any means. But that’s not the point. The Conor Manyard show was important for other reasons. Throwback artists like this have their own tour experience. Everyone in the venue was looking for a good night out with their friends where they could revel in nostalgia and that’s exactly what they found.
Conor played his mix of hits, throwbacks, and new, enticing his audience to participate and welcome each other. While typically fanbases are competitive at shows, insisting on being closer to the barricade, Conor’s fans were there for a general feeling of love for the music. They used this as an opportunity to engage with each other and learn from each other and generally bring each other together.
We The Kings
You’re lying if you say “Check Yes, Juliet” hasn’t been on your playlist for an unsettling amount of time. Seeing that classic showcased on stage might just be a highlight for anyone’s tour season.
We The Kings knows and embraces the sentiment of “classic”. Their music is timelessly fulfilling and truthfully rewarding. Being lifted up in the crowd to surf to the song you’ve had blasting in your headphones since you were young has a feeling of accomplishment nearly unmatched by any other. And to have the band smile back at you with a sense of knowing that feeling truly makes it all worthwhile.
A tour, a show, a set, a night, or even just a moment with We The Kings can truly help take you back to when your loneliness felt never-ending, but then it contrasts with the reality of being surrounded by like-minded individuals.
Simple Plan
If we’re going to start this list with icons, we have to close it with some, too. The headliners of this tour are what made every band that performed before them possible. The audience was a mix of young fans who truly didn’t quite understand why Simple Plan was quite so important and old fans who had never felt more alive than when they listened to “Welcome to My Life” alone in their room.
But that just added to the beauty of the performance. It was music lovers learning to appreciate the past mixed with nostalgic memories growing in the air. This tour with We The Kings, State Champs, and Simple Plan was about decades in music that shared the commonality through genre but wasn’t afraid to embrace change. Simple Plan themselves gave a performance of a lifetime on Long Island that night. Arguably, that tour should go down in history.
You could feel the fans thanking the band as they sang back the lyrics of classic songs. You could feel the band thanking the fans right back as they realized just how far they had come. Everything about that set was designed in a way of knowing how exactly to cater to an environment of trust and mutual understanding. It was an absolutely unforgettable night.
Check out some of the highlights from these shows here:
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