Taking Back Sunday | March 25, 2014

Taking Back Sunday hit San Francisco along with co-headliners The Used for a sold out Tuesday night at the Warfield.

The night kicked-off with a powerful set from Sleepwave featuring former Underoath vocalist Spencer Chamberlain. Having not released any material, those that lined up early to catch them did so based on Chamberlain’s reputation and are surely now (and even more) eagerly awaiting the band’s first release.

Next up, Australian pop-rockers Tonight Alive who, having dedicated a lot of time to the U.S. market (including a 2013 Warped Tour run), have clearly built up a loyal following.  Energetic and extra-bouncy, they proved to be a perfect warm-up.

As Taking Back Sunday’s set time approached, the show finally started to feel like its sold out status. The floor quickly filled to capacity and the crowd was clearly pumped. With their brand-spanking-new album (Happiness Is, released March 18 via Hopeless Records) having debuted at #10 on the Billboard charts, it was no surprise that there would be new material and that the fans would be more than ready to hear it live.  As the band launched in, Adam Lazzara spinning and dancing around the stage, the crowd lit up … without a doubt more inclined to sing along and dance than to mosh it up.

From the get-go it was a full-on love-fest between the band and the crowd … the kind of interaction that makes the show better for everyone involved.  Adam, clearly pleased with how things were unfolding, paused early in the set to call-out (and later apologized to) some dude on the balcony who was on his phone.  With people on their feet all the way to the last row of the balcony, the guy stood out like a sore thumb from his vantage point on the stage.

“I think this might be the best show yet … and I don’t say that shit every night.  I’m humbled.” — Adam Lazzara

Yeah, it was kind of like that.

Not to be out-done, The Used also have a new album coming out April 1 and just so happened to release a full stream the day of the show on Pandora and Amazon which is worth a listen (do it).  And while the faces in the crowd up front changed between sets, there wasn’t an ounce of energy lost in that process.  Giant piles of lit-up TV sets lit up from the back of the stage and added some impressive visuals to their impressive performance.

The show proved to be a perfect co-headlining pairing — two complimentary bands, both with new albums and passionate fans.  The tour only kicked off last week and if you don’t already have tickets, chances are you’re already out of luck because most dates are already sold out. Remaining tour dates can be found here.

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