Just over a decade ago, we launched this very website with coverage of a Taking Back Sunday tour that featured Underoath’s Spencer Chamberlain on vocals due to a family emergency that kept Adam Lazzara sidelined. The crux of that article was how deeply driven this community of music can be to rally around one another, with an emphasis of mutual support and respect.
All these years later, Taking Back Sunday still stand as a scene cornerstone and a band that galvanizes a sense of community amongst its fans and peers. Their current North American tour, in support of last year’s 152, reached its mid-point this week during a stop at the Egyptian Room at Old National Centre in Indianapolis.
Support on this run comes in the form of Citizen, an alt-rock unit from Toledo, Ohio, which has gained a following over five full-length releases since 2013. Tracks from last year’s Calling the Dogs fills a majority of the setlist, with lead vocalist Mat Kerekes bringing an palpable energy and excitement in his performance of the band’s new material. Even still, throwback tracks “The Night I Drove Alone” and “Death Dance Approximately” close the set with a bang, livening up the crowd in anticipation of the headliner.
The well from which Taking Back Sunday has to draw from for its live sets is truly astounding. Over 20 years and eight full-length albums worth of material are hard to fit into a 20-song set, with tracks from two albums in particular not even making the final cut for this tour. Six songs from 152 appear, highlighted by set opener “S’Old” – a new classic from the band and one of their best songs in years.
The band’s set weaves between new and old material without ever feeling like they’re leaning too hard into nostalgia. It’s true, tracks like “Timberwolves at New Jersey” and “You’re So Last Summer” still get a rise out of long-time TBS followers, but the crowd eats up new material just the same. If there’s any Taking Back Sunday album that seems to be concretely standing the test of time in relation to the band’s live performances, it’s Louder Now, which the band dabbles not just on the hits, but fan favorites like “Error: Operator” and the surprising inclusion of “My Blue Heaven”.
All these years later, it’s still a joy to watch Lazzara, John Nolan, and Shaun Cooper do their thing on stage. A timeless friendship that has given us some of the great inter-band stories the scene has known, along with a vast collection of music that has seen the band’s profile solidify as a staple in the greater rock scene. 152 captures the heart of what fans have always loved about Taking Back Sunday while still stretching into new sonic territory. This current trek is an appropriate celebration of the entire journey.
by Kiel Hauck
Kiel Hauck is the editor in chief at It’s All Dead. Over the past decade, he has been a contributor for multiple online and print publications and was most recently an editor at PopMatters. Kiel currently resides in Indianapolis, IN with his wife and their imaginary pet, Hand Dog. You can follow him on Twitter.
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