For American fans of the Canadian pop rock band Marianas Trench in the early 2000s, the idea of ever getting to see the band perform live seemed like a far-off dream. At least that was my own experience as an emo kid growing up in the midwest, discovering this band around the release of their second studio album, Masterpiece Theatre, in 2009. I vividly remember falling in love with their songs, dark topics sung about in poppy tones, and for years and years checking their website, clicking on the ‘Tour,’ section, and inevitably being disappointed over and over again: either a short list of tour dates with no shows outside of Canada… or just no tour dates scheduled at all.
Opening for the “Force of Nature” tour was California-based queer pop-rock band Senses, who played a quick set of 8 emotional but upbeat songs. The duo, singer/guitarist Madison Taylor and drummer Nick Sampson, The band has a new EP coming out in October and played two new songs, including the live debut of “Tiptoeing.” They also covered Chappell Roan’s hit “Good Luck, Babe!” (causing everyone in the audience to lose their minds in delight), and Taylor’s delivery of a notoriously difficult song was incredible. Senses definitely did a great job getting the crowd hyped up for what was to come.
“We’re called The Summer Set — you might remember us from Myspace?” Formed in 2007, The Summer Set was once a peak example of the pop-punk/emo boy bands of the time. They made music and toured for ten years before going on hiatus in 2017, returning four years later in 2021 with the release of a new album, and now touring with Marianas Trench celebrating the release of their second post-hiatus album, Meet Me at the Record Store.
A decent chunk of the audience seemed to be in attendance specifically for The Summer Set. Some were likely new fans, teens who only discovered the band since they’ve come back from hiatus, but others – a vocal majority – were long-time devoted members of the fanbase. They knew not only the words to classic songs like “Chelsea” and “Boomerang” but also songs off the newest album like “Algorithm & Blues” and “ADIDAS.”
They also played a very fun cover of ABBA’s “Mamma Mia,” leading into it by reassuring the crowd that they are still a rock band. The amount of attendees at this show who were emo-kids-turned-concert-going-adults was obvious. Based on their overall vibe alone, maybe it’s safe to say that emo really wasn’t just a phase (Mom!).
They know you’re lonely, and they will only break your heart. And this masterpiece will tear you apart.
— Masterpiece Theatre II
For many, this was their first opportunity to see Marianas Trench perform live. And so many of those fans have been following the band since its early days – made evident when frontman Ramsay took an audience poll to see who had been around since the days of Masterpiece Theatre, looking delightfully surprised with the enthusiastic response. In dedication to those fans, the band played a mash-up of three popular songs from the album: “Cross My Heart,” “Celebrity Status,” and “Shake Tramp.” While the crowd was upbeat and energetic for the entirety of the band’s performance, this medley definitely seemed to be the peak of the show, especially for those long-time fans.
Queue frontman Josh Ramsay remarking surprise at the size of the crowd and how many within it are singing along to every word, and then, with a laugh: “Sorry it took us so long to tour more of America. For the longest time we didn’t know we had any American fans!” And it was in that moment I felt so validated by my years of disappointment in not seeing shows near me.
Marianas Trench played a good variety of songs from their different albums, balancing out their quicker pop songs with some of the slower, haunting ballads that Josh Ramsay is so known for. Some highlights included “Desperate Measures” (another nostalgia hit), “Pop 101” (a song poking fun at the cookie-cutter trends in hit pop songs), and “Down to You” (a symphonic rock song from the band’s newest album, Haven, that definitely reminds fans of a lot of the earlier work of the Masterpiece Theatre and Ever After albums.
As a fun surprise for those who, like me, had never gotten to see the band live before: lead guitarist Matt Webb, a band member since the very beginning, sang two songs (“All to Myself” and “Who Do You Love”). Some other fun parts of the show were singer Ramsay coming into the crowd to sing “Haven’t Had Enough,” and later, his instrumental rendition of the slow, sad song “Good to You” that had many fans in tears. To finish the show on a high note, of course, they came back out for their encore to play two of my forever favorite songs: “Stutter” and “Fallout.”
The entire evening was a specific kind of magical for me – getting to experience a band that I’d loved since childhood, a band that was never widely-known enough for me to talk about it with anyone… and I got to experience them while surrounded by people who had also loved this band for so long, had also feared never getting to watch them perform. The show was everything I needed it to be… and now I need to see them again.
All my indecision, all of my excess; don’t you ever tell me I’m not loving you best.
— Masterpiece Theatre III
