Hello all! Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend the “Rise of the Roach Tour ” at the Credit Union One Amphitheatre in Tinley Park, Illinois. The show featured a triple threat of headline worthy bands, including Underoath, Rise Against, and, the big honchos of the night, Papa Roach. I’m here to give you all the highs and lows from venue review, atmospheric ratings, show critique, and lastly a yay or nay of if you would catch me here again.

First, I arrived at the stadium way early, around gates opening. It’s an outdoor venue, and the weather was in the mid 80s on this unseasonably warm fall Illinois day. It’s not my first rodeo at the venue, so I knew what to expect. Wear comfy shoes, people. The walk from the parking lot is LONG, and you’ll be standing in line for a hot minute too, so dress accordingly.

Once admitted, I made sure to make a stop at The Foundation for Suicide Prevention table, as they had some free goodies such as glow sticks and bubbles. I was also greeted by their wonderful representatives and had a conversation with them about the organization before they handed me some powerful information cards that had a lot of really great resources if you or someone you know may need assistance. We’ll get into more about that later, as it relates to some of the show portion.

The stage itself at the amphitheatre is relatively small, so if you sit on the lawn, plan on watching the large screens if you want to get a good view of any performance there. I was seated in the 102 section right behind the pit, so I got a pretty solid close-up view of everything happening.

Opening up the evening, Underoath took the stage with a seven-song setlist that featured mostly new releases from their recent album The Place After This One. Spencer Chamberlain is a talented vocalist that has a passionate energy on stage – you can see how his performance resonates with the crowd. I think Papa Roach and Rise Against chose a solid opener for this tour; however, I do have some small critiques. First, I would have liked to hear more of the clean vocals from Spencer, it seems that a big portion of the clean vocals were heavily backed, and we got a lot of screaming from him, which is always impressive despite wishing that I could hear his voice better. Second, I wish that Underoath threw in some of their older, more well known songs to wrap up their performance. I was stoked to hear “A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White” and it just…never came – I did listen to it on the car ride home though.

Second on the podium were Chicago natives Rise Against. They are absolutely incredible live, and it was such a special performance, as this was their first time performing at the Tinley Amphitheatre — which is a huge accomplishment. One of my favorite songs of the night was “Swing Life Away.” I sure am a sucker for a good phone flashlight moment. Another notable mentions of the night was Tim’s nod to punk and non-conformity culture. During the song “Satellite,” he brought out his guitar with the words “Out of Step” on the back, a reference to Minor Threat. Rise Against also graced us with new music, featuring the song “Ricochet,” and did a fantastic job at stage performance, giving their absolute all to the place that started it for them.

Finally, Papa Roach came on with a surprise start that I actually thoroughly enjoyed; it really set the tone for the rest of the night, and there’s nothing like being jumpscared into a performance. Papa Roach had some really awesome graphics and videos on screen during the set — it just felt very curated and eclectic. I actually really love when performers put more than just a live cast of what’s happening on stage, but rather a visual storyline to really sell the setting. By song four, “…To Be Loved,” I had almost damn near TOUCHED the Roach. That’s right — Jacoby Shaddix made his way off stage and INTO the crowd, straight past my seat.

This man is a people person. It’s so difficult not to like him. I’ll be honest — I didn’t know many Papa Roach songs, nor would I consider myself part of the main fandom. However, there are truly just some human beings who win you over simply by being themselves, and that’s exactly who Jacoby Shaddix is. During the brief intermission, which featured a shortened cover of “California Love,” Shaddix brought out his son, and together they t-shirt cannoned merch into the crowd. I just love seeing a good person and their mini-me having an awesome time together.

Lastly, Jacoby Shaddix is a huge advocate for mental health and suicide prevention, so much so that he dedicated an entire two song block to his poetry, and opened up about his own struggles with suicidal thoughts. During “Falling Apart,” you could hear the vulnerability and strength in his lyricism, and suddenly, we all feel the emotion of what it must take to hear this. After a moment dedicated to the AFSP, they played “Leave a Light On,” and we were transformed to a candlelight vigil. It was an awe inspiring moment.

Overall, this concert gets two thumbs up from me. I really appreciated the vibe, and I had nothing short of a fantastic night out with myself — and some divorced dad rock, just as intended. I will absolutely be attending the next P-Roach tour when they come back around.