Friday, October 16, brought Taking Back Sunday to the Arizona Financial Theatre in Phoenix, with support from Saves the Day and Thrice. The fall tour coincides with the 20th anniversary of Taking Back Sunday’s beloved album Louder Now, with a setlist featuring the majority of the record alongside favorites from throughout the band’s career. Having been a fan of these bands for years, this was a lineup I was especially excited to see.
Saves the Day kicked off the night with a set featuring some of their best-known tracks, including “Anywhere With You,” “Through Being Cool,” “The End,” and “Kaleidoscope.” The band sounded great and brought plenty of energy to the stage, making the most of their time before Thrice took over. They also played “INVADER,” their first new song in eight years, which was released in September. It was great to hear new music from a band with such a long history, especially alongside songs that fans have been listening to for years. Saves the Day closed out their set with “At Your Funeral,” bringing Taking Back Sunday frontman Adam Lazzara onstage to join them. It was a fun surprise and a great way to wrap up their performance.
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Up next, Thrice took the stage, delivering another fantastic set. Opening with “Of Dust and Nations,” the band moved through tracks like “The Artist in the Ambulance,” “Red Sky,” “Albatross,” and “Black Honey.” Thrice always puts on a killer live performance, and this show was no exception. Before playing “Red Sky,” the band dedicated the song to Saves the Day, a nice moment between the bands sharing the tour.
One of the highlights of Thrice’s set came during “Black Honey.” When Dustin Kensrue reached the line “This time I’ll get it right,” he stepped back from the microphone and continued singing with so much passion that his voice carried through the venue perfectly. The audience was singing along so loudly that their voices echoed through the theatre, yet you could still hear him clearly. It was a really cool moment to witness, and you could feel the emotion behind the performance. The crowd went especially hard during “Stare at the Sun,” with the mosh pit in full swing as the band closed out their set.
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The excitement picked up as Taking Back Sunday took the stage, opening with “What’s It Feel Like to Be a Ghost?” followed by “Liar (It Takes One to Know One)” and “Set Phasers to Stun.” Before the third song, frontman Adam Lazzara told the crowd there would be no encore that night. Instead, the band wanted to play a few extra songs rather than leave the stage and come back out, which meant more music and less waiting around. Considering the number of songs they have to choose from, I don’t think anyone was going to complain.
In celebration of Louder Now turning 20, the setlist featured the majority of the album, including “Liar (It Takes One to Know One),” “Twenty-Twenty Surgery,” “My Blue Heaven,” and “Error Operator,” alongside other favorites from the band’s catalog. While talking about the anniversary, Lazzara joked that 20 years ago, when the band members were only six or seven years old, they were put in a van and sent on their way to tour the US. The joke got a laugh from the audience, who were probably doing the same math I was and wondering how we got here so quickly.
Before playing “Divine Intervention,” Lazzara explained that it was a song from Louder Now that the band doesn’t typically play live, making it a treat for fans who have followed them over the years. John Nolan played the melodica during the song, adding a fun touch to the performance. Lazzara also took a moment to reflect on the band’s history and the relationships they have built over the years, sharing that there is great strength in having had each other in their lives for so long. He talked about leaning on that connection when he needed help standing upright and hoped the band’s music had offered some of that same support to their fans.
During “You’re So Last Summer,” I couldn’t help but notice the couple standing in front of me. They were screaming the lyrics in each other’s faces, looking so happy to be there together. The woman turned around and told me they had been married for 25 years, and when Tell All Your Friends came out, they had been on the verge of divorce. The record had helped bring them back together. I loved hearing that story, and it was a reminder of how much history can be tied to the music we grow up with. For some people, these songs bring back memories of high school or old friends. For others, they become part of the story of their lives.
Having seen Taking Back Sunday live probably 40 times over the past 25 years, I’ve always enjoyed their shows, but it has been especially fun seeing both John Nolan and Fred Mascherino in the band together. There is something different about their energy onstage with both of them there, and it has been a joy to experience. Adam Lazzara is as quirky as ever, going off on tangents between songs that only add to his charm. Before “Brooklyn (If You See Something Say Something),” he explained that the song was recorded during the Louder Now sessions but released as a B-side. Looking back, he said it probably should have made the album, admitting that he had been part of the decision to cut it from the record. He started telling the story behind the song, describing an experience that involved some “real world Harry Potter shit,” before catching himself and cutting the story short. I could listen to Adam ramble between songs all night, and this was a perfect example of why.
The crowd was full of crowdsurfers throughout the set, and the energy during “Cute Without the ‘E’ (Cut From the Team)” was just insane, as it always is. Fans screamed along to every word before the band closed out the night with “MakeDamnSure.” As the set ended, Lazzara told the audience, “We are a band called Taking Back Sunday, and we hope all your dreams come true.”
Twenty years after Louder Now was released, these songs are still bringing people together, and it was great to see so many fans celebrating the record alongside the band. I’ve been seeing Taking Back Sunday for 25 years, and getting to experience them with this lineup has made these shows especially fun. With fantastic performances from Saves the Day and Thrice, this was a great night for longtime fans of the scene.
The fall tour came to an end on October 18th, but there are still a few opportunities to catch Taking Back Sunday live this year. The band is set to play Warped Tour Orlando next month, and their 12th Annual Taking Back Sunday Holiday Spectacular is set to take place December 10-12, featuring different special guests each night. For tickets and more information, click HERE.
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