Mayday In Boston
Jennifer Dill ’17 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
On October fourteenth, indie music magazine Alternative Press’s fall tour kicked off its first date at Boston’s House of Blues.
The tour, aptly titled “The AP Tour,” was headlined by Mayday Parade with supporting acts Real Friends, This Wild Life, and As It Is.
The doors opened at 5:30 and almost instantly the venue filled with fans anxiously awaiting the arrival of their musical idols, the people who have often times made the music that has kept them going. Alternative rock music played over the speakers as light technicians tested out the various set lights and lit the floor with beams of blues and greens, prepping the crowd for a fun-filled night.
As soon as the clock hit 6:30, United Kingdom-based As It Is took over the stage. Within seconds the band’s front man Patty Walters, who is also a well known YouTube personality/musician, got the crowd on their feet and singing along to the music.
The band entertained the audience with songs from their debut album Never Happy Ever After, released earlier this year, such as “Cheap Shots and Setbacks” and closing tune “Dial Tones,” both of which proved to be crowd favorites. They also jammed out to a few older tunes, such as “Can’t Save Myself” and “Sorry.”
By the end of their set the crowd was hyped up and ready for the following acts, beginning with the next band, This Wild Life.
A two-piece acoustic duo from California, This Wild Life stood out from the other bands on the tour. Unlike the others, they played their whole set with only acoustic guitars and clean vocals. Despite the difference in style, This Wild Life still found a way to fit right in and charm the audience.
They played a variety of music from their latest album, Clouded as well as their EP Heart Flip. This included songs like “History,” “Stay Up Late,” and “Puppy Love,” which singer Kevin Jordan explained was written about his dog Humphrey. They also played “No More Bad Days,” which was written for Jordan’s mom after her battle with cancer.
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After This Wild Life came Real Friends, a five-piece pop-punk group from suburban Illinois. Running out onto the stage, they brought a high level of energy which helped shake things up after This Wild Life’s slower songs.
The band also has a huge following. The audience was full of fans screaming every word to every song–including hits from their debut album Maybe This Place is the Same and We’re Just Changing such as “Summer,” “Sixteen,” and “Old Book.”
Not a single person stood still their entire set and excitement was kept at an all time high when headliners Mayday Parade finally took over the stage.
Opening with their newest single “One of Them Will Destroy the Other,” featuring Real Friends front man Dan Lambton, the band launched the crowd into the world of Black Lines, the band’s newest album that had been released one week prior. The crowd buzzed and those who knew the words sang along eagerly.
Shortly after, the band played fan favorites “Black Cat,” “Stay,” and “Oh Well, Oh Well,” mixed in with their new songs.
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Derek Sanders, the band’s lead singer, even took to the stage with an acoustic guitar and piano at one point to serenade fans with two of the band’s slower songs: “Terrible Things” and “Miserable at Best,” both of which received huge rounds of applause and a few tears here and there.
The crowd bounced back from this quickly though, and Mayday didn’t miss a beat by playing their more up-tempo songs, including an encore of “Just Say You’re Not Into It” and “Jersey,” two of the band’s oldest hits.
By the end of the night, everyone was full of musical bliss and the bands packed up to journey on and continue their tour. Hopefully they’ll all return to Boston soon!