Fans gathered to celebrate a milestone in the history of emo and post-hardcore music through a tour organized by Hawthorne Heights in celebration of the 20th anniversary tour for their iconic album, The Silence in Black and White. It drew a crowd of former emos, punks and members of the post-hardcore scene. Some had styles that had evolved with the times, clearly an older alternative. Others can pull out their 2000s wardrobes. A few brought kids.
It wasn’t Warped Tour, but it sure felt like it. As the sun began to set behind a thick curtain of clouds, the anticipation in the air was palpable. The stage was set for a night that would feature performances from some of the most beloved bands in the scene, each bringing their own unique energy to the evening. The lineup, including Emery, Armor for Sleep, Anberlin, and Thursday, was a dream come true for fans who had grown up with these bands as the soundtrack to their lives.
The evening kicked off with Emery. Having the shortest set time of the night, they wasted no time in setting the tone with “The Ponytail Parades.” Despite the muggy conditions, the energy on stage was electric. However, they were soon all drenched in sweat. The setlist, consisting of gems like “Disguising Mistakes With Goodbyes” and “Studying Politics,” deserved more hype than it got. But at that point, the crowd was still sparse, and the sun was still strong. The air was thick with moisture, making a good lungful a bit of a luxury. Emery closed their set with “Walls,” leaving the crowd both exhilarated and ready for what was to come.
Armor for Sleep followed up the act, keeping the energy up. In the case of jobs like live music, it must be more of a sprint than a marathon. The artists gave it their all, knowing that they’d be able to rest after a thirty-minute set played at one hundred and ten percent. A lot of the members of the band had long hair. Surprisingly, it didn’t seem to frizz up too horribly in the wind, rain and humidity. Then again, seeing as the band is from New Jersey, I’m sure they know how to deal.
The air soon became stagnant, with occasional bursts of smoke from stage right providing some semblance of ventilation. The real cooling relief came in the form of fat raindrops that began to fall more steadily. The irony of performing lyrics like “Don’t believe that the weather is perfect the day that you die” during “The Truth About Heaven” was not lost on the band. As a matter of fact, they took it in stride, with Jorgensen even remarking how much better it felt after the rain had helped cool everything down.
The band powered through a set that included fan favorites like “Remember to Feel Real” and “Dream to Make Believe,” the latter of which had the audience singing along with fervor. They closed with “Car Underwater,” announcing that they’d be waiting by the merch booth to meet anyone that wanted to.
Anberlin showed up on the scene fronted by Matty Mullins of Memphis May Fire. But make no mistake, that didn’t stop guitarist Christian McAlhany from stealing the show from stage right, kicking and headbanging with an energy most were having trouble maintaining as consistently.
The band had four lightbars set up like posters on their stage, colors changing with each song, a white drawing of crossed fingers projected on the screen behind them. They opened with “Speak for Yourself” to moderate headbanging from the crowd.
“You shoot your neck… never going back” The crowd shouted during “Two Graves.” The moshing had picked up a bit. Although the floor offered significantly more traction than at other venues, the sweat and rain created enough lubrication that people were sliding against each other like ping pong balls. Carrying crowd surfers became more difficult, forcing smaller people and the less-strong to move to the edges.
“Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,” Mullins said. “This has got to be one of the best shows on tour!” Regardless of how much fun the crowd was having, no one seemed to be happier than Mullins, who joined one of his favorite bands and even got to put out songs with them.
“Thank you guys so very much, what an incredible night,” McAlhany said, taking the microphone for a quick word near the end of the set. “Thank you for roasting with all of us, getting wet with all of us. If you’ve been following this game for a couple years you know we’ve been going through a lot of changes. I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you for pivoting with us.” He then thanked Mullins and the temporary drummer on stage with them, then dove back into the music.
The band closed with their biggest song, “Feel Good Drag,” one to which even people that claimed to not know the band could sing along to.
It was truly nighttime when Thursday took the stage. In general, the band followed the unspoken rule of showing up in all black, save for bassist Tim Payne and frontman Geoff Rickley, dressed in white from head to toe. They came in unceremoniously, almost immediately jumping into a medley of “The Other Side of the Crash/Over and Out (of Control)” in true Jersey fashion. No frills, just music.
“We are Thursday from New Brunswick, New Jersey, thank you for being here tonight,” Rickley said to a significantly hyped audience. “We’re gonna play two different kinds of songs tonight. We’re gonna play some old songs, and we’re gonna play some really fucking old songs. That’s the two speeds you get tonight.” The crowd cheered in appreciation.
“We’re going to play something from an old record called Full Collapse right now. Song called ‘Called Cross out the Eyes.'” This is one of their most well-known songs off the record that had arguably clawed them to the top of their scene in 2002. Oddly, the album wasn’t the darling of the day’s top reviewers, even those most embedded in the scene. Quite the opposite. Fortunately, the people generally don’t need Pitchfork to tell them what to think, as clearly seen by the song’s warm reception.
Thursday is a band that has been through a lot. At one point, they disbanded altogether. There has not been a new album in years, but they did play the newest song they have, written post-hiatus, called “Application for Release from the Dream,” dedicating it to all the bands they were on tour with. You could really hear the way the band’s musicianship had evolved, with such a time jump in between songwriting. Drummer Tucker Rule in particular, who‘d always been a solid drummer in my opinion, showed a big leap in technicality.
Before playing “Understanding in a Car Crash,” Rickly made a pointed reference to their former label, Victory Records for screwing them and then-label mates Hawthorne Heights over.
“We were on the same label as Hawthorne Heights in the early 2000s, a label called Victory Records,” Rickly said. “They’re a hardcore label. The most hardcore thing about Victory Records is they never paid their fucking bands. We know what it’s like to get fucked, and we are still standing in the year 2024. And Victory Records is fucking gone, so fuck them.”
The crowd roared in approval, a collective middle finger to the struggles the band had faced over the years.
The set closed with “War All the Time,” dedicated to Riley Gale of Power Trip, a somber but powerful end to a set that had been a mix of defiance, reflection, and raw emotion.
The night’s headliners took the stage to a large applause following a bit of theatrics. A young woman, dressed in a short white dress and clutching a bouquet of flowers, introduced the band in a nod to the character from the cover of The Silence in Black and White. As the first notes of “Life on Standby” filled the air, the crowd surged forward, eager to experience the album that had defined a generation.
Woodruff was put on a little on edge pretty early on in the set, noticing how things were getting rough in the pit. “What is important tonight is the safety of our fans, and if they’re gonna have fun, get in the fucking pit and save them,” Woodruff said. “That girl almost fell over the pit. Save them.” After the fatherhood in him subsided a bit, the tension in his shoulders seemed to melt back, and he greeted the fans properly.
“For the last 20 years, you guys have been the only reason that we’ve been able to exist,” he said. “Katy, Texas, this is the first time we’ve ever been in your town. And look at you guys. twenty years ago, we all thought we were lost. Your parents were terrified. Our parents were terrified because our hair looked like this. But look at you guys. Now you all look beautiful. You’re all having a great time. Thank you guys so much, We’re Hawthorne Heights, Welcome to 20 years of tears. Let’s pretend like we’re young again. Let’s pretend like we’re having fun again. Let’s forget about the outside world. Let’s let it all melt away, because 2004 starts right fucking now!”
The band’s set was a seamless blend of songs from their debut album, with perfect transitions that kept the energy high. “Dissolve and Decay” and “Niki Fm” followed in quick succession. It was a strange thing to see, but not necessarily in a bad way. Personally, I remember seeing the band in the the heat of a Warped Tour summer, Gripping J.T. Woodruff’s hand during “Nikki Fm” when he sang the song on barrier, occasionally sharing the mic with fans. The energy was still there, the crowd singing every word with the same passion they had twenty years ago, but the intimacy of a smaller band has dissipated.
Despite the challenges posed by prior weather, the band delivered a great performance. Tracks like “Blue Burns Orange” and “Silver Bullet” were met with the same fervor as their more mainstream hits. The night culminated in a powerful performance of “Ohio Is for Lovers,” the band’s most iconic song. The crowd erupted in cheers, their voices rising above the rain as they screamed along to the chorus.
All in all, people in attendance got what they paid for and then some. If you can make it, catch the tour in a city near you.
I am a multimedia journalist with a passion for guitar-based music – be that rock-n-roll, bachata, or anything in between. When not in a mosh pit, I can be found knitting, collecting CDs, thrifting, journaling, or attempting to incite chaos among feuding global powers. I hold a bachelors degree in Broadcast Journalism and a masters degree in Mass Communication from the University of Houston, making me twice the Coog you'll ever be 😉
I am a Houston-based photographer who has been attending concerts since MP3 players were a thing. I graduated from the University of Houston in 2021 with a bachelor's degree in advertising. In my free time, you can find me headbanging at hardcore/rock shows, collecting movies, and training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu!
