May 4th, 2009 
James Shotwell New Found Glory
4/26/2009
Royal Oak Music Theater
Easily my most anticipated tour of the Spring finally rolled through Michigan a week ago. Pop Punk legends New Found Glory headlining with ex-Victory Records rockers Bayside, Epitaph’s Set Your Goals, and Triple Crown [and Detroit native]’s Fireworks. The beautiful Royal Oak Music theater played host to the night of pit inducing chugs and solos, but a lack of front of stage speakers made it difficult to hear anything other than the guitar closest to you in the first 10 or so rows.
Fireworks : I have to admit, this may have been my most anticipated set of the night. Having just released their excellent label debut and being from the area, the crowd swelled as the lights dimmed for the first time of the night. The set consisted of old EP tracks as well as new favorites like, “Detroit,” “I Support Same Sex Marriage,” and, “Closet Weather.” Form what we saw and heard, it went over stunningly and the crowd surfing had no problems getting an early start. This band was made for venues without barricades, but they made it work with plenty interaction and energy. One of the best opening sets I’ve seen in a long time.
Set Your Goals: Finally! It’s taken me quite some time to see this band outside of Warped Tour and they did not disappoint. This is a peak time for the band as their new record finally drops this Summer and the reissue of their debut has had time to sink into a new audience. The old tracks were fast and well done, but it was the new tracks that truly seemed to capture the audience. “Summer Jam,” a track about being on the road [no surprise their for a Sophomore record] really brings the fun of their brand of pop punk to the masses. Be prepared for them to explode.
Bayside: Free agents for the first time in six years, Bayside took the stage with an arsenal of high energy material. Straying from the single, “No One Understands,” to the more rock driven, “Boy,” and, “Rashambo,” from their last record Shudder, the band dipped into each record equally and, as with all six times I’ve seen them, lit the stage, crowd, heck, the city ablaze with their rock driven punk music. If you haven’t seen Bayside, might I say, it’s a must.
Now onto Grant for the headliner:
New Found Glory: The pinnacle of the show was New Found Glory coming to the stage. Everyone yelled and hollered excitedly while they started their set with their signature fast paced intro. In the midst of the hyped up crowd moshing and tearing to get to the front of the stage I was able to enjoy NFG playing some of my favorite classics like “My Friends Over You” and “Hit or Miss”. They also were able to incorporate multiple tracks from their new album Not Without a Fight. They loved to interact with the crowd by telling some funny stories and making some hilarious observations. Truly a solid set list of quality songs to sing along, have a good time and crowd surf to. A+ for NFG
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