Sometimes all it takes is one song for you to immediately fall in love with a band. My ~one song~ for The Get Up Kids was ‘Maybe.’ I heard ‘Maybe’ in late June and was stoked to see they were coming to Boston in July as I gobbled up their entire discography. On July 11th, I attended my 1st Get Up Kids show and it was one of the most uplifting experiences. 

To kick off the stacked night, Ageist and Racquet Club spent about 30 minutes a piece warming up the crowd. Both bands were successful in keeping the audience engaged & energized as The Get Up Kids prepared backstage. Ageist and Racquet Club hold a similar energy to The Get Up Kids; a dynamic punk vibe fit to underscore aimless summer bike rides with your best friend. As the stage was being set for the final act of the night, folks hurried to squeeze in final drinks and merch table visits.

When The Get Up Kids took the stage, it felt like a homecoming. The band was met with lengthy applause as they launched into the set. Each member looked beyond stoked to be on stage and were more than ready to bring to life songs from their extensive catalog.

A memorable moment was when the band decided to play a song they hadn’t played in 17 years but felt it made sense to play ‘the song about Massachusetts’ at the Boston stop of the tour. As the band started ‘A New Found Interest In Massachusetts’ the crowd erupted; lips mouthed every lyric and arms were thrust into the air to punctuate favorite lines. ‘The music is good but the lyrics are juvenile’ said singer Matt Pryor once the song ended. ‘I wrote that song when I was 18; imagine people wanting you to sing something you wrote at 18 when you’re 41.’

The show was a perfect balance of revisiting the past as well as celebrating the band’s future with their new EP out in the world. As the show ended and the lights came up, you could see that ~post show glow~ on every audience member’s face. Groups of fans were quick to indulge in reminiscence; noting favorite moments while trying to figure out what lyric had ~Instagram caption~ potential. The Get Up Kids are more than alright, they’re in peak form and the future looks luminous for the Kansas City gents.