Celebrating milestone moments with classic albums has become a staple in the touring world and Hawthorne Heights jumped at the chance to recognize the 20th anniversary of If Only You Were Lonely at Tempe’s Marquee Theatre this week. The midwest rock band has been a constant, consistent presence in the scene since the early 2000s and fans of all ages turned up in their vintage merch to breathe new life into such an iconic record.
Before getting to the main event, British rock group Creeper emerged from the darkness clad in their all black threads and signature face paint to get the room warmed up. They had plenty of diehard fans in the room already and they put on a show worthy of the trip across the pond. Vocalist Will Gould was magnetic in his showmanship, occasionally sharing the mic with Hannah Greenwood to the delight of the audience. Their set was brief but undeniably memorable and the energy from the performance fired up the crowd for the storm about to take the stage.
Letlive is back from the dead (for a little while now) but seeing them back in front of an audience never fails to elicit well-placed exuberance in the pit. Jason Aalon Butler remains the only constant and original member of the group and he led the band’s version of protest music with an unguarded and frankly unhinged energy. From dousing himself with water and sliding across the stage to climbing across the crowd and onto the venue’s balcony, fans hardly knew where to look as the set went on. It was an experience unlike any other on the night’s lineup and the crowd was all breathless smiles after such a whirlwind experience.
The subdued buzz in the crowd crescendoed when Hawthorne Heights walked onstage for the full album play of If Only You Were Lonely. Fans sang along to every song from an album that has made its way onto every emo nite playlist and has remained a solid constant for the last two decades. The band hasn’t lost a single step in all that time and they performed the album with the same energy that fans have come to expect and revel in every time they tour. After the album celebration came to a close, the group re-emerged for an encore of the hits, ending the night with “Ohio is for Lovers” and sending the audience home ready to celebrate the next twenty years and beyond.
