One of the surprise tours of 2019 was Anberlin hitting the road once more during Summer 2019. After 5 years of being away from their farewell tour in 2014, Anberlin gathered together once more for a group of shows over the summer. But, those in the Central FL area got another special opportunity when the band performed at House of Blues Orlando on December 20, 2019. And it was a show to remember. The sold-out venue barely had breathing room, let alone room to move. But the fans there were amped up and excited to see them hit the stage once more. Before they came out to perform, the fans were treated to some truly special openers.
First up was Carrollhood out of Tampa, FL. The band is a side project of Tim McTague (guitar, vocals) of Underoath, Nathan Young (keyboards, vocals) of Anberlin, and Reed Murray (drums) of Say Anything. The band formed around 2011 releasing two EPs titled Afraid and Violence. Unlike the music of the three bands, Carrollhood falls more into the techno-pop-rock vibe. Their stage setup was heavily covered in fog and with dark lighting on stage with some bright lights emanating off the drumset. What the fans couldn’t see was made up for in the music. Though most of the music is filled with serenity, it had its moments of heaviness ready to breakthrough. The crowd appeared to enjoy the short set from the band and we’ll have to see if any new music will be coming soon.
Next to the stage was the band Loose Talk. The band from St. Petersburg, FL was formed by Anberlin members Christian McAlhaney (vocals, guitar) and Deon Rexroat (bass) after during tours with Anberlin but focused more on producing music once Anberlin had their final tour. The band released a self-titled EP in 2016 with 4 songs and are currently working on new music. When they hit the stage Christian walked up to the mic stating, “Hi, we’re Anberlin”, which gathered laughs and cheers from the crowd. The opened up with “Goin’ Down South” showing off a great rock-blues sound and Christian’s solid vocals for the music. They followed that up with “Break The Boy” also from their EP. The crowd was definitely getting into their music and it was easy to see why. Their music is catchy and sweeps you up right away to groove along with them. The band brought up a guest singer named Geri X also from St. Petersburg, FL. Loose Talk played a new song called “Change” and between their music and Geri X’s vocals, it was perfect. They also performed their latest single “Iron Heel”. Unfortunately, it was a short set from Loose Talk and the fans seemed sad to see them go off stage. I’m looking forward to hearing new music from them soon.
You can find their music and merchandise HERE. Their setlist that night was:
- Goin’ Down South
- Break the Boy
- Change (with Geri X)
- Another Place
- Iron Heel
- Time Is Not on Your Side
Next up was William Ryan Key from Jacksonville, FL. He was the vocalist for Yellowcard from 2000-2017. After the band retired, he focused on his own solo career releasing an EP titled Virtue. He also worked on the script for the Marvel Comic Edge of Venomverse #4. Tonight, he was here to perform for the Orlando crowd. He came out on stage to bright lights and an acoustic guitar in hand. He introduced himself and explained how he was planning to perform some of his original music that night, but there were scheduling difficulties getting a crew together. So instead, he reached out to Peter Mosely, former bassist for Yellowcard and a long time friend of William, to see if Peter was interested in performing with him at this House of Blues Orlando show. It had been a while since they performed together so Peter said yes and here they were on stage together. And because of the rare opportunity, William announced they would be performing all songs from Yellowcard that night. To say the crowd reaction was loud was an understatement. It was deafening. I had goosebumps from the cheers of the crowd and finally getting an opportunity to hear Yellowcard songs performed live.
William and Peter were having fun on stage from the first song of “Empty Apartment”. Hearing the songs stripped down acoustically with nothing more than the two of them on guitars was simply beautiful. And the fans were singing along as loud as they could. And with additions like “Like Up The Sky” and “Only One” the fans were loving every minute of their performance. Once again, it was a short set, but William Ryan Key closed out with the best song in “Ocean Avenue”. You can find William Ryan Key‘s music and merchandise HERE. His setlist that night was:
- Empty Apartment
- Rough Landing, Holly
- Light Up The Sky
- Way Away
- With You Around
- Lights and Sounds
- Only One
- Ocean Avenue
Finally, the headliners Anberlin were ready to take the stage. The band from Winter Haven, FL formed in 2002 and a year later they released their first album Blueprints for the Black Market in 2003. The album had mixed reviews. Their follow-up Never Take Friendship Personal released in 2005 and had stellar reviews from critics and fans, even charting on the Billboard 200. It was the start to the band’s major success, especially with their third album Cities in 2007 that charted at #19 on the Billboard 200 and within the Top 10 of a few of the other Billboard charts. Anberlin would go on to release four additional albums. Their seventh studio album Lowborn from 2014 would end up being their last as the band called it quits doing one final tour and finishing it at House of Blues Orlando on November 26, 2014. Four years later, the band reunited for Underoath‘s Erase Me tour on December 14, 2018 in Tampa, FL. And then in 2019 announced a 22 stop summer tour. And then playing this one off show at House of Blues Orlando. When Stephen Christian (vocals), Joseph Milligan (lead guitar), Deon Rexroat (bass), Nathan Young (drums), and Christian McAlhaney (rhythm guitar) hit the stage, the fans applauded, screamed, cheered, and made it clearly known how pleased they were to see Anberlin back on stage.
Anberlin opened with “Godspeed” from Cities with such energy, passion, and vigor I’ve never seen in a band before. They were determined to show the fans though they’ve been gone for a while, they didn’t lose a step in their performance. They followed up with “Never Take Friendship Personal” the title track for their second album. As they made their way through their setlist, the fans sang along, which made Stephen stop at some points to let the crowd carry the song. He looked happy, smiling wide hearing the fans sing their music back to the band. During their performance of “(The Symphony of) Blasé”, they had a violinist and cellist perform on stage with them. It was a beautifully done performance. They stayed on stage for their songs. Right before they performed “The Haunting” from their Godspeed EP in 2006, Stephen talked to the crowd on how he truly wished he had that song added to Cities but didn’t feel confident in his own work. The song was written while he was hanging out with his brother at the University of Central Florida one evening. If you’ve never heard the song, it is a must-listen track that is beautifully written and performed. Anberlin provided the fans with a huge twenty-one song setlist that night and wrapping up with their #1 single “Feel Good Drag” and encoring with (*Fin). You can find their music and merchandise HERE. Anberlin‘s setlist that night was:
- Godspeed
- Never Take Friendship Personal
- Paperthin Hymn
- Hello Alone
- Time & Confusion
- A Day Late
- Impossible
- (The Symphony of) Blasé
- Inevitable
- Take Me (As You Found Me)
- The Haunting
- The Unwinding Cable Car
- Art of War
- Other Side
- We Are Destroyer
- Self-Starter
- Someone Anyone
- The Resistance
- Dismantle.Repair.
- Feel Good Drag
- (*Fin) – Encore
This was a once in a lifetime experience with a group of talented musicians and fans who truly appreciated the music these artists performed. It was an experience I won’t forget any time soon.
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