On July 13th, The-All American Rejects performed at the State Fair here in Turlock. With a setlist seemingly spanning aspects of their whole discography, the show functioned as an epic throwback to both middle and high-school for me and probably even further for others given that they started releasing music back in 2002.
Lead vocalist Tyson Ritter made it a point to make the show as entertaining as he could, joking between songs and even bringing an audience member on stage, continuing the fun going so far as to suggest just hopping the gate.
The show opened with, I believe the song “My Paper Heart,” also performing songs like “It Ends Tonight,” and “Move Along,” shifting the pacing as they deemed fit. We also can’t forget the addition of “Beekeeper's Daughter” and “Mona Lisa(When the World Comes Down)”, and I have to admit, I loved the throwbacks and may or may not have sung along to virtually the entire show. I admit nothing and yet feel no shame.
The audience itself was fairly large and expressive, happy to sing along to their favorite songs, most staying standing the entire show whether they had a seat or not. The sheer mixture of people who wandered down to witness the band’s performance was great to see.
And what better way to close out the show than one of their most well known songs, “Gives You Hell”. A song that for their own entertainment they nearly convinced the audience they wouldn’t play. When they came on with it, the audience essentially raged on. It seemed like everyone knew the lyrics and knew it was time to sing along whether they had been during the rest of the show or not. It was epic to witness, and I was happy to sit around my co-editor Brittany who you likely know from this journal.
If you haven’t listened to the band in a while, or even at all, but are a fan of the pop-punk genre I can happily suggest that you check them out. You can easily find their music on Youtube or Spotify.