This Wild Life’s recent headliner, Tour Story, has now come to a close. Featuring support from fellow Vans Warped Tour veterans Broadside and rising artists Worry Club and Not My Weekend, attendees had a range of deep cuts and new music to enjoy.
Broadside’s song-writing is high energy and high emotion, and their tight 30-minute set was right on par with what fans can expect from the studio recordings. Opening with “One Last Time,” vocalist Oliver Baxxter got fans chanting along with the chorus right out the gate. They kept the momentum going with “Coffee Talk,” the cornerstone single off their first album, “Dazed & Confused,” a Hotel Bleu fan favorite, and “Cruel.” The mid-set slow-down allowing the band to catch their breath consisted of ukulele love song, “I Love You, I Love You, It’s Disgusting,” and slow-burn ballad “Bleu.” This selection felt especially special, as this was Broadside’s hometown show with multiple family members in the crowd, including the muse of these songs, Baxxter’s fiancée. The emotional build in the final chorus of “Bleu” brought the energy back up to a caliber appropriate to close out the set with power-packed key songs off their last record, “Heavenly” and “Foolish Believer.”
Broadside has been around for some time now, with their debut record, Old Bones, having been released eight years ago. Their upward trajectory continued with Paradise, but dwindled with their third album, Into The Raging Sea. Emerging out of the depths of Raging Sea, the band have experienced a resurgence of fan support with Hotel Bleu, released just last month. Singles leading up to the album release featured singers of bands newer to the scene, including Brian Butcher of The Home Team, Joshua Roberts of Magnolia Park, and Devin Papadol of Honey Revenge. Broadside’s music never fails to evoke deep emotion in the listener, but now older, wiser, and on the other side of a loved one’s cancer diagnosis, the writing in this album hits that much harder.
Broadside and This Wild Life’s combined efforts in bringing artists together have created a supportive community among rising talent in the industry, and this feeling of togetherness filled the room at each stop on the Tour Story. Broadside needs your support now more than ever, as their trailer was broken into the morning after the tour ended. Leftover tour merch is available on their webstore, and tickets to their 2024 tours are available for purchase now. Fans in the United Kingdom can look forward to the Hotel Bleu experience in February when Broadside are touring in support of Between You & Me on the Shit Yeah Tour. If you’re in the United States, be sure to support them this Spring in what will be some of the largest venues they’ll have ever played as they open for Our Last Night on The Covers Only Tour. Let’s show a band who has done nothing but spread positivity and support in the scene how we in the music-loving community can support them back.
