As It Is returns to Chicago with a bang after years on hiatus
With resounding applause and raucous screams, fans welcomed As It Is back to Chicago after a two-year-long hiatus. The UK-based pop-punk group played the Bottom Lounge on November 12, celebrating the 10 year anniversary of their debut album Never Happy, Ever After.
“We have never been so fucking back,” frontman Patty Walters said from the stage. The group embarked on their first U.S. tour in years with Bearings and Cherie Amour.
CHERIE AMOUR
Cherie Amour opened up the show with their unique mix of rock and R&B. Vocalist Trey Miller, guitarists Casey Reid and Brendan Willis, and drummer Ronnie Sherman blend together dance beats, melodic riffs, and smooth vocals with the juxtaposition of heavier, rougher guitars and drums.
The Baltimore-based band engaged the crowd, encouraging them to dance by dancing themselves. Miller introduced a move they dubbed “the jellyfish” where they waved their arms and rolled their bodies to mimic a jellyfish swimming, Reid and Willis shared a more traditional twirl, and they all danced around with maracas and tambourines.
BEARINGS
Bearings was next to the stage, bringing with them a classic pop-punk sound. The group was promoting their latest album Comfort Company, released November 7. The group, hailing from Ottawa, showed off their latest work, starting the set with three tracks from the LP.
The crowd kicked off as the band jumped into their track “Sway,” off their 2020 album Hello, It’s You. Vocalist Dougie Cousins, guitarist Ryan Culligan, bassist Collin Hanes, and drummer Mike McKerracher commanded the crowd, giving them a taste of what was to come with As It Is up next.
Between sets, I chatted with some of the other photographers there capturing the show and learned that for one of them it was her first time in the photo pit. She shared that she had her camera at the pre-show meet and greet, intending to just shoot the show from the crowd, and the band was kind enough to secure a photo pass for her.
I was almost more excited for her to shoot the show than myself.
Almost.
AS IT IS
As It Is opened their set with a burst of energy, the crowd and Walters screaming out, “Why should I stick around when all I do is let you down?,” the opening lyrics of Never Happy, Ever After’s first track, “Speak Soft.”
Moments like that are what make being in the photo pit a still surreal experience for me. Walters mentioned throughout the set that they played this same venue 10 years prior. While I wasn’t at that particular show, I saw As It Is back in 2017 at an equally intimate venue in Chicago. I remember how ecstatic I was to scream out these same lyrics back then. Turns out it feels just as satisfying to scream them out while in the photo pit, and even more surreal to have them screamed back at me mere inches away.
That excitement resonated throughout the venue, with Walters, guitarist and vocalist Benjamin Biss, drummer Patrick Foley, and bassist Alistair Testo all sharing smiles throughout the set. The group played Never Happy, Ever After front to back, save for moving the hit track “Dial Tones” to the end of the album playthrough.
They jumped right into the second half of their set playing their newest release “Lose Your Way & Find Yourself.” It offers a fitting contrast to Never Happy, Ever After, which is full of self-depreciating themes based on the thoughts we have about ourselves when we’re at our worst and lowest. The latest single is full of optimism, taking lessons from those low points and highlights the bravery needed to ask for help.
The track serves as apt proof of growth over these ten years since the band's debut, both for As It Is and their fans. Even after all this time and all that we’ve all been through, we all chose to gather for this show to celebrate music and community.
“Thank you for keeping the spark of this band alive so we could come back all these years later,” Walters said.
As It Is’ debut album Never Happy, Ever After from 2015 and their latest single “Lose Your Way & Find Yourself” are available on all streaming services.