Taking Back Sunday: A Changing Soundtrack
The internet has not been particularly kind to Taking Back Sunday in recent years.
Leading up to this show, social media was flooded with videos, clips, and memes dissecting every missed lyric, every imperfect note, every performance that didn't quite measure up to memories from twenty years ago. The criticism felt inevitable. After all, more than two decades have passed since Taking Back Sunday became one of the defining voices of a generation. Lineup changes happened. Life happened. Time happened.
Nobody escapes that. Not you. Not me.
After I arrived at the historic Newport Music Hall, I was surprised by just how quickly the venue had filled. It was a later-starting show. Bayside wasn't scheduled to take the stage until 8 p.m., but by 7:30 most of the floor was already occupied. The room buzzed with anticipation. Not nostalgia exactly. Something more complicated than that.
Bayside opened the evening with the confidence of a band that knows exactly who they are. Their set pulled from across their long and storied catalog, and the crowd responded accordingly. Songs were sung back at the stage with conviction. Every chorus seemed to unlock another layer of excitement in the room. By the time they walked offstage, the audience was ready.
Then the lights dropped.
Unexpectedly, the opening notes of The Lion King theme filled Newport Music Hall.
Whether it was a statement, a joke, or simply something the band found amusing, I couldn't tell you. What I can tell you is that it worked. The crowd erupted immediately. Smiles spread across faces. Friends looked at one another laughing. The energy in the room shifted from anticipation to celebration. Maybe that was the point all along.
Taking Back Sunday emerged in their now-iconic suits as yellow light washed across the stage. Adam approached the mic and offered the crowd a bow, acknowledging all of us that continue to support and show up. The moment the intro ended, they launched directly into "What's It Feel Like to Be a Ghost?" followed by "Liar" and "Set Phasers to Stun."
Three songs in, any concerns about what I had seen online disappeared.
Last summer, former guitarist and vocalist Fred Mascherino returned to fill in while John Nolan was away from the band. When Nolan returned, Mascherino stayed. The result is one of the most interesting live configurations Taking Back Sunday has had in years.
With Adam Lazzara, John Nolan, and Fred Mascherino sharing vocal responsibilities, the songs gain an added richness and complexity. Harmonies feel fuller. The interplay between voices creates new dimensions in familiar material. Songs that fans have heard hundreds of times suddenly reveal something different.
And Adam?
He sounded great.
The viral clips and online commentary were nowhere to be found that night. His voice carried well throughout the room. More importantly, he looked like himself. The signature dance moves were there. The dramatic microphone swings were there. The swagger that has defined Taking Back Sunday performances for over two decades was still alive and well.
What struck me most throughout the night was how little it mattered whether the band sounded exactly like they did in 2004.
They don't.
Of course they don't.
None of us do.
The audience singing along wasn't the same audience that first discovered Tell All Your Friends or Where You Want to Be. They've gotten older. They've built careers. Started families. Lost people. Found people. Changed in ways they never expected.
The band has changed too.
That's not failure. That's life.
For more than twenty years, Taking Back Sunday has been a companion for a lot of people. Not because they remained frozen in time, but because they kept moving forward while their fans did the same.
Walking out of Newport Music Hall, I couldn't help but think about how strange our relationship with music can be. We often want artists to remain exactly as we remember them, preserved like photographs from a better time. But music isn't meant to stand still.
Neither are we.
After more than twenty years of watching Taking Back Sunday do their thing, I'll continue showing up whenever they come through town.
Are they the same band they were twenty years ago?
No.
But we're not the same listeners either.
And maybe that's the point.
The only permanent thing in life is impermanence.
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