Pop-Break Live: Blink-182 Re-Opens The Wellmont Theater

Montclair was lit up with excitement this past Friday night. Not only was it the reopening of the Wellmont Theater but also the first night of Blink-182’s latest tour. I could just feel the positive energy as everyone was walking into the Theater.

Blink-182 is at a point in their career where they can sell out arenas. Instead, they decided to treat their diehard fans to intimate shows at theaters and clubs. I’ve seen Blink a handful of times but never at a venue like this. It was a one of a kind experience.

The show started off with New Beat Fund, a young band who was just as pumped as everyone else to see Blink. For a fairly unknown band, they did a great job of getting the crowd engaged and keeping it fun. After a quick and entertaining set, it was time for the kings of pop punk to arrive.

The lights dimmed and the crowd lit up as Mark, Tom, and Travis took the stage. They dove right in with “Feeling This” and powered through a 22 song set filled with hits. It was a perfect mix of the old, the new, the hits, and the others.

This was a special night. This was a show for the true fans of Blink-182. Every person there was smiling and having fun, whether they were 15 or 45. I’ve been to plenty of shows but never one where everyone was so happy to be there. The crowd was happy to hear any song that came on, whether it was from Dude Ranch or Neighborhoods and that was so cool to see. My personal favorites were “Wishing Well”, “Dumpweed”, and “Always”. But the crowd truly lit up when they played the classics like “First Date”, “All the Small Things”, “Dammit”, and “Carousel.”

Wellmont Theater really came back with a bang on Friday and I was honored to be there. I’m excited to see what’s next for the venue. It was quite an intimate show for Blink-182 and their fans and I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like when they hit Starland on Tuesday.

Setlist:
– Feeling This
– Up All Night
– Rock Show
– What’s My Age Again
– Dogs Eating Dogs
– Down
– Miss You
– Wishing Well
– Disaster
– Dumpweed
– Always
– Violence
– After Midnight
– First Date
– Hearts All Gone
– Man Overboard
– Ghost on the Dance Floor
– All the Small Things
– Josie