Pop Break Live: Hanson at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, PA – September 28, 2017
Words + Photos by Staci Altomari
Hanson’s 25th Anniversary Middle of Everywhere Tour stopped at the Fillmore in Philadelphia last week to play to a sold-out crowd.
The band released a greatest hits album of the same title over the summer and have been playing sets packed with songs from every era of their lengthy discography. While the world may know them solely for their contagious mid-90s “MMMBop,” the boys from Tulsa never stopped performing and recording for an unwavering and dedicated fan base, a passionate group that, largely, grew up with them these past 25 years. Fans at the show shared with this author their stories of Hanson-inspired tattoos and their children at home named after Hanson songs (“Madeline”).
The band, unaccompanied by an opening act, dives straight into a 28-song 2+ hour set that flawlessly flows through tracks from on all six studio albums, two covers, their 2017 summer single “I was Born” and a new, unrecorded song titled “On and On.” While the tour is in support of a “greatest hits” album, this Hanson show is not fueled strictly by nostalgia. The songs written years (or decades) ago have aged gracefully, like their authors, to take on new meaning and form.
Time is an austere judge of music, sentencing the one-hit wonders to an early grave while the true believers soldier forward. Over 25 years, Hanson has proven themselves to be a band of soldiers, delivering timeless rock and roll that never loses its shine. Whether you’re a long time fan or a curious music lover- this is a tour that shouldn’t be missed.
Setlist: (credit: setlist.fm)
Already Home
Waiting For This
Where’s The Love
Look At You
Tragic Symphony
Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’
Been There Before
This Time Around
Weird
Go
Madeline
Juliet
Strong Enough To Break
Penny & Me
Watch Over Me
Save Me
On and On
I Was Born
A Minute Without You
Get The Girl Back
Hey
MMMBop
If Only
Fired Up
In The City
Encore:
Rockin’ Robin (Bobby Day cover)
Johnny B. Goode (Chuck Berry cover)
Lost Without Each Other
