Pop Break Live: Taking Back Sunday ‘6th Annual Holiday Spectacular’ with Modern Chemistry and Dave Hause & The Mermaid at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ.
Words & Photos by Willy Mellott
With Christmas right around the corner, Taking Back Sunday returned to Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey for their Sixth Annual Holiday Spectacular. The event featured back to back nights of full sets and a pop up shop with the opportunity for fans to take photos with the band and Santa, as well as an acoustic set from the band.
The weekend long event started on Friday, December 13 with a packed venue. Jersey band Modern Chemistry and Philly rocker Dave Hause and the Mermaid started off the night. The usual house music between sets was replaced with holiday music to set the mood. Also, lit Christmas trees surrounded the stage and Taking Back Sunday took the stage in Christmas sweaters.
The band started the night with “Tidal Wive” and kept the hits coming all night. Aside from celebrating the holidays, Taking Back Sunday is also celebrating 20 years of being a band with the release of a new album this year entitled Twenty. The 21-track collection features songs from all seven of their full albums as well as two new tracks. Through out the concert, lead singer Adam Lazzara swung the microphone around by the cord as he moved around the stage. Some highlights from the night were “Set Phasers to Stun” and “Cute Without The ‘E’” which had fans singing along. Lazzara took time between songs to give some insight about them and memorable stories from performing with the band for the past twenty years.
As the night was winding down, Lazzara joked that guitarist John Nolan would stay in the venue all night playing Pearl Jam covers until the pop up show the following afternoon. Even though fans seemed to like the idea, the night did have to come to an end. They ended the night with their hit single from 2006 “MakeDamnSure.” As the band played, snowflake shaped confetti fell to close out the night.
Setlist:
What’s It Feel Like To Be A Ghost?
Tidal Wave
Liar (It Takes One To Know One)
El Paso
Timberwolves At New Jersey
Death Wolf
Flicker, Fade
Set Phasers to Stun
A Decade Under The Influence
All Excess
My Blue Heaven
Cute Without the ‘E’ (Cut From the Team)
Call Me in the Morning
You Can’t Look Back
Twenty-Twenty Surgery
All Ready to Go
You’re So Last Summer
Better Homes and Gardens
This Photograph Is Proof (I Know You Know)
MakeDamnSure
