Pop Break Live: The Wonder Years ‘Wheel of Rarities’ Tour at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, PA on December 19, 2024
The Wonder Years, a pop-punk band from the Philadelphia suburbs in Lansdale, PA played to a hyped up crowd on December 19th at the Fillmore in Philadelphia. The band is beloved in this tri-state area so it was no surprise the show was sold out and that they added another show for the 20th.
Fronted by singer/songwriter Dan Campbell, the band has a reputation for putting on high octane energetic sets and they did not disappoint. The show opened with the Philly anthem song “Came out Swinging” and that they did. It’s not very often a band asks the crowd to sing a part of the song solo so early on in a set but the fans happily obliged. With fists in the air they sang loudly. It set the tone for what was to come. A lot of their songs have relatable lyrics so I was not surprised how vocal these fans were throughout the set.
The set was a nice mix of new and old songs. The crowd was treated to at least seven rarities that are not often played. They had a wheel spinner on stage with the names of the songs that they consider rarities so during their set they’d spin the wheel. The songs that were landed on were “Threadbare,” “I was Scared & I’m Sorry,” “Chaser,” “My Geraldine Lies Over the Delaware,” “Hoodie Weather,” “Solo & Chewey: Holdin it Down” and “Living Room Song.” They also surprised the crowd by having founding member Mikey Kelly join them on stage.
Campbell mentioned healthcare in our country briefly prior to singing “Cigarettes & Saints.” He said he is still in pain from an abdominal surgery he had recently. He said I know what you are thinking and why would I have the surgery so close to the beginning of a tour. He said it had to do with his deductible and something has to be done. The crowd cheered.
Campbell also told the story on how the opportunity to write a song for the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) came about. Their song “Year of the Vulture” was the theme song for Stand & Deliver — a premium live event for their developmental brand, NXT. It’s an in your face type of song and this crowd ate it up when they then played it. It was one of the highlights of the show. He also professed they are the luckiest band on the planet to have the fans they have. Campbell said that if he were to estimate how many people in the Fillmore did not know at least one of their songs it would probably be only five as the audience was singing along on every single song. I think he was right.
I had never seen the band before and they definitely lived up to the hype. The night was was made even more special by this joyous crowd. It looked like like they were having the time of their lives as there was constant crowd surfing and circle pits. It turned out to be a very special night of music in Philadelphia.
