YELLOWCARD Conquers Texas!

My inner teenager is screaming about seeing Yellowcard at Dos Equis Pavilion in on August 1st in Dallas. Of course everyone knows Ocean Avenue –it’s a pop-punk classic and it was every bit as hard hitting as you would imagine it to be. That track happens to be celebrating its 20th anniversary this year!

The sun was just getting ready to set as the boys got ready to take the stage on a brutally hot Texas summer evening after ARIZONA opened the show. It may have been steamy out, but Yellowcard was ready to freaking go!

They started the set with “Lights and Sounds”, “Cut Me, Mick”, and “Only One”(pop-punk classic)–a solid opening if you ask me. I could feel the energy of the crowd filling everyspace singing along to Only One–a true “emo” knows what I’m talking about.The pure nostalgia was felt vividly across the arena.

Sean Mackin caught my eye the most with his eccentric performance on the violin. Josh Portman on the bass was giving serious gym bro meets your new favorite guy energy, serving absolute looks. Ryan Mendez on guitar was shredding my emo heart to bits. While Jimmy Brunkvist was laying it down on the drums, Ryan key delivered glorious pop-punk vocals while killing it on the guitar.

The boys soared through bangers “Southern Air”and “Transmission Home” from their latest album released this year: A Hopeful Sign. “One Bedroom” and “Lift a Sail” from the 2014 record Lift a Sail cut through as the audience, fully captivated, sang along to every lyric.

Title track “Childhood Eyes” from 2023 EP followed with energy to fuel a 727. It gave a new perspective to our collective, millennial existential crisis. Deep-cuts “Keeper” followed by “Be The Young” from the 2011 album When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes truly bodied the vivacity of Yellowcard –each player completely in tune with each other like they’d never spent a day not performing together. Continuing with 2016 single “The Hurt Is Gone” , the band reeled everyone in, particularly with Sean on the violin and Ryan’s cutting vocals for a softer turn in vibes.

Lifting the mood and rounding out Yellowcard’s performance was a pop-punk CLASSIC. The entire audience roared at the opening TWO SECONDS of “Ocean Avenue”. Simply… iconic. Everywhere I looked, someone was singing along at the top of their lungs. Childhood and adult emos were healed all-around.

There’s a place off Ocean Avenue and it is coming up in EUROPE! Catch Yellowcardon tour November 12-24 to fulfill your pop-punk fantasy and check out their latest album A Hopeful Sign for some new bangers!

Photos by Jessica Fagan- ZRockR Magazine 2024- All Rights Reserved