Dan “Soupy” Campbell has the charisma of a young, spirited boxer. Onstage—the proverbial boxing ring—his scrappy attitude manifests in jumps and microphone hand-offs, but he still possesses the hunger to fight the heavyweights.
The thing is—he, and the Pennsylvania pop punk stalwarts have already joined those ranks.
“Vegas, here’s what’s gonna happen. We’re gonna do a set like this, then we’re gonna leave for a while. Then, we’re gonna come back and do something much louder,” he said after a slow-burning acoustic rendition of “Washington Square Park.”
Through two satisfying sets covering nearly 15 years as a band, The Wonder Years delivered a package of performances with varying intensity and ripe enthusiasm. And, judging from singalongs, pile-ons, and consistent crowd surfing throughout the night, it proved that Las Vegas loves the band holistically.
The first of two sets honed-in on the band’s musicianship and songwriting prowess. It was entirely acoustic—a move to promote the flavors of Burst & Decay, Vol. II. The set was discography-spanning. Soupy and co. traded the speedy punk fury of “Coffee Eyes” for twinkly guitars and skittering hi-hats, and guitarist Nick Steinborn turned the venue into a makeshift cathedral with pummeling organs during “A Song for Ernest Hemingway.” The setting also gave Soupy, modestly dressed in a windbreaker and Nikes, the opportunity to surface some anecdotes about songs. “We wrote this as a live band, but I like it much more when we play it this way. It’s called, ‘Hoodie Weather.’”
Through these acoustic renditions, it was the songs’ textures that stood out, and the sextet was cognizant of that. This shined through during fan-favorite “We Look Like Lightning” where the instrumental climax saw the group in united syncopation: Drummer Mike Kennedy’s brush rolls provided the foundation as the rest of the band strummed vigorously; ominous green lights focused on Soupy as he sang, “What song do you want to die to?” It was an obvious highlight of the set, and perhaps, the night. From there, the band closed this set with fan favorites.
In a rare performance of “Living Room Song,” Soupy turned his mic stand to the crowd, who belted lyrics as if Fremont Country Club were their own living rooms, shared amongst dozens of friends. He refrained from making “dumb Vegas wedding jokes” during set closer “You in January”—referencing bands who would make corny Fresh Prince of Bel-Air jokes while passing through Philadelphia. “If you want to propose to somebody—and someone really did a few days ago—now’s the time to do it.”
After a 30-minute intermission, the band returned with a surge of energy. “Alright, y’all. It’s time to do the damn thing,” Soupy said. From there, it was classic, vintage The Wonder Years in all its rowdy glory. The band launched into the driving melodies of “I Don’t Like Who I Was Then,” and as Soupy swung his mic like a lasso, a packed house reciprocated that energy by singing and jumping along. The band’s second set was career-spanning, too; from the somber, mid-tempo musings of “Pyramid of Salt,” to the upbeat prowess of now-classic “Melrose Diner” it was clear that this was the band’s comfort zone. Each of the six members had mics placed in them, and they were utilized during harmonies on songs like “Sister Cities” and others.
Soupy’s scrappy nature came in full force when the band hit the punk wallop of “The Bastards, The Vultures, The Wolves” from the band’s 2013 effort, The Greatest Generation. Through the song’s four-minute runtime, the stagedives kept coming and the moshpit was in full swing. Soupy handed the microphone to various fans brave enough to make it over the venue’s security barrier. It was a moment of passion that, while subjective, demonstrated that, indeed, this generation really believed in that sentiment.
-Ian Caramanzana
Photos by Hunter Wallace | https://www.flickr.com/photos/hunter_wallace/
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