A grand total of five years and a half ago (insert how old I feel here, with my rent and my pension plan and my seventeen year old colleague), there was a tour that I had wanted to attend so so badly, but since baby me didn't go to the UK for concerts yet, she couldn't. The tour was Mayday Parade and The Maine, which, as far as emo jammy bands are concerned, hits perfection right in the face.

The year is now 2016 and I am about to attend the second UK edition of that tour. The days that lead to Friday, I am ecstatic but mostly, considering my broken heart situation, I have something to look forward to that isn't getting inexplicably sad at a song on the radio or a name on the record at work. I spend my days listening to American Candy by The Maine and can picture myself doing a dad dance in the venue, and, for five days, this is what I live for.

Beautiful Bodies are already on when I get it, but I don't get to see too much of their set. I can only congratulate Alicia Solombrino on having such a powerful voice, and not much else.


Next up is Have Mercy, and the name is misleading. Raise your pizza in the air if you thought they were a pop punk band with coloured vinyls, plaid shirts and angry finger pointing. I know I did. And they are miles away from it. And I fall in love as hard as my little heart can, hearing the quiet, comforting voice in my head telling me that whatever happens in my life, live music will always be my first and greatest love, and it hits me right in the feelings. More objectively, Have Mercy have something special, something incredible, something we should all stop to listen to. Vocalist Brian Swindle is simply flawless, his voice his jaw dropping, no more, no less. From the first to the last song, I am taken on the band's journey and don't want it to end, ever. Yes, this is an I'll stick around, I like you. And it is also a thank you. You were beautiful.

Next up is The Maine, and when drummer Pat Kirch, bassist Garrett Nickelsen, guitarists Kennedy Brock and Jared Monaco and vocalist John O'Callaghan walk on the stage of the beautiful Troxy, I am, once again, ecstatic. They kick off with the main single extracted from their newest record, 2015's American Candy, English Girls, and I can list you two things that haven't gone away for the following forty-five minutes or so : my atrocious dance moves and the gigantic smile on my face. They had always struck me as a wonderful band, doing their thing without making press conferences on how they had evolved and simply going wherever it was they wanted to go, and Friday night was a demonstration of that. The older tracks (personal favourite Right Girl, super old school Everything I Ask For or 2010's emotional Growing Up) are reworked to fit with the alt pop direction American Candy has taken, and the band on stage is confident, smiling from ear to ear and looking delighted to be here. The set is flawless and the flow of the songs simply makes sense (which is something we don't acknowledge enough). Tracks from American Candy are as stunning live as they are on record - Am I Pretty? is a perfect little pop rock jewel, Diet Soda Society is incredibly powerful and Another Night on Mars sees singalongs and friends celebrating being here, being alive, being together.










The Maine's performance was one to remember, and we should now all stop associating this band with their early emo jammy and Glamour Kills days to allow them to soar and rise like they deserve to.

Oh, Mayday Parade. They're quite good at the whole emo jammy thing, aren't they? Let's be honest, who in this scene hasn't had a dance to any song from the power pop masterpiece that is A Lessons in Romantics? Who hasn't done a cry to Miserable at Best? Who hasn't run to the Florida natives to mend their broken heart? Yeah, knew it. No one. Whether we like it or not, Mayday Parade are a part of all of us.
Tonight, they are in London to play some songs off their new record Black Lines, released in 2015. I'm going to be honest for a second - I haven't listened to it yet. From what I heard live, though, from songs like Hollow or Keep in Mind, Transmogrification Is a New Technology (what does that even mean? Stop being so clever, Derek, will you?), it reminded me of the quite wonderful Anywhere But Here, and that can only be positive.

The setlist largely represents the new baby, but doesn't forget its older brothers with songs like Jamie All Over (a pop punk classic among all pop punk classics), When You See My Friends or the extra dancey Black Cat. Closing with an absolute tune like Jersey is the best possible choice the Florida lot could have made, and treating little emo me to Oh Well, Oh Well was like Christmas and my birthday rolled into one.

Of course, Mayday Parade wouldn't be Mayday Parade without their heart wrenching, sob inducing numbers, and I finally get to hear Terrible Things live. I shed a couple of (or a thousand) tears, and get so into it, diva like, at the "Don't fall in love, there's just too much to lose" part.

I don't know what happened to my phone during Mayday Parade...

However, as far as sad songs and Mayday Parade go, THE number one track everyone wants to hear is Miserable at Best. Extracted from the band's first full length and aforementioned power pop masterpiece, A Lessons in Romantics, it has been the companion of many an emo kid's broken heart. Let's be honest. We have all put "I can live without you but without you I'd be miserable at best" on social media and MSN Messenger names, thinking about our crushes. It was the thing to do. Don't try to deny it.
A couple of years ago, I had seen Mayday Parade play to a packed tent at Slam Dunk South. During Miserable at Best, Derek's microphone had fallen on his piano and the crowd had instantly sung as one while the situation was being sorted out. It remains and will always remain one of the loveliest live moments I have ever witnessed.





Tonight, at the Troxy, just before the last chorus, Derek and drummer Jake Bundrick (assuming the duty of performing former member Jason Lancaster's vocals) leave the stage and leave their adoring crowd to finish the song all by themselves. And yet another lovely Miserable at Best themed moment for the Floridians. I'm not getting tired of them at all. I just wonder what will happen next time. Will the venue be big enough to contain all my tears? Go wonder.


Friday night was a way for Mayday Parade to reassert their place of choice in our scene and a strong reminder that they are a solid band, here to stay. It is the same for The Maine, and their flawless performance will, without a doubt, be in the top of this year's. Finally, Have Mercy have sneakily made their way into my life, and, all in all, I can say that my Friday night at the Troxy was, indeed, very successful.