New Found Glory with Saves The Day, Hellogoodbye, and Fireworks

Posted 10 February 2010 Live Music Review, Music News

February 9, 2010

Revolution Live, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Written by Kate Dingle

It’s been a while since hometown favorites New Found Glory have graced a South Florida stage. The last time they played for locals was an “unplanned” performance at Solid Sounds Studios in Pompano during rehearsals for their tour with Dashboard Confessional (that eventually got cancelled).

I had heard the show was sold out, but inside Revolution Live it didn’t feel that way. As usual, it wouldn’t be that way for very long.

Michigan based quintet Fireworks started the night off with a bang. The faster drummer Tymm Rengers pushed the tempo, the more the crowd jumped and screamed for more. By the time the punkers got around to playing crowd favorite “Detroit”, bodies were flying and heads were banging. But just as soon as the energy got cranked up, the time had come to say goodbye to Fireworks.

Taking the stage after a short break was Huntington Beach based power pop group Hellogoodbye. Throughout their set, the Hellogoodbye guys flexed their musical muscles by utilizing a variety of instruments including a ukelele and a mandolin. Personally, I was hoping for a number featuring the spoons, but I guess we can’t always win. Their set was a bit more relaxed than that of Fireworks, but just as good. Fusing popy punk with a little rockabilly, the crowd was given a chance to catch their breath and re-energize for Saves The Day and (ultimately) New Found Glory. However, when given the opportunity, the crowd did come to life for “When We First Met” and “Baby, It’s Fact”.

By the time Saves The Day emerged from the wings, the building was getting a bit restless. It was apparent that everyone was there to jump around, and the Princeton, New Jersey quartet provided the soundtrack for things to get moving again. Their set was jam packed with fan favorites and crowd sing-a-longs. The set list spanned nearly their entire career and included “Anywhere With You”, “Sound The Alarm”, and “Freakish”.

After what seemed like the longest setup ever, the house lights went down and the curtains were drawn. But instead of storming the stage to some punk anthem, the New Found Glory boys unveiled themselves to “Party In The USA” by Miley Cyrus. Getting right to work, the South Florida natives opened the show with “Dressed To Kill”. Immediately, the crowd came to life and all of the standard operating procedures of any NFG show were implemented. Bodies began being pushed to the front of the stage while everyone else moshed and jumped along with band members Chad Gilbert, Jordan Pundik, Steve Klein, and Ian Grushka.

In honor of 2010 being the ten year anniversary of the release of their self titled album, the quintet played the album in its entirety. When addressing the crowd, Gilbert expressed how special it was for them to play this album in the same town in which they wrote it while they were in high school. It was obviously a sentimental night for the group as they played for a sold out crowd in their hometown.

New Found Glory has had their fair share of traumatic events over the past few months. From the hospitalization of Jordan Pundik’s mother to the cancer scare that Chad Gilbert recently overcame, New Found Glory has risen above it all stronger and better than ever. Tuesday’s show solidified NFG as punk rock royalty that has no intention of slowing down. These hometown heroes returned to the place where it all started and delivered a performance that really meant something to band members and fans alike.

Photos by Christina Mendenhall