The 2024 Concert Recap
New Year, New Me. More like, New Year, Surgically Repaired Me.
Once my surgery happens I’ll be out of commission for the better part of winter, with incremental signs of life in spring and early summer. So far we’re at a measly 11 shows, including both days of Stoopfest ‘24 should I choose to go. Fortunately, I have some comedy dates to cheer me up.
I’m really looking forward to Roy Wood Jr and Jordan Klepper. And Stavi twice. It will be my second time seeing RWJ and third seeing songbird Allison Russell.
After the long rest period, we’re back with my brother’s Christmas gift, Fall Out Boy with Jimmy Eat World and Hot Mulligan — who I feel I’ve missed like five times already. Frankly, I’d be disappointed if Jeff Rosenstock doesn’t make my Top 50, and AJR Top 150. Better Lovers is the wildcard. I won’t be fully healed by then, but it should be a pretty wild show.
After that it’s probably time for Summerfest and relearning how to lift weights. Hooray!
DECEMBER UPDATE: WOW. Did not think I’d hit close to 100 but I hit my record, sort of. Didn’t see a few of the shows mentioned above but did hit a groove in September and October with nearly 30 shows. My injury slowed me down for a couple shows in February and March, but once I was back, I was back with a vengeance. I do have one MAJOR regret that may haunt me for a while. I won’t move it to the top of this list, but choosing to work Wheeler Walker Jr over CHAPPELL ROAN is a big fuckup. Sure, there were some mitigating factors, but damn. She’s too big now and I clearly missed another chance at the “I was there when they were here,” moments where working in a smaller venue has its upside.
C = Comedy
123 = Indicates ranking at the time of the show, not overall standing. Click to see the full running list.
January
C. Jay Larson [Olivia Carter]
Jay Larson was hilarious, as was the opener Olivia Carter. Even the Dr. Grins emcee had new material. It was still bad, but at least he’s trying.
127. Allison Russell [Kyshona]
I’ll never not see Russell is she’s in town. I could hate the headliner, but I’ll still buy tickets to see the Québécoise songbird.
C. Roy Wood Jr & Jordan Klepper [Heather Jay]
Started out like a normal comedy show, ended with a Q&A pseudo heckle session. Interesting concept that fits them and Lewis Black, though probably not many others. A great setup if you watch the news, which considering the outcome of the recent election, not many do.
February
379. The Claudettes [Les Creatíf]
Date night. Not my decision to go see them, at Founders no less (not my favorite place), but Les Creatif was … artistic.
C. Stavros Halkias [JP McDade]
Stavis is hilarious. The first time. The joy of working a comedy show completely falls apart when you hear it a second time. These guys have such dead-on timing that it’s unnerving. And unfunny. This is where a crowd-work comedian has a clear advantage. Sure, Stavi had some off-schedule jokes, but they maybe accounted for less than 5% of the total hour. JP McDade did not veer off for a single second.
379. The Verve Pipe [In the Valley Below]
I’m going to avoid both of these bands like the plague. When your biggest songs are the lone hit you had in the 90s and a Fleetwood Mac cover, are you better off retiring? But people love them. Scratch that, Gen Xers in Grand Rapids love them.
March
C. River City Improv
Another date night show. We were one of the few people under 60. We did not laugh.
279. Leprecons
An Irish house band that mixed originals with covers and had their own merch? Count me in.
25. Fall Out Boy [Jimmy Eat World, Hot Mulligan, Games We Play]
Fall Out Boy is a must see. Can’t say enough about this band. The pyro, the stage setups, the setlist. All 10/10. Same for Jimmy Eat World and Hot Mulligan. Can’t wait to see all of these bands again in my 30-mile bubble.
April
74. Matt Andersen [Old Man Luedecke]
Best booming voice I’ve ever heard, and this was the second time seeing him. Only drawback from the last time was the opener, who was not my style, though my ex liked him and bought merch, which was endearing.
C. Ari Shaffir [Ryan O'Neill, Colum Tyrell]
297. Wheeler Walker Jr [Logan Halstead]
See tragedy above.
265. The Driver Era [Vale]
I’d like to give them a second shot. It was a very entertaining show that the crowd loved, I just didn’t know anything about them heading into work and frankly wasn’t really in the target demographic to know. If they ever play here again I’ll sign on, just not sure I’d pay to see them quite yet.
C. Brad Williams [JB Ball]
I’m all for meeting your fans, but DAMN, do you have to meet every fan? I’m only mostly kidding. By far the longest clocked-in night of the year, I punched in around 4:30 and didn’t leave until 1:34 am. I know shorter people are said to have more energy, but that was extreme.
22. Jeff Rosenstock [Sidney Gish, Gladie]
Finally seeing a headline set from Rosenstock was the best show of the year. Twenty three songs, all gas no breaks. Hopefully the next time I see them I’m not still inside a surgery recovery window so I can really enjoy it among the masses.
137. AJR [Damien Lewis]
HM. Starset
Was unfamiliar with their sound before the show … and still unfamiliar after. I’m sure they’re immensely talented, but the show felt more like a movie screening than a concert. The stage setup was exquisite, however I was cut before the show went into its second hour. Normally not one to miss shows on purpose, I made an exception for this cinematic experience.
129. BoDeans
More “older” shows need to have intermissions. It was fantastic. One hour of newer material plus some classics followed by a 15 minute break, then finishing with 75 minutes of rip-roaring, crowd pleasing Milwaukee-based music in Holland, MI. Fun for the whole family. Or at the very least my dad, uncle and three cousins.
C. Jessica Kirson [Daniel Geenen]
There is no better crowd-work comedian. I’m convinced Kirson could murder in a room of 10, 100, 1,000 or 10,000. I would easily pay good money to see her again.
110. Sum 41 [The Interrupters, Joey Valance & Brae]
Ahh nostalgia. And pyro! And cryo! And confetti! And lasers! Not to knock bands on a budget, but I’m getting a little tired of medium-sized acts touring with just lights and instruments, especially when ticket prices are through the roof. Sum 41 knows how to put on a rock show. So, if you can catch them before they’re done playing forever, do yourself a favor and buy that ticket.
131. Dead Poet Society [Post Profit]
May
265. Amon Amarth [Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, Frozen Soul]
Kid goes into the pit. Kid flails in said pit. Kid breaks tib-fib in pit and allows his friend to tie a yellow bandana around it. Kid attempts to WALK IT OFF. Kid collapses in extreme pain in front of the concession stand. Kid put in a full leg air splint and taken to the emergency room.
164. Wage War [Nothing More, Veil of Maya]
178. Better Lovers [SeeYouSpaceCowboy, Foreign Hands]
C. Patton Oswalt
99. Rodrigo y Gabriela [Okan]
28. Hozier [Allison Russell]
I think my days of seeing and/or working Hozier shows are done. He’s too big now, which is a good thing for him, just not on the wallet. As you’ll see below, Too Sweet was one of my live song faves and easily my song of the summer (sorry Sabrina Carpenter).
182. The Marcus King Band [JJ Wilde]
June
256. Jenny Don’t & The Spurs [The Bootstrap Boys]
Step 1: Watch this video. Step 2: Watch this video. My only detractor about this show was the lengthy wait time between sets. Far too long for a two-band show with fewer than 60 in attendance.
255. The Used [Story of the Year, Amira Elfeky]
150. The Flaming Lips
Look, they’ll never not be good, but they’re no longer pushing any envelopes. Yes, the psilocybin psychedelic influence was there in spades. They brought inflatables, hamster balls, confetti, balloons, and more. Just like they did the last time they were in Grand Rapids. The same balloon arrangement. Like a comedian repeating the same act for the second show, this performance fell flat. Now, mind you, they’re still better at live shows that almost everyone else, so it still gets a decent ranking, but I wanted more.
July
163. Del Water Gap
He’s gonna be big. See him before he blows up. I think he’s got one year of 1,000 cap venues before another album explodes him into Maggie Rogers territory (who he’s dueted with).
HM. Say She She
HM. Colony House
Colony House, Coin and Mt Joy all played around the same time on the same day. We lingered near Colony House but decided to call it a (long) day.
250. Bad Suns
87. Local Natives
Local Natives’ ballad When Am I going to Lose You is one of my favorite songs. I was belting it right behind my girlfriend who was planning on losing me. A week later she conducted my exit interview. Band still rocks, though.
262. Neon Trees
214. Cold War Kids
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reporter called this set “transcendental.” I called it middling. I had this one circled on my calendar and it was fairly disappointing until the final 15 minutes.
199. The Wallflowers [William Matheny]
75. Upheaval 2024 Day 1 [Godsmack, Sevendust, Killswitch Engage, Ayron Jones, Of Mice & Men]
27. Upheaval 2024 Day 2 [Bad Omens, From Ashes to New, Beartooth, As We Divide, Badflower]
Upheaval is becoming one of my favorite jobs to work. The energy is outmatched and the crowd and the bands they love are full of genuinely nice people. Unlike Breakaway, which is full of nice acts and fans that needs to be ankle monitored for everyone's safety.
225. Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox
I’m a little sad the version of Black Hole Sun on Spotify is by a different singer, because the drummer who belted the cover was a hell of a lot more transcendental than any show of the summer.
August
243. Bowling for Soup [Keep Flying, Eternal Boy]
AKA the Heat Death of the Universe. If you know, you know.
322. Collective Soul [Anything But Human]
This band rarely misses. I’ll keep giving them chances though. One bad show after decades of greatness does not a bad band make. Two bad shows…we’ll see.
119. The Linda Lindas [The Boreouts]
Hard punk from teenagers that have to end before a 9:30 curfew? Count me in.
69. Cage the Elephant [Young the Giant, Bakar, Vlad Holiday]
Nice.
Anywho, Young the Giant is an impeccable band that can play to any size crowd and smash it. Vlad Holliday was a pleasant surprise, and I actually knew a Bakar song (we all do, it was in a Nike ad during COVID). Cage the Elephant didn’t disappoint either. If you think it’s going to be crazy. Crazier. Zany? Zanier. Heartfelt? Deeply.
189. Breakaway 2024 Day 2 [Marshmello, Alison Wonderland, ARMNHMR, Bonnie X Clyde, Alleycvt, Lowke, Dylan Delato]
Someone threw marshmallows at me. Straight to jail. Also, this lady. Straight to jail.
124. Grace Potter [May Erlewine]
243. Dogstar [Archer Oh]
Yes, Keanu Reeves is arguably the most famous person to ever appear on stage at 20 Monroe. Musically, however, he’s pretty low on the talent list. He didn’t even have a mic or spotlight, but the people didn’t care. Archer Oh was better.
372. Return to the River 2024 Day 2 [pheel., eRoy]
311. Mudvayne [All That Remains]
220. Chevelle [Tigercub, Return to Dust]
The lead singer of Tigercub claims to be 7-feet tall. This is a lie. He’s tall, no doubt. Taller than me for sure. Why lie about 7 when 6-10 is fine. Nobody really wants the details anyway. Hell, most people think I’m 7 feet. From past experience, as soon as your neck tilts up a certain angle anything over 6-5 blends together.
September
70. Silversun Pickups [Speedy Ortiz]
This bitch. Second story.
C. Nick Swardson
Booooo. He killed the first time at 20. He was asking to be murdered in the back alley for this one. No redeeming qualities of this set.
128. Descendents [Circle Jerks, Surfbort]
I got hazard pay for this show. This is why I wear gloves.
184. Dashboard Confessional [Boys Like Girls, Taylor Acorn]
I mix bands up in my head for no reason knowing full well I can verify it online. Shinedown vs Switchfoot was the big one. Dashboard Confessional came to town and I was disappointed they didn’t play The Reason.
The Hoobastank song.
151. Movements [Turnover, Queen of Jeans]
Queen of Jeans is my surprise band of the year. Perfect first opener set and brought way more energy than Turnover, which made me sleepy.
89. Norma Jean [Darkest Hour, Glassfield]
Darkest Hour was my surprise band-of-the-year runner up. Not sleepy at all.
C. Ralph Barbosa [Luis Juarez]
208. Badflower [Missio, Kaleido]
269. Lake Street Dive [Katie Pruitt]
312. Set it Off [From Ashes to New, If Not For Me, Versus Me]
194. Alkaline Trio [Spanish Love Songs, Slomosa]
205. The Airborne Toxic Event [Tyler Ramsey]
Great band, small crowd. They played Detroit earlier in the tour, so it’s always a head scratcher when acts double up on Michigan so close together.
80. Asking Alexandria [Memphis May Fire, The World Alive, Archers]
October
73. Dayglow [Sun Room]
More rock than you think. Big Andrew McMahon energy. Big things are coming for this band.
386. Gene Loves Jezebel [Sumthing Strange]
283. Ricky Montgomery [Ray Bull]
I’m not super into TikTok pop, but I did have fun walking the line with the lead singer in full superman costume and fuzzy red wig. So many of his fans were about to run him over on the sidewalk while others declined interviews. One lady even looked like she was about to toss her coffee at him.
C. Tom Segura [Kirk Fox, Amy Miller]
123. The Wonders Years [The Menzingers, Liquid Mike]
C. Wheel of Fortune Live!
A whole evening spent trying not to lose my shit at contestants not figuring out the solves. Did you know they can see the letters still left to play?
50. Chromeo [The Midnight, Girl Ultra]
Selling my extra ticket to a Redditor for two beers was certainly a cherry on top of the sensational show. Top to bottom the lineup was stacked and the only disappointing part of the whole night (in addition to trying to find a replacement person and failing), was the group talking next to me during Night By Night.
356. Yung Gravy [Carter Vail]
Dirt man! The only redeeming quality of this show was Vail’s set. The ticket was cheep, I was in town for something else, and I got a free beer.
224. Judah & The Lion [Abe Parker, Leo Bautista]
The tour gave out little color sheets to use on the phone flash during a couple songs that was both beautiful and, I imagine, cost effective from a production standpoint.
205. Mushroomhead [Upon a Burning Body, There Is No Us, Mind Incision]
234. Neko Case [Lucy Wainwright-Roche]
72. The Front Bottoms [Eliza & The Delusionals]
386. Gavin Adcock
We got a lot of talk that he hates security. But he was pretty nice. I caught 11 fake IDs in line.
213. Houndmouth [Taylor McCall]
163. Dropkick Murphys [Pennywise, The Scratch]
A coworker snapped a couple photos of me from the mezzanine while I was working the barricade next to lead singer Ken Casey. I use that photo on my Hinge profile.
225. Neck Deep [The Home Team, Like Roses]
434. Tyler Hubbard [Alana Springsteen]
November
C. Andrew Santino [Zach Townsend]
186. The Menzingers [Direct Hit, Holy Pinto]
193. Vlad Holiday [Jack Droppers & The Best Intentions]
Man, this was the year of doubling up on acts. Russell, Badflower, Menzingers, Hot Mulligan, Vlad Holiday. All great and wouldn’t change the frequency.
103. Knocked Loose [Black Dahlia Murder, Drain, Militarie Gun]
I attached the Wall of Death post later in this blog. My only gripe was that there should have been three bands. Militarie Gun (who I am more musically inclined) didn’t fit the bill. Drain was insane. Insane insane. My back is sore just thinking about it.
106. Microwave [Prince Daddy & The Hyena, Just Friends, Ben Quad]
Every band that asked for crowd surfers didn’t get them. The bands that you’d think wouldn’t have any were sending at least a half dozen, even during slow songs.
214. Flatland Cavalry [Harper O'Neill]
One of the wilder working shows of the year. Nothing jumps out now, but the sheer volume of instances was nearly overwhelming.
297. Say Anything [Angel Dust, Social Animals]
147. Creed [3 Doors Down]
Birthday present to myself (with some help).
263. Josh Meloy [Kenny Fiedler & The Cowboy Killers]
112. Local Natives [Krooked Kings]
The Local Natives redux, this time with my dad.
HM. Wreckno [ONHELL]
459. Peezy [Icewear Vezzo, *Cameron Whitcomb]
Whitcomb was a very fun opener for a show I never finished. I was moved downstairs to work the door and heavily fogged floor of a Detroit rap show that went just about as well as you’d think that sentence made it seem.
C. The Free Beer & Hot Wings Morning Show Live
104. Underoath [Static Dress, Twin Stacks]
My first pit (as a fan). I should get a certificate.
December
218. Daughtry [Sleep Theory, Devour the Day]
278. The Dead South [The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band]
238. Oso Oso [Flycatcher, Riley!]
121. Trampled By Turtles [Harlow]
Annihilate is my favorite TbT song. They played it second on the setlist, however, 30 seconds into the song a kid started to seize on the main floor. I scooped him up and walked him from the floor to the bar. Set him down then he seized again. Walked him back to the front. He was fine eventually, but I missed most of the song.
223. Ole 60 [Cody Powers]
28. Ho Ho Hot Mulligan [Hot Mulligan, Tigers Jaw, Harrison Gordon, Fireworks, Stars Hollow, Potionseller, If Kansas Had Trees, Tiny Voices, Church Bus]
Great shows, great venues, great all around mini festival. Except for Fireworks. Didn’t care for that band or their premium time slot. Harrison Gordon was my third biggest surprise band of the year. And the drummer was from Milwaukee!
C. Jeff Arcuri [Matt Bachus, Jeff Scheen, Seth Tippetts]
Another day another show where someone was lying about their height. Seth Tippetts claims he’s 6-foot-9 in his act, but I wanded him upon arrival and let’s just say I was not looking up. Jeff Arcuri is a catty little fella. The jokes are pretty good, but like most comedians on YouTube shorts, the crowd work is fully on point.
334. Mustard Plug [Electric Six, Dance Contraption, Boob Sweat]
296. Andy Arcade [Drop Catch, Dogfood]
Top 5 Non-Festival Indoor Shows
Jeff Rosenstock with Sidney Gish and Gladie at The Pyramid Scheme
Fall Out Boy with Jimmy Eat World, Hot Mulligan, and Games We Play at Van Andel Arena
Hozier with Allison Russell at Van Andel Arena
Chromeo & The Midnight with Girl Ultra at Royal Oak Music Theatre
Cage the Elephant with Young the Giant, Bakar, and Vlad Holiday at Van Andel Arena
Top 5 Sets
Jeff Rosenstock - The Pyramid Scheme
The Midnight - Royal Oak Music Theatre
Silversun Pickups - The Intersection
Fall Out Boy - Van Andel Arena
Drain - GLC Live at 20 Monroe
Top 5 Songs
Scram! - Jeff Rosenstock
When Am I Gonna Lose You - Local Natives (Grand Rapids)
Too Sweet - Hozier
Higher - Creed
Books in Bed - Queen of Jeans
Top 5 Moments
The Knocked Loose wall of death
This photo during Beartooth’s satellite set at Upheaval
Joining the Underoath pit
A Neck Deep crowd surfer dressed as Jesus for Halloween saying “thank you, my son,” as I caught him.
Sparkler rain falling down during What's This Life For
Honorable Mentions
My friend Courtney buying me a signed Dogstar CD for keeping merch safe.
Tripping over the cord cover and eating shit in front of my friend Jon during Tom Segura.
Chatting with the Chevelle drummer post show without realizing it was him for almost the entire conversation. I knew it was someone on the tour, just not specifically who.
