The lawn was green, the drinks were frosty, and the fans were extremely excited to see headliners ‘Twenty One Pilots’ and ‘AWOLNATION’ at the ninth annual Radio 104.5 birthday show on Saturday, June 11. The event was a great way to kick-off the Summer. With a stacked lineup of diverse and talented artists, it was a music lovers dream come true.
Hailing from Holland, ‘Chef’Special’ had fans hands in the air and people breaking out their best dance moves right away with their fresh reggae sound. They were a great choice to open the main stage and set the tone for the day.
The Front Bottoms, a local favorite (who we interviewed back in March), were more than happy to lead the crowd through their set. Everyone was singing along as they started with some newer songs like ‘The Plan’ and ‘Help’, followed by some old favorites. They had a charismatic aura that pulled the crowd closer and closer to the stage with every song. The fans were surprised at the end of their set when lead singer Bryan Sella smashed his guitar and walked off the stage.
The Front Bottoms Setlist:
The Plan (Fuck Jobs)
HELP
West Virginia
Au Revoir (Adios)
The Beers
2YL
Cough It Out
Twin Size Mattress
‘MuteMath’ frontman Paul Meany took the stage with a passion that matched his bandmates’ Darren King and Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas’s technical precision. Ripping through track after track, Darren King never missed a beat even while standing on top of his drum kit. We hadn’t seen Mutemath perform in person in a few years and it was a real treat to have them on this line-up!
‘Catfish and The Bottlemen’ started and ended with songs from their popular ‘Balcony’ album, but they threw in some of their newer songs off their album ‘The Ride’ during the meat of their set. The crowd really enjoyed their performance as the very animated Van McCann got to showcase his abilities as a lead singer.
Catfish and the Bottlemen Setlist:
Homesick
Kathleen
Soundcheck
Pacifier
Business
Twice
Seven
Cocoon
Tyrants
AWOLNATION’s Aaron Bruno (who we interviewed in November) took to the stage like a savage cavemen electrifying the crowd with punk rock energy. He led brutal chants and danced around the stage like a madman with the poise of Elvis and the ferocity of Bad Brains singer H.R.. “We’re AWOLNATION and we came to party,” Bruno yelled as he pumped his fist in the air. It was a true spectacle to see AWOLNATION’s craftsmanship of chaos and disorder work to engage the crowd. People went wild whenever he leaned over the crowd, and he surprised the fans when he leapt out into the pit from the stage. Whether it’s getting people to dance or sing along, Aaron Bruno will do anything to put on a great show.
AWOLNATION Setlist:
Run
Hollow Moon (Bad Wolf)
Not Your Fault
KOOKSEVERYWHERE!!!!
Kill Your Heroes
Woman Woman
Drum Solo
Burn It Down
I Am
Sail
Twenty One Pilots was the band everyone came to see and they did not disappoint with a well developed live show. They were the most theatrical of all of the acts who played on Saturday (and that’s saying a lot), and extremely engaging with the audience. They ran into the crowd during covers of ‘Twist and Shout’, ‘My Heart Will Go On’, ‘Love Yourself’, and ‘Jump Around’ (with fellow tourmates Chef’Special and MuteMath). It was reminiscent of “Roy Orbison and friends: A Black and White Night”. Twenty One Pilots showed their compassion for singer Christina Grimme (who was brutally murdered in Orlando over the weekend) by dedicating a song to her. The people had a lot of fun dancing and singing along with Tyler Joseph and his faithful partner in crime Joshua Dunn to their eclectic catalog of songs.
Twenty One Pilots Setlist:
Heavydirtysoul (with Fairly Local intro)
Migraine
Hometown
Polarize
We Don’t Believe What’s on TV
Can’t Help Falling in Love With You (Elvis Presley cover)
The Judge
Lane Boy
Doubt (dedicated to Christina Grimme)
Holding on to You
Twist and Shout (The Beatles cover)
My Heart Will Go On (Céline Dion cover)
Love Yourself (Justin Bieber cover)
Jump Around (House of Pain cover)
Ride
Stressed Out
Guns for Hands
Tear in My Heart
Car Radio
Encore:
Goner
Trees
From start to finish, day 1 of the ninth annual Radio 104.5 birthday show was a magical experience for all in attendance. We can’t wait until day 2 this Friday, June 17th with ‘Florence + The Machine’, ‘The Lumineers’, ‘Cold War Kids’, ‘Elle King’, ‘Silversun Pickups’, ‘Violent Femmes’, and more! A few tickets remain for day 2 and you can grab yours here.
[Photo credit: Michael Green]
[Article by Conor Green]
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