Aug 8

Aug 8 Show Review: Taking Back Sunday Thrill Fans at Sold-Out Sacramento Show

Taking Back Sunday
w/ Cuffed Up
Ace of Spades
Sacramento, CA
August 6th, 2022

Photos and Review by Jared Stossel

On Saturday night, while San Francisco’s Outside Lands Festival was roaring through the foliage of Golden Gate Park, fans packed into Sacramento’s Ace of Spades for a chance to get an intimate look at one of alternative rock’s most coveted acts. Long Island, NY’s Taking Back Sunday brought forth an exemplary set that traversed the hit offerings from their respective seven-album discography. It’s hard to believe that Taking Back Sunday has only released seven full-length records, as they’ve been a band taking the world by storm since 2002 with the release of their smash debut Tell All Your Friends. Often, the band can usually be found filling theaters and arenas around the globe. This time around, the band found themselves with a day-off during a tour supporting Third Eye Blind as they headline the country’s biggest amphitheaters. Longtime fans of Taking Back Sunday were given a rare opportunity to see one of the scene’s biggest acts up close and personal at this sold out Northern California show.

The show had only one opener in the form of Cuffed Up, an up-and-coming Los Angeles quartet that borders the line between 90s alternative rock and modern-day indie. While not every song was my cup of tea, the crowd seemed to really enjoy it and the band gave a great performance to warm things up. After the band finished their eight-song set, Taking Back Sunday took the stage, band leader Adam Lazzara emitting his signature charm and trademark energetic presence. Over the past two decades of seeing this band, I’ve never known them to open with something that wasn’t on either Tell All Your Friends or Louder Now. This time around, the band opted to open with the title track to their seventh and most recent album, “Tidal Wave”. It’s one of the band’s best tracks in years, and a perfect opener.

Except for 2009’s New Again, the band pulled songs from every one of their albums and incorporated them into the set list. This set was a great way for anyone to become familiar with the musical identity of Taking Back Sunday, whether they were a fan that only heard “MakeDamnSure” once and wanted to see more, or a diehard fan that’s been following their music for decades.

There was also something different I noticed when watching them this time around, in comparison to shows I’ve seen in the past: this band looks like they’re truly having fun again. Lazzara even noted this on stage, saying that Taking Back Sunday truly felt like they were having so much fun being up on the stage, as “that hasn’t always been the case”. This was evident; it felt like there was a new energy that was injected into their performance. Every song felt larger than ever, despite being in a smaller venue, and the audience sang back every word when the moment was called upon them to do so.

My favorite moments in a Taking Back Sunday show always arrive during the Louder Now songs. It was the first album from the band that I ever discovered, and the opening guitar riff to “What’s It Feel Like To Be A Ghost?” always bring me right back to the first time I discovered them. Songs like the aforementioned “Ghost”, “My Blue Heaven”, and “Liar (It Takes One To Know One” always thrill in a live setting, and I look forward to hearing them whenever I know they’re headlining a show.

Of course, nothing compares to hearing the three staples of any good Taking Back Sunday set: “A Decade Under The Influence”, “Cute Without The ‘E’ (Cut From The Team)”, and the grand finale of “MakeDamnSure”. The audience is at its loudest, and the band plays off of their energy. It doesn’t really matter what size venue you see them in, because Taking Back Sunday were always born to thrill.

Taking Back Sunday Set List

Tidal Wave
You Know How I Do
Set Phasers
Liar (It Takes One To Know One)
Just Us Two
Timberwolves at New Jersey
Error: Operator
You Can’t Look Back
You’re So Last Summer
Flicker, Fade
Better Homes And Gardens
El Paso
One-Eighty By Summer
My Blue Heaven
There’s No “I” In Team
A Decade Under The Influence
What’s It Feel Like To Be A Ghost?
Cute Without The ‘E’ (Cut From The Team)
MakeDamnSure