On a small blue sphere known as Earth, intergalactic rock stars Angels & Airwaves were ready to ride the radio waves under the starry night of St. Petersburg, Florida, on Tuesday, October 26th. Accompanied by My Kid Brother and Bad Suns, the band brought their ‘Lifeforms Tour’ to a crowd of extraterrestrial fans at Jannus Live.
Opening for the night was Leesburg, Virginia’s My Kid Brother. The band first started coming together in 2015 when vocalist and guitarist Christian Neonakis and drummer Sam Athanas met while working at a restaurant together. Soon after, the duo met guitarist Dylan Savopolous and began jamming together, and soon later invited bassist Richard Smith. The lineup was finally completed in October of 2018 with the addition of keyboardist Piano Whitman. The band later signed to Fearless Records in 2019, and released a collection of singles and EPs in 2020.
As the lights dimmed, the quintet took to the stage quickly. Without a second to wait, Smith moved straight to the front of the stage while waving his hands to the crowd to rile them up. Shoulder to shoulder in the middle of the stage, Neonakis and Savopolous were rocking out together on their guitars, while Whitman pumped out psychedelic melodies on her keyboard. After a quick set of groovy harmonies, the band took off while the stage was reset.
Next up on the roster was alternative rock band Bad Suns from Woodland Hills, California. The band formed in 2012 with vocalist Christo Bowman, guitarist Ray Libby, bassist and keyboardist Gavin Bennett, and drummer Miles Morris. The band garnered attention in 2014 when their single “Cardiac Arrest” was released online, with their first EP Transpose being released later that year. Even later that year, the band released their first full length album Language & Perspective with Vagrant Records. After these first releases, the band then released Disappear Here in 2016 and Mystic Truth in 2019.
Under a bright red glow, Bowman & co. emerged from the darkness as the crowd screamed out in anticipation. Bowman stood out like a shining star in the night in his all white outfit as he quickly jumped to the microphone. In the middle of each song, Bowman would occasionally lean back with the microphone, and sometimes kicked up a leg in excitement. Moving through the first few songs in the opening, the band then moved to “Violet” from their 2016 album, with the crowd singing together with the band. Nearing the end of their set, the band closed out with “Cardiac Arrest” as everyone yelled at the top of their lungs. Finishing out the song, the band ran off the stage and to the balcony as the prep for the final act began.
The final show of the act brought together some of the greatest legends in the music industry. With a line-up consisting of lead singer Tom DeLonge, guitarist David Kennedy, drummer Ilan Rubin (QRO interview), and bassist Matt Rubano, these guys were no strangers to the stage. The band first formed when DeLonge’s band Blink-182 went on hiatus in 2005, and have existed ever since. The band has released six studio albums over the years; We Don’t Need to Whisper in 2006, I-Empire in 2007, Love in 2010, Love: Part Two in 2011, The Dream Walker in 2014, and most recently Lifeforms this year (QRO review). The band has garnered large amounts of attention for its multiple projects across different mediums that focus on larger human themes.
With the bright backlight lighting up the stage during the ambient intro, DeLonge and the others emerged from the void and onto the stage. With a spaceship-like set, the night was just getting started. Opening up their set with “Kiss & Tell” from the newest album, DeLonge began to shuffle across the stage before his iconic voice pierced through the night sky. With Rubin, Rubano, and Kennedy on risers behind him, the three stood over DeLonge like watchers in the night. The band played several songs of their new album before soon moving into “Surrender” from the 2011 record, and quickly going to their hit song “The Adventure” from their first release in 2006. After a few more songs, DeLonge then told the story of when his father passed away, speaking on how he felt his father’s soul pass through him, and then transitioned into the song “Tunnels” from the 2014 release, which was written about his father’s passing. A few more songs later, DeLonge pulled out his acoustic guitar to do a quick homage to his former band, performing “I Miss You” from his Blink-182 days.
Finishing out with a few more songs and throwbacks, the band closed out with “Heaven” from 2007’s album. After an exhilarating night filled with all-star bands and musicians and enthusiastic fans, the night soon came to an end as the five-piece waved their goodbyes to the fans and disappeared back into the night covered city.
Setlist
Timebomb
Euphoria
Surrender
The Adventure
Everything’s Magic
Losing My Mind
Tunnels
Secret Crowds
Rebel Girl
I Miss You
Automatic
The Wolfpack
Rite of Spring
The War
Heaven
