All Time Low stopped at KEMBA Live! in Columbus for their "EVERYONE'S TALKING!" tour on Friday, Nov. 7. Credit: Faith Schneider | Arts & Life Photo Editor
The early 2000s pop-punk vibes were strong Friday at KEMBA Live!, with the iconic, multi-platinum band All Time Low performing a sold-out show as part of their “Everyone’s Talking!” tour.
Now 22 years after the band’s formation, ATL is just as lively as ever, preserving their staple sound while growing and changing alongside the industry. Their tenth studio album, “Everyone’s Talking!” was released Oct. 17.
Those who aren’t familiar with the pop-punk scene may not know ATL off the top of their heads, but the band has sold over 3.5 million albums in the U.S. and has over 5 billion streams worldwide, according to a press release.
They broke onto the scene with their smash hit “Dear Maria, Count Me In,” a timeless track in the realm of pop-punk. ATL solidified their impact with the 2020 track “Monsters,” featuring multi-genre singer-songwriter blackbear, which charted for 18 weeks on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay Chart and won Best Alternative Rock Song at the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Awards, the press release states.
After two decades, one might expect for the band’s sound to have changed or evolved, especially considering the members — Alex Gaskarth, Jack Barakat, Rian Dawson and Zack Merrick — were in high school when they first formed ATL. This was not the case, however, as the group has maintained their iconic sound while adapting to changes in the industry.
The openers of the night, Paradox, Four Years Strong and Mayday Parade, delivered short yet powerful punk and pop-rock sets to start off the night and ease listeners into the show that was to come.
The set opened with “[cold open]” off of their latest album, which was followed by a stacked 24-song setlist that mixed nostalgic, fan-favorites and newer tracks.
The stage aptly matched the title of their album, with a talk show style setup boasting primary colors and bright visuals across the stage.
Something that made the band stand out was their priority of making the concert accessible for hard-of-hearing fans. Not only did they display lyrics on the screen behind them throughout their performance, but they also had several ASL interpreters on the sides of the stage, swapping out throughout the night.
The interpreters were practically headbanging to the tracks as they translated the lyrics, maintaining the high energy of the crowd and the band while still accurately transcribing the music.
As a fan of the band’s 2015 album “Future Hearts,” hearing “Something’s Gotta Give” and “Missing You” was a highlight of the night, as Gaskarth’s inimitable voice deviated from the studio version with beautiful note changes that added to an already beautiful ballad.
Though the audience was a mix of all-ages, a large majority of the crowd was fans who had grown up with ATL, following them since their debut. That being said, the crowd of punk, drunk adults was not pleasant to be in and at times got in the way of truly enjoying and experiencing the show. That is not a reflection on the band, rather the audience, but it’s something that should be noted for younger fans who look to attend a show in the future.
The band’s interactions with the crowd were positive, however, with frequent breaks to speak to the fans, acknowledging birthday signs and at one point, some fans in the crowd even helped Barakat and Dawson get dressed.
Each member was represented by a different color — Gaskarth was red, Merrick was blue, Barakat was green and Dawson was yellow. While Gaskarth and Merrick wore cut-off flannels in their respective colors, Barakat and Dawson were in T-shirts; that was until two audience members passed a green and yellow flannel to the front, helping the bandmates all match. It was a heartwarming moment that really showed the bond between artist and audience.
The group ended off the night with four encore tracks, including a drum solo by Dawson, “The Weather” — a single off their new album, which the press release states is in the Top 15 on the Alternative Radio charts — “Lost In Stereo,” which was quite the fun performance and of course, their breakout hit “Dear Maria, Count Me In” to take it home.
ATL performed their hearts out, pouring their energy into entertaining the fans who have stuck by them through the good and the bad. Gaskarth’s vocal range is immaculate — it’s not hard to see why everyone’s talking.
Rating: 3.5/5
