Bayside Plays Back-to-Back Nights in Vegas on 25th Anniversary Tour

This past weekend (June 21–22), alternative rock veterans Bayside brought their Errors Tour through Las Vegas in celebration of their 25th anniversary. This is a milestone few bands in the scene ever reach. In a world where lineups dissolve overnight and albums age faster than ever, 25 years of sustained relevance is nothing short of impressive. This tour sports a single opener, Smoking Popes, which leaves Bayside with a whole 90-minute set to cover as much as they possibly can in a single show. What makes this run especially unique is its format where each city gets two nights. Night one focuses on the band’s early material, while night two showcases songs from their more recent albums. If you’re a big fan like myself, both nights are essential. I would like to note that Vegas got a little something extra on this run. Bayside held a pop-up performance at the Punk Rock Museum, where they played a few stripped-down tracks and unveiled a special 25th anniversary exhibit that will be on display for the foreseeable future. The display featured mementos from their long and storied career that served as a heartfelt nod to the fans who’ve been along for the ride since the beginning.

Now, let’s talk about Smoking Popes. These dudes are a pillar of ’90s alt-rock and pop-punk, they’ve released ten solid albums over the decades and still manage to blend that nostalgic old-school sound with just enough modern edge to stay fresh. Their setlist remained largely the same both nights, but their presence was anything but repetitive. The energy they bring is subtle but undeniably palpable. They have a calm intensity that builds beneath the surface and eventually takes over the room. They were the perfect match for this tour, and the overlap in fanbases was clear as there were plenty of people singing along like they’d been raised on these songs. I do have to say that their reception was strongest during the first night (no surprise, given the throwback theme) but they still held their own on night two. There’s something incredibly comforting about the warmth and familiarity of their sound. It felt like a shared memory coming to life, (like when you talk to millennials about myspace) setting the tone for the night and really bonding the crowd before Bayside took the stage.

Being that Bayside played two completely different shows I’d like to split this up into two parts: That first night was for the old wounds, the heartbreaks growing up, the heavy feeling of trying to find your place in the world, and figure out who the hell you were. The setlist for night one pulled songs from all of the albums between Sirens and Condolences (2004) and Killing Time (2011). 22 songs deep, this setlist was a masterpiece of emotional whiplash, transitioning frequently from energetic highs to gut punching lows.

The band opened with “Montauk” and that room went off. Every person in that venue had their hands up and were screaming those lyrics like it was a damn confessional. But I suppose in a way it was…to hear these songs that came out during a time where most of us were teenagers that were still developing and figuring the world out, experiencing a lot of firsts (including a lot of let downs) these songs carried a lot of weight for us. They meant more than just the music, they were anthems that helped us through the confusing and often dark times of adolescence.

Somewhere past the halfway mark they gave us a breather with their acoustic song “Don’t Call Me Peanut.” The final stretch felt like a blur, song after song flew by until we hit the end…where “Devotion and Desire” hit everyone in that room like a freight train. I swear I had a difficult time hearing Anthony over the crowd during that song, and I would be shocked if you couldn’t hear them all the way out on Fremont St. Night one left me undeniably reeling but we weren’t done yet…night two was waiting.

Night two didn’t feel like any sort of continuation from the first, it felt like a rebirth. Although the crowd had shifted a little bit, and many faces had rotated to reveal a fresh set of fans there was still many in attendance from the first night. We showed up ready to go as if we still hadn’t gotten our fill. I know that the first night pulled a larger audience due to the nostalgic grip that setlist had, but night two had a different kind of electricity. Smoking Popes lit the fuse once more and then Bayside hit the stage that place detonated. Jacks guitar style over the years has grown heavier, more intense, and it slammed into the crowd like a wave. This time they shredded through their setlist spanning from Killing Time (2011) to There Are Worse Things Than Being Alive (2024), another 22 songs deep! They opened with “Ruin” and barreled straight into “Interrobang,” and with that the crowd came unhinged. A little over halfway through, our quiet moment came with “It Don’t Exist,” and acoustic slow burn that let the crowd cool down before being hit with another wave of pure Bayside badassery. Anthem after anthem poured out with rage, grief, and hope in equal measure. They closed with “Sick, Sick, Sick,” the killing blow for a two night, 44-song tempest of a weekend.

Music isn’t just something we listen to, it’s something we feel. Live shows give us that opportunity to pour our hearts out in ways that our car stereos and headphones just won’t allow. Shows like these, especially ones with that nostalgic feel, just hit different. They are shows that allow us to rid ourselves of built up pain and heartache, things we’ve felt for years but have never been given the opportunity to fully release. Both nights were masterpieces in their own right. Where one night was nostalgic and cathartic, the second night was intense and unflinching. There is no way I could choose between them if I had to. It’s like asking which part of your soul matters more, or if you’d rather live without a heart or a brain. To see only one night would be a disservice to yourself. This tour demands attention to both. If you’re a bayside fan and you miss this run, you’re not just missing a show, you’re missing a true cleansing.