It is without a doubt, a jam-packed concert when you only have a tiny space for yourself and your friends to jump, dance and enjoy a pop-punk evening at The Story So Far’s sold out show at The Van Buren in Phoenix, Arizona for their I Want to Disappear in the USA Tour on December 10th, with supporting acts Koyo and Superheaven.
Koyo never wasted anybody’s time and opened the night right away. I haven’t seen them perform yet so I was excited to watch them live for the first time. Lo and behold, the band earned a new fan in me that night when I saw their wild energy on stage. Their audience command is undeniably one of the best I’ve seen from any openers. This 5-piece band can jump and headbang for days if they wanted to. You can clearly tell they are well received when the attendees started pulling out their flashlights to their set while singing along to their songs like “Moriches” and “Anthem.” They brought the crowd to their feet and never failed to leave a mark for the audience to remember that they were the openers to this show for a reason.
Next up was Superheaven which also brought a performance nothing short of stellar. I know an emo sound when I hear one, and this band performed some grunge-infused emo throughout their 11-song set. Superheaven’s dynamics were a perfect balance of laid-back groove and explosive energy, and the emotions embedded within their songs resonated well with the attendees. Songs like “Youngest Daughter” and “Long Gone” were some of the tracks that had the crowd lost in their melodic fuzz. They closed their set with their hit “Poor Aileen” and left a lasting impression to their audience that a grunge emo band can sound this good live.
That 15-minute wait from the last opening band to the main act is always the longest, but as the famous saying goes “good things come to those who wait,” especially if you are waiting for The Story So Far to perform. The LA-based band hit the stage and you can tell right away that they were well-received by the Phoenix crowd when you see people flying and crowd surfing right on the first song. They opened the night with their track “Big Blind” and the fans lost their minds while the barricades were trying their best to hold them in place.
When they played their hit “Nerve”, pun intended, the loud bangs from the crowd jumping and their deafening screams out of excitement almost matched the intensity of the band playing. It was one of the best crowd sing-alongs I have seen in this venue. Word for word, they sang their hearts out, showing their love for the band. It was a 20-song set but still felt not enough as the crowd yearned for more at the end of the setlist. They concluded their show with the song “Quicksand,” the only song in their encore, and it was when everyone realized that it’s the last chance they can give everything they got to rock with The Story So Far, who knows when they will come back to Phoenix.
The lights dimmed and each member of the band bowed to the crowd in gratitude for showing up, and then left the stage. With Koyo and Superheaven setting the mood for the night and The Story So Far bringing their A-game, this show was a great example of how great a pop-punk show can be. Whether you were there to relive your angst when you were a teen or discover new music, this night at The Van Buren will be one that fans won’t forget for a long time. And when they come back for another tour in the future, it’s safe to say they can have more fans in attendance.
GALLERY: The Story So Far, Superheaven and KOYO at The Van Buren in Phoenix, AZ (December 10, 2024)
