Waterparks in their previous years thrived on chaos, color, and emotional whiplash, and The Prowler Tour stop on December 17 at The Van Buren in Phoenix embodied all of that and more. Fans from all over Arizona gathered with their face paints on to witness the Houston trio live. Their genre-bending blend of pop-punk, hyperpop, and alt-rock felt tailor-made for a venue like The Van Buren, a room that balances intimacy with scale, allowing every lyric scream and bass drop to land with full impact.
The evening kicked off with Landon Barker whose set leaned into emotional and dark pop textures. His performance felt raw, pulling the crowd in with moody melodies and a confident stage presence that belied his age.
Following him, Plain White T’s delivered nostalgia that felt like a warm hug on our younger selves, transforming the room into a massive sing-along. Their timeless hooks and effortless charm bridged generations in the crowd, proving that their songs still resonate deeply. Hits like “Hey There Delilah” and “1 2 3 4” were crowd favorites, for nostalgic reasons.
When Waterparks finally took the stage, the room erupted. Awsten Knight burst with so much energy right away. He playfully bounced between banter and sincerity, while Otto Wood and Geoff Wigington anchored the chaos with their synchronization. The band tore through a setlist that balanced newer tracks with fan favorites that made constant jumps between pop hooks and explosive pop-punk energy. Each song felt like its own genre, which was unpredictable, cathartic, and bursting with personality. The crowd never failed to match that intensity word for word, especially during tracks like “Stupid For You” and “Turbulent.”
Visually, the show was a sensory overload in every great way possible. The lighting design flooded the stage with neon greens, deep reds, and stark whites, mirroring the emotional swings of the set. Screens and strobes accentuated heavy moments while softer lighting gave space to more vulnerable tracks like “I Felt Younger When We Met” and “High Definition,” allowing the audience to breathe before diving back into the frenzy. The Van Buren transformed into a shared emotional venue, where jumping, screaming, and singing became a collective release rather than just a reaction.
They closed the night with the song “LIKE IT.” After that song, it was clear by looking at the fans’ faces that Waterparks had delivered a full-bodied experience. The Prowler Tour in Phoenix felt like a celebration of everything the band represents: unpredictability, honesty, and connection. As the fans spilled out into the night, you could really tell that Waterparks took over The Van Buren.
GALLERY: Waterparks with Plain White T’s and Landon Barker at The Van Buren in Phoenix, Arizona (December 17, 2025)
