October 23, 2015. Thousands are packed into the Shrine Expo Hall. People are dropping in the mosh pit like flies. Security’s handing out water left and right. But they’re all passionate about rock music, and they came to see four bands that share that love. This is the Back to the Future Hearts tour, a co-headliner to be remembered.

Prologue: An International Opening

Japanese band ONE OK ROCK and Welsh group Neck Deep kick off the show at a level 10; there is no crescendo. They both dive right into their sets with high energy, channeled through tuck jumps, rock-driven riffs, and vicious head banging. They waste no time warming the crowd up. Instead, they challenge everyone to keep up, daring everyone in the room to match their level. When Kellin Quinn (lead singer of Sleeping With Sirens) comes onstage to sing “Paper Planes” with ONE OK ROCK, it serves as a catalyst for the impending insanity. 

Act I: The Strays

The first headliner emerges in the dark, greeted by a chorus of screaming. Jack Fowler rushes to the front of the stage, guitar in hand, as Gabe Barham takes his place behind the drums. Rhythym guitarist Nick Martin and bass player Justin Hills appear stage left, as Kellin Quinn strolls to the center, clutching a teal microphone.

Sleeping With Sirens become the leaders of an army of rowdy teenagers and twenty-somethings as they together scream the words to “Kick Me” and “We Like It Loud,” letting the rest of the world know they are not to be messed with. That doesn’t mean that they themselves can’t mess around, however. Justin and Jack pull a number of faces as they come downstage with their instruments, and at one point Justin balances his bass upside down in the palm of his hand. Kellin shares his preference for troublemakers over goody-two-shoes, saying how those who follow the rules are too straight-and-narrow.

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Their set is surprisingly (but pleasantly) dynamic. Fortunately, the group didn’t get all of their acoustic numbers out of their system on the “We Like It Quiet” tour this past summer. The lyrics, “We are the strays” reverberate throughout the Expo Hall as the crowd drowns out Kellin’s vocals. A couple songs from Sleeping With Sirens’ acoustic EP also grace the stage, including “With Ears to See and Eyes to Hear,” a personal favorite. Before showing off his vocal percussion skills in “Roger Rabbit,” Kellin tells the story of how his adolescent self learned to beatbox from a Levi’s commercial. He proceeds to beatbox the Mario theme song, with avid encouragement from the crowd.

As if the energy couldn’t get any higher, Kellin announces that a special guest will join them. An eruption of sound is heard as producer and Goldfinger frontman John Feldmann joins the group to perform “Don’t Say Anything.” He’s like a kid who finally got the guitar he wanted for Christmas as he twirls and jumps all over the place, punctuating the end of the song by throwing his instrument over his shoulder so that it swings around his body and lands in his hands. After a few more songs and a feisty drum solo from Gabe, Sleeping With Sirens finish with “If You Can’t Hang.”

Act II: The Kids in the Dark

The stage is backlit with spouts of white light as All Time Low singer/guitarist Alex Gaskarth quietly walks down center. With only his silhouette visible, it looks as if he’s among the stars. Appropriately, he begins a solo performance of “Satellite.” The tranquility doesn’t last long, as fellow band members Zack Merrick (bass), Rian Dawson (drums), and Jack Barakat (lead guitar) explode onstage while playing the intro to “Kicking & Screaming.”

It would not be an All Time Low show without the usual banter between Alex and Jack or their sexual commentary (Jack, I’m looking at you). It works for them though in terms of, um, audience participation. Two songs in, there are already three bras on Jack’s mic stand as well as one around his head. I was startled when another brassiere-turned-projectile landed suddenly on the speaker three inches from my shoulder. 

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The band plays a variety of songs from their twelve-year repertoire, from “Poppin’ Champagne” to “Lost In Stereo” to “Do You Want Me (Dead?).” The crowd loves all the throwbacks, but is equally as enthusiastic for the songs from the new album. Similar to Sleeping With Sirens, Alex plays a few acoustic songs both by himself and as a duo with Zack, including “Therapy,” “Cinderblock Garden,” and “Missing You.”

Before performing the latter, Alex tells a story of how he learned that the song had helped empower a young man to begin treatment for a heroin addiction. He goes on to say, “When we started this band about twelve years ago, I had no f-ing idea that any of the songs I would ever write would have any kind of impact on anyone ever. It never crossed my mind,” earning a mixture of cheers and aw’s from the crowd. Once the full group reemerges, they perform a number of high-energy jams (among them “Don’t You Go” and the iconic “Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don’t)”) and finish their set with “Old Scars/Future Hearts.” 

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Giant inflatable balls are thrown into the audience from the second floor at the start of the encore, as All Time Low performs “Kids in the Dark” and “Something’s Gotta Give.” There’s a pause before the final song. Suddenly, the whole crowd rushes forward and piercing screams erupt. The magic words? Alex: “I’d like to ask my friend Michael to come play this last song with us.” The moment Michael Clifford (of 5 Seconds of Summer) steps onstage, pandemonium breaks out. After quick instructions regarding what chords to play, Alex hands his guitar to Michael and together they all perform “Dear Maria, Count Me In.” Knowing that All Time Low was one of 5 Seconds of Summer’s main influences growing up, it was incredible to see them share the stage. Needless to say, the show ended with an exclamation point.

Epilogue:

Overall, the Back to the Future Hearts tour was a party from beginning to end. If you like it loud and you’re dying to live, see this show before it’s too late.

Contact Staff Reporter Kelly Jonske here.