The Boys of Summer Tour featuring Hollywood Ending and The After Party – REVIEW

The Boys of Summer Tour came though Chicago like a storm full of pop tunes on Saturday, August 25th. The tour featured co-headliners Hollywood Ending and The After Party, as well as Sandlot Heroes and Almost Hero serving as support! Check out our review and recap of the happenings at this show after the break.

On Saturday, August 25th, The Boys of Summer Tour, featuring Hollywood Ending and The After Party, appeared at Penny Road Pub in Barrington, Illinois.  While the opening bands seemed to attract some attention as their sets went on, it was clear that most people were there to see Hollywood Ending and The After Party. Many people chose to sit outside in 90 degree heat, instead of watching the opening acts perform in a hot, overcrowded basement venue.

The common theme for the show was, unfortunately, sound problems.  None of the five bands performing were immune to experiencing some sound-related technical difficulties during their performances.

First up was the band Almost Hero.  They figured out the key to getting teenage girls attention, and that is to open with the Cha Cha Slide.  As soon as they started, with the drummer keeping beat, everyone was dancing along. They did a cover of Up All Night by One Direction that had everyone singing along.  With a 6 song set, they were on stage for a little over 20 minutes and did a good job of getting the crowd fired up for the acts yet to come.

Sandlot Heroes was up next.  With more of a rock sound, they could be classified as the oddballs of the tour.  They also experienced the greatest number of sound problems.  From the whole left side going out at one point, to the mic for the lead singer going out mid-song, they didn’t have much luck.  But, sound problems aside, these guys know how to rock!  One thing I particularly enjoyed was the fact that I could understand what they were singing, while they were rockin’ it.  They performed a 6 song set as well, and their cover of Bruno Mars’ Just The Way You Are got the crowd to sing along.

One of the tour’s headliners, The After Party, was up next.  Opening with a more upbeat version of their song Still Got Love, they got the crowd’s attention pretty quick.  Next up was their latest single, Waste The Day, with which they surprised everyone by sticking to the album sound and performing the characteristic doo-wop at the end.  During the next song, Can’t Stop, Andy, the guitarist, took a stage dive and wiped out from ‘rocking out too hard, which had everyone laughing, band members included!  At a later point during their set, their merch guy, Sam, joined them on stage to fill in on bass. He looked to be having a blast and was really in to it.  His talents are obviously not limited to merch.

Like all other bands on this tour, The After Party also performed cover songs, with theirs being an acoustic mash up of Wide Awake by Katy Perry and Drunk On You by Luke Bryan that then led into their single California.  This was an inspired combination and it kept the rhythm going very well.  Sadly, the band was cut off short after their song Unforgettable Nights and had to tell the sound guy they had another song to do, which was their closer.  Once the sound was restored, they rocked out and put their heart into A Better Me, having the fans yell the chorus and have the time of their lives.

Closing the show was Hollywood Ending.  Performing an 8 song set, they still managed to be the most energetic group that performed that day. The energy radiating off of the band alone had everyone jumping up and down.  They performed every song off of their new EP “Always 18,” opening with the title track. Halfway through their set, they performed a cover song they’ve been playing since their beginning, Year 3000, with the crowd leading loving every bit of it.  They closed with their first single, Don’t Let Me Down, and thanked the crowd for having them.  The feeling was definitely mutual.

The engaging thing about Hollywood Ending is that this band sounds like they’ve been together for years, yet they still have the ‘new band’ energy — never letting up with their performance and giving every show (and their fans) their all.

Information about this tour…
Tour: The Boys of Summer Tour featuring Hollywood Ending and The After Party
Bands: Hollywood Ending, The After Party, Sandlot Heroes and Almost Hero
Reviewer: Melissa Edwards
Date: August 25, 2012
Venue: Penny Road Pub in Barrington, IL