Bowling for Soup is a band that is nothing, if not fun to watch. That’s precisely why their live shows continue to not only sell out out but gather rave reviews year after year, even when their music sales aren’t quite so booming.
Billed as The One Big Happy Tour, their latest offering delivers exactly what it says on the tin: an infectiously energetic and upbeat rock show which will leave even the most snobbish music fans having to try their hardest to resist cracking a smile.
Support for the tour comes in the form of fellow American pop-punk outfits Patent Pending and The Dollyrots. As long-time personal friends of Bowling for Soup, it comes as no surprise to find that both the support bands share a similar sense of humour and this comes across in their comedic onstage banter, much to the delight of the crowd.
Patent Pending are up first and deliver a stellar performance, with frontman Joe Ragosta leaping energetically from one side of the stage to the other without ever missing a beat, working the crowd as he goes. During a cover of The Backstreet Boys’ ‘I Want It That Way’, latecomers could have been forgiven for momentarily mistaking them for the headlining act as the crowd unexpectedly erupted into an unusually loud sing-a-long frenzy.
Female-fronted rockers The Dollyrots were up next and also received a fairly warm reaction from the crowd. However, it was clear from the off that the overwhelming feeling throughout the venue was that they should have been the band to perform first. Whilst lead-singer Kelly Ogden’s vocals were strong and distinctive, the songs were simply less memorable than those performed only minutes earlier by Patent Pending. It definitely wasn’t that The Dollyrots were bad – Patent Pending were just better.
By the time Bowling for Soup take to the stage (accompanied by their very own ‘Here Comes Bowling for Soup’ musical introduction), it’s hard to ignore the fact that a party atmosphere has spread through the ABC. Everyone from middle-aged couples to teenagers and parents can be seen dancing and clapping along with smiles on their faces as the band casually work their way through a long set of fun classics and entertaining onstage banter.
A few new songs are thrown in the mix, along with a couple of covers (namely Britney Spears’ ‘Hit Me Baby (One More Time)’ and Fountains of Wayne’s ‘Stacey’s Mom’) for good measure. Bowling for Soup don’t change the formula of their live shows much (insanely catchy pop song – audience interaction – borderline inappropriate joke – musically enhanced photo opportunity – repeat until curfew) and if you’ve seen one before, you pretty much go again knowing full well what to expect.
However, their live shows work so well that it doesn’t matter. You can go time after time and still have an amazing night and at the end of the day, isn’t having fun what going to a rock show is all about?