Mayday Parade says cheers to 20 years by selling out St. Louis

St. Louis was overflowing with an emo, rock, pop punk mishmash of sound this past Monday night at The Pageant. Mayday Parade came to St. Louis with a sold-out show for their Three Cheers for 20 Years Tour, having just began a week prior. With them, they brought the talents of Like Roses, Grayscale, and Microwave: all bands complimenting shared genres, but each bringing their own creative and unique spin to the mix.  

For a Monday evening, it was a surprise to have three openers, but how could anyone complain?

Doors opened at 6pm and the long line of people outside the venue was to be expected for such a show. It was one of the hottest days of the year thus far, with the sun beaming down upon attendees in line as more and more people joined the eager mass to get inside.  

While I was familiar with the other three bands, Like Roses was a name I had not heard before and I was curious to see how they would do as the first opener of the night. I can say with confidence that I was not disappointed at all — and neither was the crowd. As the band began playing, a large black tapestry with “Like Roses” printed on it hung behind them. Describing themselves as “Bay Area emo”, the Berkeley-based trio was not shy to the stage as they fell into the rhythm, covering songs from their latest EP, Stuck. Their music might carry an emotional charge, but their stage presence is what makes the band memorable. Each member, with hair grown long, were cloaked in shadows of their own hair as they vigorously sang and moved around.

By 7:30pm, Grayscale kept the energy of the room flowing. The four-person band emerged from the wings of the stage in darkness aside from a large three-leaf clover illuminating their path. An orange glow outlined their silhouettes. Heralding from Philadelphia, this American rock band gave St. Louisans an epic performance of songs from their newest album, The Hart, featuring “Some Kind Of Magic” and “Not Afraid To Die”.

Then it was time to turn on the Microwave.

After a brief break, I returned back inside, surprised to see several large mushrooms now sprouting from the stage, each carrying a soft, warm glow. I was already excited to see Microwave, but the change in scenery made my anticipation increase tenfold. Almost a year ago to the day, these Atlanta natives released their fourth full-length album Let’s Start Degeneracy; the crowd was purposefully treated to several of this new album’s songs in the second half of their set, including some of my personal favorites, “Circling the Drain” and “Bored of Being Sad”. 

Now, there’s a reason this tour is called ‘Three Cheers for 20 Years’… even if you have never heard a Mayday Parade song in your life, it couldn’t be more obvious that this evening was going to end on a bang. As the night progressed, the venue continued to swell as people piled inside to see the band that made the song “Jamie All Over” be stuck in our heads since 2007. As soon as Mayday Parade appeared, it was game over — nothing could top the night quite like this. Smoke machines erupted on either side of the stage and all the pent-up excitement of the crowd erupted in cheers and screams for the Florida pop punk legends. Several small stands were placed on the stage for lead vocalist Derek Sanders to tower over the cheering crowd, singing familiar favorites as fans sang along with him. For many present that night, Mayday Parade was a staple to their adolescent years… so many fans got the chance to relive the days in which this band (and their music) helped them cope through years of teenage angst.

This concert was a Millennial’s ultimate dream.  

At one point Sanders said “the shoes are comin’ off, man!”, removing his shoes before the band launched into “Stay” from their 2011 self-titled album. As the concert carried on to its end, a large mirror hung at the back of the stage, showing off a fish-eyed reflection with the faces of the hundreds of attendees in the building. It was as if this mirror represented the band saying “we couldn’t have done this without you”. Cheers to another 20 years!

Photography by Sean Rider

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