On July 2nd 2023, The Used and Pierce the Veil came through Phoenix, Arizona on their co-headlined “Creative Control Tour. I knew this tour was going to be good but I had no idea just how big this was going to be. On this tour they brought along opening acts Girlfriends, and Don Broco. Girlfriends is a pop-punk band created and fronted by rapper and TikTok star Travis Mills (aka T. Mills). Mills grew quite the online following over the years and has attempted to use that platform to make the transfer from rap artist to rock artist and seems to be doing a decent job of doing so. Girlfriends is a simple three-piece pop-punk set up. They played a quick set of about 5 or 6 songs and then took off.
After a short intermission, we were treated to the musical stylings of Don Broco. These dudes are from the UK and they are a blast. I remember the first time I saw these guys; I was blown away by their explosive energy. Vocalist Rob Damiani is electrifying. His mile is contagious, his moves are epic, and he just knows how to have a good time. Unfortunately, their normal guitarist (Simon Delaney) was called away for a family emergency but luckily, they had a killer guitarist fill in for him on the last couple of shows. They played an awesome set that included some of their most fun songs, like “Bruce Willis”, “Everybody”, “Gumshield”, and “Comin’ to LA”. They got the crowd moving and having a good time right off the bat.
Next, we had a band that has meant a lot to me since I was a kid. This band is responsible for shaping the current emo/alternative landscape that we all know and love. The Used has been around for a damn while now and every single one of their albums is an absolute banger. I remember the very first song I ever heard from The Used and it was “The Taste of Ink” when I was in 7th grade (2001). That song got me to buy their Self-Titled album and the rest is history. I own every damn album by them and I still listen to them at least once every couple of days. What I love the most about seeing The Used live is that they always put on an amazing show. This one was a little more over the top than I’ve seen then go before and I really enjoyed it. They opened their set with a kabuki drop, and confetti canons loaded with extra-long party streamers. The stage was adorned with tens of thousands of fake white and pink roses in honor of their latest album release Toxic Positivity. They opened their set with “Take it Away” off their 2004 album In Love and Death and then went into “The Bird and the Worm” off 2007’s Lies for the Liars. This setlist spanned almost every single Used album, it was extremely well thought out and tailored perfectly for this tour. They only ended up playing one song off their newest album, which is completely understandable considering their upcoming tour will be a headlining tour for their latest album (so don’t forget to buy your tickets now!!!). The Used ripped the hell out of that stage, and near the end of their set played a cover of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” accompanied by Travis Mills, Rob Damiani, and Vic Fuentes. They all gave each other a big group hug before leaving the stage. This was the final date of this tour so, naturally, it was a bit emotional for each of the bands. The Used closed out their set with one of my personal favorites, “Pretty Handsome Awkward”. They said good night and took off back stage.
This next band held some surprises for me. I had never seen Pierce the Veil live, even though I’d been listening to them for the last 15+ years I just never had the opportunity to see them and I am very glad now that I finally had the chance. Let me preface this by saying that I was shocked at how many people still follow this band as they did when I was a kid. The entire theater was almost completely packed and the merch line didn’t die down until the show had ended. I honestly assumed that PTV had kind of waned in popularity over the last 10 years but I couldn’t have been more wrong. PTV also opened with a kabuki drop and confetti canons, but this time the canons were loaded with red confetti, and some of the confetti were shaped like hearts. It looked awesome watching them slowly fall over the crowd. They opened their set with “Death of an Executioner”, which is also the opening track on their newest album The jaws of Ife. They went straight into one of their biggest hits “Bulls in the Bronx”. This song is one of the emo anthems that everyone knows and loves and boy did it show that night. When I turned to the crowd, I saw fans reaching out to Vic with tears in their eyes as they screamed and sang along to this song. It was one of those moments that just hits you right in the chest. It reminds you why we are there in the first place. Every band and every song means something different to every person in attendance but we are all there to feel this music. It is fun to see which songs really resonate with people in deeply emotional ways. I feel like writing a song that evokes these visceral responses has got to be the greatest feeling for artists. PTV played all of their biggest songs including “Caraphernalia”, “Hold till May”, and “Circles”. Bassist Jaime Preciado was a madman on that stage! He never stopped moving and his crowd interaction was just great. They ended up closing the night out with “King for a Day” and the crowd went absolutely bat shit crazy for that song. The only way that song would’ve been bigger is if Kellin Quinn was there to sing it with Vic. They said their goodbyes and ended the Creative Control Tour.
This tour may be over, but these bands all have more tours coming up very soon. I know that Don Broco is heading out on the road with The Home Team, Ryan Oakes, Skyler Acord, and The Color 8. The Used is heading back out in a couple of months to headline a tour with Sleeping with Sirens, and Pierce the Veil is heading to Australia to tour with Beartooth and Dayseeker. These bands are all so damn good and you would be missing out if you never took the time to go see any of them live. They pour their souls into their music and it can be felt through the soundwaves coming out of your speakers, do yourself a favor and go feel that music coming straight from the artist.
