Close friends and singer-songwriters Chelsea Cutler and Jeremy Zucker brought their Brent Forever Tour to Salt Lake City, Utah this last weekend. One of only twelve stops on the tour, and second to last, both Chelsea and Jeremy brought passion, pain, and love to the stage in a full yet gentle force. Normally touring separately, the pair, who’s musical Ven diagram shares three EP albums, decided to focus a tour specifically on those shared albums and hit the road on the Brent Forever Tour. Fans of Chelsea and Jeremy were especially excited as this was the first time Cutler and Zucker had teamed up on tour. With them on their Salt Lake stop the pair brought special guest and indie folk artist Ethan Tasch.
KING DIAMOND will embark on a long-awaited North American headlining tour this Fall! The Saint Lucifer’s Hospital 1920 trek will commence on October 15th in San Antonio, Texas and run through December 6th in Dallas, Texas. Support will be provided by Overkill and Night Demon. Additional backing vocals for the KING DIAMOND set will be provided by the special guest, Myrkur.
To the excitement of many, the Legendary alt-rock band The Fray brought their “The Fray is Back” tour to Salt Lake City, Utah this last week as they played a sold-out show at The Complex. With them, they brought the ever-so-talented Rett Madison. Returning from a recent five-year hiatus and with fans of all ages anxiously packed into the Grand Room at the Complex, The Fray delivered a perfect emotional alt-rock set that was just what everyone had come for.
The rash guard-clad Aquabats returned to Salt Lake City on their newest tour celebrating the band’s 30th anniversary of fighting crime. Over the decades, The Aquabats have become some of Ska Rock’s biggest icons, known for their distinctive skin-tight rash guards, board shorts, and penchant for slaying inflatable monsters. The heroes in blue have not only made their mark on the music scene during their tenure, but have also featured in shows like Yo Gabba Gabba, and at one point even hosted their own family-friendly program for a short stint.
After a lengthy touring hiatus, The Aquabats are back on the road promoting their latest album Finally! joined by Left Alone and The Agrolites. Last Tuesday, fans of all ages flocked to The Complex in their signature Aquabat attire for a chance to hear the bands perform. The night was a testament to The Aquabats’ enduring appeal across generations and their never-faltering superhero-turned-ska-punk charm.
The first act I was able to catch was The Aggrolites. Emerging in the early 2000s, The Aggrolites are known for their unique “Dirty Reggae” sound, a fusion of classical reggae with ska-punk and soul sensibilities. From the moment the band of five stepped onto stage, they exuded a contagious energy that matched the upbeat feel of their songs. Opening tracks like “Pop the Trunk” and “Funky Fire” featured the laid-back reggae you’d expect of Bob Marley with a raw edge of traditional punk. Some songs like “Time To Get Tough” seemed to veer more towards rock, while others like “Mr. Misery” were light-hearted sing-alongs that called for audience participation.
Early in their career, The Aggrolites appeared on Yo Gabba Gabba where they first performed the classic favorite “Banana.” The crowd (including myself) was enthused to see that the beloved song made its way into the set. Costumed stage crew and members of The Aquabats pranced out of the wings wearing banana suits to accompany The Aggrolites for the song. Appropriately, members then threw inflatable bananas into the crowd which bounced across the venue for the remainder of the set.
Shortly after the stage crew cleared out frontman Jesse Wagner took a moment to thank the crowd for their support throughout the years. He talked about how Salt Lake City was always one of their favorite destinations on tour. Wagner recalled how Utah had consistently brought the loudest and most enthusiastic crowds, and the audience that night was no exception.
To wrap up their set, The Aggrolites finished with one of their biggest tracks, “Dirty Reggae.” Fittingly, the song is a tribute to the band’s unique ska punk and reggae identity. At the end of their performance, some of their front-row fans got a chance to score some tour merch as band members handed copies of the setlist and drumsticks to the audience. The Aggrolites seemed to care a lot about their fans and maintaining a lightheartedness on stage. It’s no surprise that their performance was well-received by both the families and rock enthusiasts in attendance.
Following a short wait, The Aquabats trotted onto the stage, proudly forming the band’s iconic bat symbol over each of their heads. Their set kicked off with fan favorites like “Cat with Two Heads!” and “My Skateboard!” from their 1997 album. The performance was about as chaotic as you might expect from a band dressed head to toe in spandex apparel.
Each member of the ska rock ensemble was decked out in superhero regalia, sporting hefty belts across their waist emblazoned with the Aquabats logo. Frontman and lead singer Christian Jacobs, better known by his hero alias The MC Bat Commander, led the performance. Accompanied by solos from other band members like Ricky Fitness and Eaglebones Falconhawk. On each side of the stage, LED screens played a bizarre array of visuals, featuring everything from clips of Shrek to graphics of Cabbage Patch dolls. These eclectic elements combined with the band’s over-the-top showmanship made the live listening experience all the more surreal.
The crowd seemed to be swept away by the performance too as The Aquabats threw inflatable sharks and floaties into the audience. The show felt like an immersive comic book turned dance-party adventure, complete with impromptu skirmishes and goofy antics that had families cheering along.
The Aquabats moved through some of their bigger hits like “Pizza Day!” and “Red Sweater!” while young fans got their first taste of the concert experience crowd surfing on blowup inflatables. Midway through the set, the band instructed audience members to make a circle by raising their arms overhead in a ritual they perform each show called “The Circle of Love.” Fans young and old all formed the circle in a wholesome tribute to The Aquabats’ song “Lovers Loving Love.”
After all these years, The Aquabats haven’t lost their undeniable charisma. Even though their performance may be as hokey as it is semi-coherent at times, The Aquabats have found a way to make their show a welcoming one for everybody, including the most hardcore of rock fans. I look forward to seeing how The Aquabats continue to grow their ever-loyal fanbase.
Danny Lux made his first trip to The Complex last Friday on the latest stop of his international tour, Tour of Lux. The Chicano artist celebrates the release of his fifth studio album EVOLUXION, joined by fellow Latin artist Dariell Cano. That night, The Complex housed a sizable audience made up mostly of Latine and Spanish-speaking fans dressed in Danny’s signature tour merch. Before the show began, eager fans searched for glimpses of performers in the wings and then cheered to beckon them on stage. The excitement in the crowd was palpable.
Ryan Beatty brought his 2024 North American Calico Tour to The Grand at The Complex in Salt Lake City on Friday, March 8th! It was his first time doing a show in Utah, and his excited fans lined up as early and a few hours before the night’s events and filled up the space inside the venue quickly once the doors opened!
When I arrived inside of the venue, there was a palpable sense of anticipation from the fans, yet they maintained a mellow and relaxed vibe. A venue worker jokingly remarked, “I came to take a peek at the rowdy crowd!” and then mentioned that because of the audience’s well-behaved demeanor, he predicted that it would be an easy night for venue staff and security.
On August 3rd, 2023, the Doncaster, England legend, Dominic Richard Harrison – more famously known as YUNGBLUD – performed at The Complex in Salt Lake City, Utah. This show has been long anticipated by Utah YUNGBLUD fans. Considering the last time he made an appearance here was his sold-out show at The Complex in 2019(certainly not without trying though). The cancellation of shows in 2020, a giant snowstorm that got them stuck between Denver and Salt Lake in 2022, and other scheduling conflicts only added to the excitement, buzz, and anticipation to see the young rockstar return to the Beehive State.
Inhaler is a Dublin-based Irish Rock band. It’s funny because when I learned about this band I immediately liked them. I thought I was super cool because I found this young band on their assent. I acted like I basically discovered them. Well turns out I’m a little late to the Inhaler discovery group. They have two albums already, both charted number 1 in Ireland, and their most recent release Cuts & Bruises was number one in the UK as well. No small feat. And not only that, but this would be their second trip to Salt Lake City in as many years. So while I do feel like I’m catching onto their comet early, it’s not quite as early as I thought.
Los Angeles-via-Brooklyn band DREAMERS (Nick Wold and Nelson) have shared stages with the likes of X Ambassadors, The 1975, Bleachers, Atlas Genius, Catfish and The Bottlemen, and Weezer while garnering coverage from Fader, Entertainment Weekly and Paste, among others, and performing on Jimmy Kimmel Live. In 2016, the band released their debut full-length album This Album Does Not Exist, featuring the top 10 Alternative radio hit, the electro-sprinkled pop gem “Sweet Disaster.” They just released their new single, “Robbery” and will be performing at The Complex with The Score on August 31!
We had the opportunity to chat with vocalist, Nick Wold yesterday. We talked about touring after the pandemic, songwriting, his first concert, and more! Enjoy!
Interviewed by Kevin Rolfe
Photo Credit: Gina Gizella Manning
UCR: Nick, how are you doing? It’s good to talk to you. So catch me up a little. How far into this tour are you?
Nick Wold: We’re kind of in the first leg I think. We’ve done like five shows out of 20. And yeah, we’re trucking because it’s our first tour back since the pandemic since the world ended.
UCR: Yeah. So how does that feel? It’s gotta be the craziest feeling to have that huge break and then be in front of people. In a way, does it feel like a new experience again or like an “old hat” kind of thing?
Despite the heat, fans lined the street outside The Complex just in time for Senses Fail to open for The Used and Rise Against this past Tuesday. Going into this concert I was pretty excited because I haven’t seen a concert set up on the outside stage at The Complex yet. So I was intrigued to see the stage setup. To my surprise, fans filled the outside lot all the way to the entry gate.
