When We Were Young Fest is the place to be to revive your inner emo kid with nostalgic pop-punk and alternative hits, all while hearing new tracks from your favorite artists and meeting fellow Warped Tour lovers. This year’s lineup boasts an array of rock ‘n’ roll legends, including headliners Green Day and blink-182. Plus, attendees will have the chance to see the likes of 5 Seconds Of Summer, Motion City Soundtrack, Turnover, Gym Class Heroes, The Veronicas, and many more iconic acts.
Lucky ticket holders also get to see reunions from bands returning from hiatus or artists who only come out on special occasions. The 2023 When We Were Young will see Something Corporate, helmed by Andrew McMahon, make a grand return for one festival only, and a special set from The Academy Is…
These once-in-a-lifetime performances are expected to be absolutely killer, and we’re hopeful that a When We Were Young 2024 is already in the works, ready to launch some wonderful band reunions for which scene fans are patiently waiting. If we could invent our dream WWWYF lineup, it would definitely include these nine bands with their original lineups and iconic tracks from the mid-late ‘00s.
A Rocket To The Moon
If you love Beach Weather in all their Pineapple Sunrise glory, you have to return to lead singer Nick Santino’s previous project A Rocket To The Moon. Beginning in 2006, the core band members included Justin Richards, Eric Halvorsen, and Andrew Cook alongside Santino. Making waves in 2008, the group released the Greetings From… EP with uplifting pop ballads such as “Dakota” and “If Only They Knew.”
The quartet ultimately graduated to 2009’s full-length On Your Side with nuanced, heartbreak tracks ranging from the head-banging “Life Of The Party” to the tear-inducing “Like We Used To.” In 2013, the band signed off after releasing Wild & Free, featuring country-tinged vocals and twangy guitar melodies. Basically, it’s never too late to bring back those “Baby Blue Eyes” for a final bow, A Rocket To The Moon.
The Cab
From the moment The Cab came on the scene in 2008 with Whisper War all the way to 2014’s Lock Me Up, Alexander DeLeon (BOHNES) stole our hearts with his wide range of vocals. In 2021, DeLeon and Alex Marshall popped back up on social media to celebrate a decade of Symphony Soldier and tease “Rollercoaster,” a still unreleased Cab track.
If it were up to us, we would bring The Cab back for ten more years of new music. In a perfect world, they would show off new tracks and play through their debut LP, including the likes of “I’ll Run” and “One Of THOSE Nights” featuring Panic! At The Disco’s Brendon Urie and Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy, who also helped produce Whisper War.
This Century
Even in 2023, “To Love And Back” still echoes in my brain on a constant loop. From This Century’s 2011 Sound Of Fire to 2013’s Biography Of Heartbreak and all the way to 2015’s Soul Sucker, every full-length album is a true-to-form win for ethereal, beachy hits navigating the world of both young love and first heartbreaks. Seriously, if you need a morning pick-me-up, nothing will revive your spirit quite like “Hopeful Romantic.” Lead singer Joel Kanitz’s voice just has some otherwordly properties, and that’s that. His inviting pop vocals can also be found on his other music project Gorgeous War, and it’s definitely a necessity for chill morning playlists.
We Are The In Crowd
Lord, I have seen what you’ve done for others…and by others, I mean Slam Dunk Festival. We Are The In Crowd reunited for Slam Dunk and played together in 2021, and their social pages have been silent ever since. In my humble opinion, long-time fans located in the U.S. deserve a little reunion show in the 2020s, as well. With the musical pop-punk styling of Tay Jardine, Jordan Eckes, Mike Ferri, Rob Chianelli, and Cameron Hurley on full display only for one more night with “Rumor Mill” as the closer, we could die happily. Until then, we will be streaming Jardine’s, Ferri’s, and Hurley’s project SAINTE on repeat.
There For Tomorrow
Not only did There For Tomorrow make unique pop-rock music in the late aughts, they made, perhaps the best cover of Omarion’s “Ice Box” on Punk Goes Pop Vol. Two. From their title-track single to the entirety of A Little Faster, ensemble Maika Maile, Chris Kamrada, Christian Climer, and Jay Enriquez offer listeners a thrilling, unflinchingly earnest ride with “Wish You Away,” “Backbone,” and more. For just one more night, we would love to see the band and scream, “Show me what you’re after just a little faster,” right along with them. In 2019, the band did come together to perform a 10-year anniversary show of A Little Faster, so who knows? We might be able to see them again for the 15-year anniversary.
The Friday Night Boys
Few breakup anthems hit as hard as The Friday Night Boys’ “Stupid Love Letter.” We’ve all had a long-term crush rejection that felt like a legal divorce proceeding, right? When the band’s 2009 record Off The Deep End came out on Fueled By Ramen, it was an instant classic with the likes of “Stuttering,” “Molly Makeout,” and “Suicide Sunday.” Believe it or not, world-renowned record producer Benny Blanco, known for his work with Halsey, Maroon 5, Ed Sheeran, and more A-listers, produced the band’s debut record and played drums and keyboard on “Stupid Love Letter.” Truly, every big name in pop music is an emo kid at heart.
Cobra Starship
It’s a no-brainer that fans of both Cobra Starship’s old-school While The City Sleeps, We Rule The Streets with “Send My Love To The Dance Floor…” all the way to radio hit “Good Girls Go Bad (feat. Leighton Meester)” would want to see the band back in action. While Gabe Saporta is busy at work with Atlantic Records heading up TAG Music alongside The Academy Is… guitarist Mike Carden, maybe he can pencil in one last performance of “Guilty Pleasure” with the gang. And yes, they do have to do the little homemade video dance with it, too. We would even accept a Midtown performance… Honestly, I need a reason to re-wear my neon skinnies and shutter shades.
Family Force 5
“Hold up, wait a minute, put a little love in it!” is my current intrusive thought, but I am not complaining. Family Force 5’s balls-to-the-wall heavy rock approach to Business Up Front/Party In The Back with breakout hit “Love Addict.” Though a Christian rock band, FF5 was greeted with mainstream love from Warped Tour attendees. Frankly, if we could even revive the OG members of the band to get together for a rave performance, that would be ideal. After all, “Radiator,” “Supersonic,” and “Chainsaw” all contain, for lack of a better phrase, the sickest beats. Additionally, I can make the case that the band should reunite on When We Were Young Fest to also perform one Christmas song. Family Force 5’s Christmas Pageant contains, perhaps, the most crunk version of “Carol Of The Bells.”
Hey Monday
Cassadee Pope rocked our worlds back in her Hey Monday days, and continues to astound us with her return to rock on “Coma” with Taylor Acorn. We would probably give our left hand to see Pope reunite with the whole band to play “How You Love Me Now” or “Homecoming” from 2008’s Hold On Tight or “I Don’t Wanna Dance” from 2010’s Beneath It All EP. Though, if we never hear a Hey Monday hit again, we are hopeful that Pope will be delivering her pop-rock prowess in releases to come. When We Were Young Fest, if not Hey Monday, can we please get Pope in 2024 as a solo artist? Pretty please.
