Boys Like Girls
Article by Brittany Ormiston
It’s the early 2000s. You download your favorite music from LimeWire, and make mixed CDs for all of your friends with the title ‘Feel Good Mix’ written in colorful Sharpie. Now it’s time to play your perfect playlist through the car’s speakers for the ultimate test. After the key is placed in the ignition, you slide the burnt CD out of the visor holder and place it into the player. “Top down in the summer sun // The day we met was like a hit-and-run” is the first lyric you hear. Of course Love Drunk by Boys Like Girls was the first track chosen to start this playlist off with a bang. Fast forward to over 10 years later, you and all of your friends attended Emo Nite at the House of Blues Cleveland for a few hours of nostalgia. You witnessed headliner Boys Like Girls perform those same tracks you treasured as a kid, and shaped you into who you are today.
Guitar picks filled the microphone stands and were thrown out into the crowd like candy on Halloween. Boys Like Girls performed 30 songs in 95 minutes, and the show as a whole coaxed each person’s inner child to come out to play. It was heartwarming to see beaming smiles throughout the sold-out crowd as they held each other and sang in sync to every song. Yelling the lyric “Yeah she’s in Ohio” from ‘She’s Got A Boyfriend Now’ was extra special with the show taking place in Cleveland. Boys Like Girls went back in time to 2006 as they performed ‘Heels Over Head.’ The crowd clapped during the bridge, and the volume at which they sang the lyrics was ear piercing. “And then you'll turn it all around and you'll come back to me,” sang Martin Johnson (lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist) to end the track. Shortly thereafter, Martin stated the band grew up with us and they will never leave us again.
Intermixed with the nostalgia were tracks from Boys Like Girls most recent album SUNDAY AT FOXWOODS. Blood was dripping down the screens behind the band with a prominent bass line in tow from Gregory James (bassist, vocals) during ‘BLOOD AND SUGAR.’ High vocals were delivered during the bridge, and Martin did a fast-paced guitar spin. “Are you speaking our language, Cleveland?” asked Martin later on. The crowd screamed and clapped in agreement. The band dove further into their recent body of work with their exquisite performance of ‘CRY.’ The instrumentation from the strings and percussion sections were hypnotizing, and the transition into the instrumental break with heavy drums and electric guitar was seamless. Emotions were running high at that point, but everyone picked up the pieces to enjoy ‘THE OUTSIDE’ with an appearance from Derek DiScanio (lead singer of State Champs) and Brian Logan Dales (lead singer of The Summer Set).
‘THE OUTSIDE’ leading into ‘The Great Escape’ made perfect sense as these two tracks are anthems set almost 20 years apart, but depict the same theme. It is common to feel like you are on the outside looking in, but in the end you are not alone and there are countless individuals who share similar feelings, ideas, and love for music. ‘The Great Escape’ was the song that started it all for Boys Like Girls, and it was just as meaningful to the crowd based on their intense enthusiasm. Per the band’s request, everyone screamed the last chorus with them without a singular phone in sight. A remarkable moment in time that many wish they could relive time and time again. It certainly is a crazy world out there, but it is certain Boys Like Girls will be a safe place for all emo kids at heart always and forever.
House of Blues Cleveland in Cleveland, OH on October 21, 2023
Photos by Everly Ormiston
