With Confidence bounces back in 2018, giving an intimate, emotional performance at the House of Blues Voodoo Room.
Just three days into their co-headlining tour with Broadside, With Confidence brought the energy to the House of Blues‘ Voodoo Room on Saturday, November 17. Despite the small stage size and numerous technical difficulties, Jayden Seeley, Inigo Del Carmen and Josh Brozzesi delivered a stellar and memorable performance that even moved some fans to tears. To those unfamiliar with the band, it seems like they were one of the lucky ones to find their niche in the pop punk scene early on in their career, but the journey was not always smooth sailing.
In November 2017, the band announced that they had split with their lead guitarist Luke Rockets due to sexual misconduct allegations. Afterward, the remaining trio took a step back from touring before finally returning to the stage at Warped Tour. Now, alongside other talented musicians, With Confidence appear reinvigorated to play the songs they have worked so hard on to their beloved fans.
Walking on stage, the audience’s screams greeted the band as they began to play the lead single from Love and Loathing, “That Something.” Jayden’s bright vocals sang the opening lines and the crowd couldn’t help but sing along. Accompanied by vibrant guitars and a driving bassline, this was the perfect opening track to warm up the crowd for a thrilling yet exhausting night.
“Keeper” followed suit, demonstrating the aggression and angst With Confidence had in their previous releases. This song holds great meaning as it tackles the stigmatization of mental illness and how essential it is to speak up about this issue. With its jabbing guitars, heavy drums, and Jayden’s throaty growl, “Keeper” successfully translates the frustrations of this stigma, further proven by the reactions of the crowd. Fans were so lost in the words and music that they did not have time to prepare for the next songs. The crowd sang along to the opening lyrics of “Sing to Me” and got rowdy during fan favorite “Archers.” At one point, a crowd surfer nearly landed on a photographer but the fall did not crush his spirits. Immediately, he got back on his feet and jumped right into the crowd just in time for the band to start playing “Godzilla.”
First starting off slow and somber, “Godzilla” crescendoed into an anthemic ballad that had fans screaming along to the honest lyrics and lively instrumentation. At that moment, as Jayden and Inigo harmonized while accompanied by Josh’s punchy drumming, they revealed their talent as live musicians unafraid to be vulnerable in their performances. The crowd also recognized this as a few girls even began to cry. The tears continued to flow when Jayden pulled out his acoustic guitar and serenaded the audience to the tunes of “Long Night” and “Paquerette (Without Me).” The intimate moment shared between the vocalist and his fans was something so special, not even a broken mic and sound system could have ruined this memorable sight.
Unfortunately, every concert must come to an end but With Confidence was able to finish strong with “Voldemort” and “Icarus.” As Jayden sang “Despite the weather, it gets better / you won’t do this alone” a mosh pit opened up and a couple crowd surfers flew through the air. There were a few pushes, shoves, and crushed toes but it was well worth it for a band that knows how to put on a show.