Ft. Wayne, IN. – In January of 2020, I sat in my car during my lunch hour and had a 45 minute phone conversation with Theory’s guitarist Dave Brenner discussing their new album, Say Nothing, set to drop that Friday, January 31st. It feels like a lifetime has passed since that interview took place. One of the tracks on the album is titled, “World Keeps Spinning”, although it certainly felt like the world had actually stopped for many of us over the last 18 months.
In the interview, Dave and I not only discussed the new album but we talked about some of the more serious topics in the songwriting, as experienced in songs such as “History of Violence” and “Strangers”. We talked about how excited the band was to get on the road and introduce their fans to the new material, as the U.S. tour was planned to kick off in April 2020 with 10 years opening the shows. “I hope to see the band in May”, I mentioned, as the tour would be traveling through Indianapolis. However, none of that happened because in March 2020 the live music industry shut down. (Click here to read full interview)
Fast forward to Thursday, August 5, 2021 – the “world started spinning again” for Theory of a Deadman as they arrived in Ft. Wayne to the lovely Clyde Theatre for their first live performance since last year and the kick off their new tour. To say the energy in the air was “off the charts” would be an understatement! The boys were back and they were getting ready to do what they do best – perform in-person to their fans. As originally scheduled last April, they brought along the band 10 years to open the show. In some ways we may have lost a year, however in other ways the wait only made the crowd more eager and excited to experience the show. Fans young and old lined up patiently in front of the Clyde and around the building waiting to get inside.
10 years kicked off the night with a couple of tracks off the new album, Violent Allies (out now via Mascot Records). Band members Jesse Hasek (vocals), Brian Vodinh (lead guitar), Matt Wantland (rhythm guitar), Luke Narey (Drums) and Chad Grennor (bass) kept the crowd engaged and rocking, playing favorites like “Wasteland”, “Burnout” and “Shout It Out” while still providing a good mix of new material including “Sleep in the Fire”,“The Shift”, and “The Unknown”.
The haze began to fill the stage and signaled it was time for the main event. Sound bytes floated through the air as Tyler Connolly (vocals/guitar/piano), Dave Brenner (lead guitar/backing vocals), Dean Back (bass) and Joey Dandeneau (drums), otherwise known as Theory of a Deadman, took the stage. Theory got right down to it – pulling fan favorites from their seven studio albums, including such hits as “Lowlife”, “The Bitch Came Back” and their beautiful cover of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Games”.
The band was happy to be back on stage and even mentioned to the crowd how The Clyde Theatre was always a favorite destination for them. Tyler stated they had played the smaller venue in town, Pierre’s, several times and always looked forward to coming to the area – only to draw a loud roar from the crowd at the mentioning of their beloved venues and town. Theory kept the energy elevated through out the evening mixing in tracks from Say Nothing before closing the show with the biggest hits, “Hate My Life“, “Bad Girlfriend“, and “RX“.
Both 10 Years and Theory of a Deadman are out touring throughout the summer into fall and winter. Be sure to click below to check dates for both bands:
Show date: 08/05/2021
