Underneath: Experience Tour Nashville

 

While Hanson are no strangers to Nashville, this was their first time playing Cannery Hall. With any luck, I hope it's their last. I don't regret going and I had a good enough time, but I truly do not recommend visiting this venue unless you are 1. Over 6 feet tall, or 2. Cool with standing in line to get a close up view of other people who are over 6 feet tall (and no, I don't mean Taylor). I was lucky enough to get a good spot both nights, but the venue space in general was just weirdly small and not right for a Hanson show in my opinion. The staff was also strangely territorial about their property and you could pay to park on it, but the line wasn't allowed on the premises. Consider this the second venue on my “not going back there if I can help it” list.
 

P.S. Dear Tall People, I don't blame you. Stages should be better.

Night One

Our first sign that the venue was not what we're used to came when we walked in to find a moving wave backdrop behind the stage that felt like we were in an aquarium. It wasn't bad, just totally foreign from your standard House of Blues setup and a little distracting. When John Calvin Abney took the stage, the waves changed to a galaxy scene. He told us that the staff asked if he had a logo to display on their digital background, and his response was something to the effect of "nah, but I think it'd be cool to be in space." I totally would have asked for a Windows 2000 screensaver with some popping bubbles or a brick wall maze, because that's basically what this felt like.

When Hanson came out for the first show, Zac was wearing his glasses with the built in camera. I never noticed the light on and am not sure if he recorded anything during the show, but he kept them on all night and was giving off extreme Clark Kent vibes. Wrong night, sir, but not a bad look. Someone should've found him a Superman tee for the easiest costume ever on night two.

The acoustic setlist was mostly a textbook replica of all the other acoustic nights with the exception of no "Annalie" and the addition of one very unexpected Taylor solo. The moment I had my phone out ready to record just in case he finally broke out "The Luckiest" and felt my heart sink when I recognized the first notes of "Lost Without You" was the moment I knew that Hanson completely ruined me by leaking that setlist. There is absolutely no reason I should ever feel disappointment over "Lost Without You," but here we are. This is what happens when you leak epic setlist spoilers and then don't follow through. Please, please play "The Luckiest" at BTTI so I can relax and move on, most likely after writing seven paragraphs about how amazing it was to finally hear it. In all seriousness, though, round of applause for switching things up with "Lost Without You" because yes, that was still greatly appreciated!

The "Me and Julio/Cecelia" mashup continues to be a favorite for me, and I had a great time attempting to follow Zac's clapping rhythm but mostly butchering it immediately after three-second increments of getting it right. (As far as I can tell, the pattern is knees, one clap, knees, two claps, knees, one clap, sudden onset rhythm amnesia, hand flailing, repeat).

Night Two

The Pre-Show Gag Reel

Before I get into Halloween and the specifics of the second show, I want to share with you a new fear that was unlocked for me on this night. Imagine being at a crummy venue with approximately negative five spots you can actually see from. You wait in line ALLLL day (*cough*andnight) to secure one of them, you spend eight hours in a very involved, not entirely comfortable Halloween costume, and you get rained on for a good portion of that time. You've somehow crammed a wig and fake ears under an uncomfortably tight poncho hood that isn't built for elves, and you're prepared to sacrifice your favorite Hanson symbol umbrella at the door in hopes of retaining some dry space on your body. You deal with all the normal pre-show chaos and uncertainty of what line is going where and who is actually going to be let in first. You finally make it to the front row where you can stow your umbrella and breathe a breath of relief that you actually made it to a decent spot and your hard work, anxiety, and exhaustion have all paid off. The crowd fills in. The show is about to start.

AND THEN THE FREAKING FIRE ALARM GOES OFF.

The panic that I felt thinking I might have to evacuate that spot was probably on par with the panic I would have felt if I'd seen actual flames. The whole front of the room was exchanging "Guess we're going to die in this spot" looks of solidarity, and I honest to God think a police officer would have had to walk in and threaten to arrest me to get me to leave that barricade. Thankfully, it only lasted for a minute or two before it got shut off and we didn't actually have to evacuate. But like I said, new fear forever unlocked.


The Show

I know I’ve skipped mentioning them in my tour posts so far, but I’d like to take a moment to say how much I’ve loved having Phantom Planet on tour with Hanson. I’m not a hardcore fan, but they’re a band I genuinely liked prior to Hanson bringing them out. I actually saw them live for the first time way back in 2008 when they played a show at my college on Valentine’s Day and I helped sell their merch. I took home an EP that day and fell in love with every song on it. “Leader” became my favorite, and I finally got to hear it before the show in Nashville. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Holly (@_hollywouldnt)

Shoutout to their matching skeleton attire and my pal Charizard making a cameo up front. I really hope these guys make a reappearance as special guests at BTTI.



This is where I’m going to veer into unusually whiny territory, and I’m sorry in advance. Nashville was the tour stop I was most looking forward to since the second show fell on Halloween. I try to have realistic expectations when it comes to Hanson, and while mine were probably a bit higher than what I expect from an average show, I thought they were still realistic based on years of already established Halloween memories. The Make It Out Alive Halloween MOE in Tulsa in 2010 was one of my favorite trips. There was a costume contest, Hanson dressed as the three musketeers (two carrying swords, one wearing a giant candy bar wrapper), and they ended the show with the Ghostbusters song. I wasn’t there, but I know in 2009 they dressed up and performed “Thriller.” My other Halloween experience was at Epcot in 2011, which is arguably too short to play a special song, but they dressed as storm troopers and Dimitrius and Taylor swapped places until they pulled off their masks for a funny reveal.

I know they’ve tapered off on doing much for Halloween the past few years at Disney, but Nashville was the first actual tour stop on Halloween in years, so I still held out hope for something festive. A costume, a cover song, idk, throw some candy into the crowd? Just any little extra nod that says thanks for joining us on this particular night when you probably had a lot of other social options and/or skipped trick-or-treating with your kids to be here. As I answered someone on the hnet forums who asked what Hanson ended up wearing for Halloween: This year they went as three tired members of a band on show seven in a row.


I went about 700x more festive than that, and I have no regrets.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Holly (@_hollywouldnt)

I still had a good time dressing up with my friends and seeing other fun costumes in the crowd, but something felt a little bit lackluster about this one even beyond the band ignoring Halloween. It felt like they were powering through song after song without stopping, and maybe in an alternate universe where I had more sleep and less rain and half a dozen other improved variables, I’d be spinning that as an energized band who never slowed down and kept up an electric pace. In reality, it felt more to me like they were rushing through each one desperately trying to get to the end. To quote the title track of this tour, the phrase that comes to mind is “There is nothing gone, but there’s something missing,” and I suspect the thing that’s missing is sleep. 

I can’t blame Hanson for being tired/sick humans after seven shows in seven days including 12 Disney sets and a random RT flight to NYC. I’m cranky if I have to work seven days in a row in my own hometown with 8 hours of sleep in my own bed each night, so I know we're lucky we even got a show and I can’t imagine how they’re feeling. But somewhere along the line, someone approved that many shows in a row, and I’d like to mom them just a little bit and remind them that that pace isn’t sustainable, self care is important, we're all older and more tired, and whoever planned that string of exhaustion should probably make better choices next time. At least I hope it's a case of being too tired to do bonus content and not that we're getting too old for all the childish bits of tours past like cake smashing, costumes, and finale show pranks. I vote we keep embracing some of that child-like joy in whatever format we can, maybe starting with naps.

Underneath: Experience Tour Atlanta

Atlanta is always a complicated tour stop for me. On one hand, it's always one of my closest show options (a ~6 hr drive depending on traffic) and feels like a no-brainer for someone who likes to do multiple shows. On the other hand, there is a long list of things I'd rather do than drive in Atlanta traffic, and on occasion, skipping a Hanson concert is one of them. Under different circumstances I might have just chosen another city, but with a small tour where my closest stop fell on a Hanson’s birthday, I knew this wasn’t a “skip Atlanta” year for me.


I entertained the idea of driving alone at first, but I’m a little embarrassed to admit that this trip ended up breaking my 10-year self-imposed rule of hoarding air miles for international use only. I couldn't bring myself to pay $400 for a flight to a place I could drive on $50 of gas, so throwing away air miles was the compromise. I’ve now cashed in my miles on three exotic locations: Australia, Brazil, and Atlanta 😂. 

Acoustic Night One

The crowd at the acoustic show was weirdly rowdy and had me a little concerned about what things would be like on electric night. There was a lot of talking during quiet parts, but it wasn’t just bored people talking to their neighbors; they were actively involved and trying to take the conversation to the stage with lots of randomly shouted “Happy Birthday!” moments and “I love you (insert brother here)!” Then there was the one guy close behind me who just kept shouting “39!!” throughout the show like the universe glitched and dropped some angry football fan shouting at a player on the sidelines directly into acoustic “MMMBop” instead. It’s fortunate he was there to remind us all what we were celebrating, though. Just imagine how disappointing the show might have been without his dedication to spreading the awareness of Zac's new age.

But the rowdiness wasn’t all bad. The crowd participation during the singalong parts was top-notch. We nailed “Madeline.” We had Isaac grinning during his solo of “River.” We practically became a 4th member of the band during “A Song To Sing” whether they wanted us to or not, and I always love when the crowd has that sort of electric vibe of all being connected in the same moment. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Holly (@_hollywouldnt)

As for it being Zac's birthday, I feel like there's always this expectation among fans for something epic to happen at a birthday show. It's true that there's something a little bit special about it, but I think we're past the years of cakes being smashed or thrown into the audience. I got the feeling Zac appreciates the well wishes but also wants us to focus on the music and quit screaming bonus content at him every five seconds. This show had me trying to remember the last time I saw an actual cake smash, which had me questioning how many of his birthday shows I've been to, and here's what I found:

Apparently I've been to every one of Zac's birthday shows since the first one I attended in 2009, there have been a grand total of six since then, two of them had smashed cakes, and the last time that happened was 2015. Also pro-tip: If you see the cake being brought out mid-show, it's not going in anyone's face. That's a finale move. You don't cover the drummer in icing if you expect him to sit back down and play more songs. Here's a throwback to them all, because why not? 

No cake in 2012 because it was at Epcot, and I guess you don't waste 5 min. of a 30 min. set on cake

On a more serious note, this show in particular was a better reminder than usual that we all perceive things differently and it can be hard to get at the "truth" of a situation even when you're all taking in the same details at the same time. Someone shared a video of Taylor during "A Song To Sing" after the shows were over and there were comments about how he was in tears. I didn't notice it at all in person despite Taylor giving a self-proclaimed "ooey gooey speech" to introduce the song. But there were several concerned comments and people that said they noticed him crying, and his face is definitely glistening with a drip or two in some of the videos shared. Then someone presented perspective number two, which was Taylor was just sweating profusely and it was dripping into his eyes. Is anyone lying? No. Are any of us equipped to know the real answer? Also no, and I think the same thing applies to so many fan disagreements where nobody is making anything up, we just all took in the same incomplete information and processed it differently. 

Electric Night Two

While waiting in line for the second show, a local comedian showed up around noon to record some promo footage in front of the venue and said he was shocked to find a line there. We talked to him for a little while and he ended up going down the line and getting us to help him film some content which was a fun twist to the usual characters we meet on sidewalks. I'm definitely no actor and the footage may never see the light of day, but it was fun talking to him, and if nothing else he got a crash course in the dedication of Hanson fans. Maybe our insanity will be a bit in his routine one day.

Oddly, the crowd seemed almost calmer to me during the electric show. I don't know if people were more invested in trying MMMHops and Pink Moonlight on night one and had a few extra drinks out of fear that it would sell out (it didn't), but I didn't notice any heckling or catcalling on the second night. What I did notice was it felt like there was a lot of energy on the stage, and the band seemed really into it. It was one of those shows that felt so interactive that I took like six garbage photos the whole night and never bothered to do better because I was having too much fun to care. Isaac made a post after the show saying he was sick, but I absolutely could not tell it during the show. The last few songs were just insane back to back. We got "If Only" into "In the City" into "Rock 'n' Roll Razorblade" with a "Lost Without Each Other" encore featuring Phantom Planet. As I joked later, the only thing screaming louder than the crowd after that line up of songs was my shins the day after. 

Accidental Existential Thoughts

Sometimes I catch myself raving about how awesome a show was, and I can't help but wonder if my perception of any show is ever truly accurate or in any way comparable to what someone on the "outside" walking in would think. Does it ever actually sound as good as I think it does? Did the bartender hear what I heard? Am I involuntarily applying a mental filter to everything because I know every word and every note by heart and my brain is equipped to fill in the blanks for missed lyrics or flubbed chords? The adrenaline rush of a high-energy show is practically a drug, and it's so easy to get wrapped up in living out a feeling and a moment that I'm never really sure if my experience was what actually happened or if I'm always smoothing out the edges without even knowing it. Honestly, does it even matter? If perception is reality, I'll choose mine every time over the girl texting in the back.

Underneath: Experience Tour Minneapolis

I don't know what it is that makes me hate spoilers more and more the older I get, but there is nothing I love more than walking into a Hanson show with no idea what's going to happen. Don't get me wrong, I will go to 17 String Theory shows with identical setlists and I will like it, but my truest happy place is an open-ended Hanson Show with a setlist full of blanks. I'm not sure how it took me this long to figure out that the obvious hack to avoiding spoilers is to just go to the first show of the tour. Problem solved. That being said, this post is going to be full of them, so please don't keep reading if you prefer to go into the shows blind as well.

An opportunity to skip out on spoilers and visit local friends was all I needed to include the Minneapolis shows in my plans for this tour. I didn't get to attend any of the original Underneath tours, so I think my expectations for what it means to have an acoustic night and an electric night were probably a little more simplified than they should have been. In my mind, acoustic = mellow, electric = upbeat/tire me out jumping, and I think the reality was somewhere in the middle for both. Apart from the stage setup mirroring the original Underneath Acoustic setup with Zac's drums pulled forward and off to the side, the two nights mostly just felt like a continuation of each other. There were several ballads on night two that I would have mentally placed in night one, and a few more upbeat songs during night one that I would have expected on night two. I think the best way to approach this tour is just embrace the fact that it's an "experience," and enjoy the variety without getting hung up on what each night should be. Both setlists were phenomenal and totally different from anything you might describe as their usual.

Night 1

I'll start by dropping a link to the setlist here so you can peruse the awesomeness without me raving about every single song choice and parrotting some of the comments I already made on my post about the Church Studio show. Apart from just loving the overall variety, the first significant comment I want to make is a major shoutout to "Hand in Hand." I have to admit, it's not a contender for my favorites list, and there was a time where it felt overplayed. But in all fairness, Isaac always gives it 100%, so it usually slays and I'm happy enough to hear it. In Minneapolis, though, Isaac dug deep, channeled 2003 Isaac, and found a way to give 1,000%. I feel pretty confident in saying it was the strongest performance I have ever seen him give of "Hand in Hand," period, and according to Hansonstage, I've got 35 other performances to compare it to (that's a smaller number than I was expecting for someone who was just complaining that it's overplayed). I can remember raving about how epic his performance of "Being Me" was in Albuquerque on the Anthem Tour, and this was a similar vibe of just all in, totally present and giving his absolute best in the moment. Standing ovation material if I wasn't already standing, sir!

"Teach Your Children" did a great job showcasing their harmonies and was the one part of the show I decided to record and post to Instagram. I'm so internet illiterate that other Holly had to tell me that Hanson shared it to their stories the next day and that's why I kept getting notifications that it had a bunch of views.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Holly (@_hollywouldnt)

"Thinking 'Bout Somethin'" definitely qualifies as one of the "how did this wind up on an acoustic Underneath set?" songs of the night, but then throw in a guest appearance of Cory Wong and we truly reached "what is going on?" status. (He hosted some event Hanson played at Bonnaroo last year and apparently is a musician & Minneapolis native). Like I said, I love random blanks on a setlist that I can't predict, and this one qualified. 

Night 2

The second night setlist was no less impressive and had a few fun surprises of its own. But before we get into that, let me introduce you to the luckiest fan at the show that had the best seat in the house: 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Holly (@_hollywouldnt)

I got a kick out of it at first, the puns freely flowing, but when Hanson took the stage and the thing was still just sitting there front and center and plugged into absolutely nothing, it continued to stick out to me like a sore thumb. No, it wasn't in my way or blocking anyone's view, but it was just one of those things like spotting a crooked tile in a floor that's probably been there for years without you noticing, but the moment someone points it out, it's all you can see. That stupid fan was right in my line of sight all night long, which, of course, beats an actual living, breathing fan blocking my view. ("It doesn't even go here!" "How did that fan get on stage?" "That's the luckiest fan in the room!" "Do you think it's up there because it's a member of the 'fan' club??" "Maybe it's a guest performer for Dancing In the Wind.") In the end, no one on stage ever acknowledged it, "Dancing in the Wind" had a fully missed opportunity, and I'm as confused as ever.

The main standout at the second show, rogue fans excluded, was a medley I never expected. Maybe "medley" is the wrong word since the full songs were played, but regardless, it was three connected songs that I never in a million years would have connected. It started with "Crazy Beautiful," one of my all time favorites. I was excited and ready to do the sped up clapping bit at the end, but when the time came to do that, the song ended abruptly and morphed into, of all things, a cover of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World." Like, what? And then the final notes of "Everybody Wants to Rule The World" morphed into the opening notes of "World's on Fire" which was even more "WHAT?" inducing than the last one. I might not have known what was going on, but I loved every moment of it.

I did manage to tell Isaac after the show that I really enjoyed "the medley with World's On Fire." He mentioned that it had a lot to do with the unique 6/8 time signature of each song and that "Crazy Beautiful" was inspired by "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" (again I say, WHAT?) He didn't elaborate and I can only assume he meant rhythmically and not thematically, but that was entirely new information to me!

All in all, it's a five star show review here. Truthfully, I can only be so excited for a re-released album where I already own almost all of the songs (though happy to purchase it to support the band), so my true excitement this time was reserved more for the tour. It didn't disappoint. I do hope some of the rarer b-sides that got released with Underneath:Complete (and the SETB DVD) will make their way onto future setlists, but I'm not going to dock any points for not playing a 40 song set to squeeze it all in. The mix so far was great, and time will tell if the vault will be opened to songs like "Let You Go" and "My Own Sweet Time." Thankfully, I've got the hack for that down pretty well; just keep going to shows.

Five stars, love the mix of songs, get yourself to a pair of shows if you can!

Underneath Complete: Church Studio

It feels a little strange to be writing about traveling for fun during a time when so many people in my home state and neighboring areas are dealing with devastating loss in the wake of Hurricane Helene. Remember my blog post about dancing on stage with Taylor in Asheville, NC a million years ago? That entire city is practically under water right now, completely cut off from roads, electricity, and even cell service. My heart goes out to the countless people who have survived the worst but are still a long way from anything being fixed or normal. I'm not sure how fully this is being covered nationally, but it's all I can see in my local news, and it's heartbreaking. If you would like to consider making a donation or sharing a link, this news article has a great list of places accepting donations, including verified gofundme pages if you want to see your dollars go directly to affected individual families.

Seeing all of this news while on my trip to Tulsa went a long way towards giving me a fresh perspective on my own struggles over the last few days. Sure, I might have had to change my flights literally four times and spent five hours at my home airport before calling it done and trying again the next day (ironically a technical difficulty unrelated to weather), but in the end I made it to Tulsa in time and I'm safely back home, and that's really all I can ask for.  P.S. Shoutout to Jocelyn, a random AA chat representative for whom I would like to start a fan club. She listened to me when I asked for a flight change that wasn't strictly necessary by their standards, and she is the reason I am writing this calm post from home right now and not raging in the CLT airport overnight composing an angry letter in my head.

Weather and travel issues aside, I don't have to tell you that being able to go to this show was a privilege, and I'm grateful that I was able to get a ticket and jump through all the right travel hoops. I know for Hanson and for plenty of their fans, being at this show was a special opportunity to celebrate the 20th anniversary of an album, an era, and the Underneath Acoustic recording. Since I showed up on the Hanson scene in 2006/2007, I think it was a little different for me. I don't have the same memories that others have attached to the Church Studio or even to the Underneath era of shows, but sitting there in such an intimate setting definitely brought back memories of my first time seeing Hanson at the Middle of Nowhere Acoustic recording and the general feeling of awe and gratitude at being allowed to be a part of that moment. 

I think for special shows like this, I'm always looking for some sort of wow factor. It's usually a rare or unexpected song; sometimes it's a special guest or a Hanson deciding to go swimming in the ocean in the middle of a set. In this case, I think the wow factor was simply the setting and the sound quality. Don't get me wrong, they gave some great song performances, but there was no single "wow" song so much as an overall "wow" quality to listening to good music straight from the source in a recording studio with a rich musical history and excellent sound.

There were two sessions, 1pm and 4:30 pm. I was at the 1pm show, but the setlists were identical. Here is the setlist courtesy of Hansonstage.com:

Strong Enough To Break

Stories

When You're Gone

Annalie

Deeper

Runaway Run

Believe

Teach Your Children

MMMBop

Penny and Me Moonlight Version

Underneath

Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard / Cecilia

Out Of My Head

With You In Your Dreams

Optimistic

Dancing In The Wind

Dream Girl

Love Somebody To Know

The first song that got me excited was "Stories," which was always my favorite 3CG song as a kid. We all know there are a few old school songs that might be cringy coming from grown men ("bing bang, you hit me like a boomerang," etc.), but I think "Stories" comes off as a nostalgic folk-y sounding song that if possible sounds even better from grown-up Hanson. It aged well, and I'd be happy to see this one as a tour staple. 

"Annalie" felt a little bit like it got lost on its way to a different setlist and wandered into the wrong show at first, because I wasn't expecting to hear anything outside of the Underneath era. But you know, it's kind of like the time I got us lost on the way to Joshua Tree and accidentally drove us to to Lake Tahoe instead. I didn't mean to be there and it wasn't what I expected, but it was still beautiful. I could see "Annalie" fitting in well with the full acoustic set on tour, but I am a little surprised it made the cut for an abbreviated preview. Still, it was probably the best performance of it that I've ever heard, and I loved the drums.

"Runaway Run" was the same amazing slowed down version they played at HDay a few years ago that we feared might go into the vault forever, and I felt like Taylor poured his whole soul into his performance of "Believe." 

I also have to give Isaac props for successfully pranking us with "MMMBop" this time. I know I'm always joking about how he will intro a song with "We've never played this live before" and my instant reaction is to wonder which song he's lying about now. But this time when he said it, he followed it with "MMMBop," and okay, he got me. I was fully expecting to hear something semi-rare that he forgot playing approximately 10 times instead of "MMMBop." He's just ensuring that I never trust his song intros again at this point.

At the risk of saying something slightly offensive, I think my favorite part was the "Me and Julio"/"Cecelia" mashup, and the reason that feels offensive is who in their right mind gets to go to a special show like this with rare original songs and comes out loving a cover song the most? I can't help it, though. The vibe was absolutely perfect and everything I've ever wanted out of an acoustic performance--solid vocals and an upbeat rhythm that forces me to tap my feet. Honestly, it was perfection, and "Annalie" felt like a distant cousin with a similar vibe. I'm definitely going to need a tutorial on those claps on tour, though. 

I probably need to stop gushing about each and every song before I've gone on for 19 paragraphs, but it's hard not to when so much of it was memorable. It's funny, in person, the overall feeling of the show felt very mellow, maybe even excessively so at times, and there were moments when I was hoping things would speed up and wishing that I could have been standing and dancing around a little more. In retrospect, looking at the setlist, it's kind of hard to find fault with anything. It's so vastly different from your typical "festival" setlist full of singles and setlist staples, and I really can't wait to see what the extended version with two separate nights looks like.

The only thing I would change at all would have been to leave off "With You In Your Dreams." I realize I say this too often, but I stand by the fact that if I'm saying it too often, then they must be playing it too often. When Taylor said "Can I get a 'whoah whoah'?" to the crowd referring to the crowd participation part, I really wanted to sarcastically respond "whoah, whoah" in an entirely different tone, Peter Griffin style. It's a beautiful song and a prime example of the power of music when you have a sobbing mass of fans every single time you play it, and kudos to Hanson for having harnessed that power, but to reference another Peter (Parker), with great power comes great responsibility, and I think the responsible thing to do would be giving us a solid break from this song on occasion. I realize I'm being a total drama queen and all sarcasm aside, I'm not actually mad. I also don't expect them to cater to me when for every person who is tired of crying over it, there's probably another one feeling some epic healing catharsis. Still, can we get a once a year rule or something? I might even settle for a "not at three shows in a row" rule. Or what about a "not at BTTI" clause? Just think about it, guys.

I'm sure I've skipped over several other great moments because this post is starting to get longer than the show itself, but if you're a fan club member, the good news is you can currently still stream it for free directly on hanson.net and get all the fun and none of the flight delays. It will probably be removed shortly, so go ahead and give it a watch if you want to check it out! 

Special thanks to Hanson for creating such a cool show opportunity, to their team for facilitating ticket sales and for great organization the day of the event, and shoutout to all my fellow fans that kept all unsolicited "whoah, whoahs" to themselves and made the whole experience fun and enjoyable. See you all soon on the road!

Six Reasons You Need to Buy These Toronto Seats!

Up for grabs Sold: Two pairs of Two Day Passes at the Danforth Music Hall + Two Afterparty Tickets. These are assigned seats located in the front row of the mezzanine indicated by the red dots on the map below. I'm selling all of the above as a bundle for the face value of $234 USD (which was the discounted fan club presale price).

When I originally bought these tickets, I had hoped to check out a new city and use the freedom of great balcony seats to play worry-free tourist for a couple of days. I've since decided that the role I should be playing on these dates instead is someone who occasionally rests and goes to work in between Hanson shows. Boring, I know, but my impulse buy can now be your impulse buy. Here are six reasons why I chose these seats and why you should, too!

1. It's good for your mental health.

Think about all of the stress you've felt waiting in lines, the hours you've put into getting the best spot possible all culminating in a peak level of anxiety when people start lurking at the front of the line just before doors. Will they run faster than you? Will you trip on the way in the door? Will something you forgot you left in your pocket cause security to hold you aside while everyone runs freely past you to the barricade? With these tickets? Let them. You know exactly where you're headed, and no one can take it from you.

2. It's good for your physical health.

2A. (Your feet will thank you) 

Remember when you used to wear super cute wedges/sandals/flats to shows because you didn't have to worry that your feet would be ready to fall off by the final bow? No? Okay, well what about a time when you wore perfectly reasonable shoes to shows and weren't already cursing the fact that you had to stand on your feet for another three hours just barely 30 minutes after doors? Good news! With these tickets, you don't have to stand up while you wait for the show to start. You don't have to stand up while you listen to the openers. You don't even have to stand up for Hanson if you don't want to because you'll have a nicely cushioned seat and nobody standing in front of you.

2B. (Your bladder will thank you.)

Since these are front row aisle seats, you can make as many bathroom and bar trips as you like without the awkward sideways shuffle through the 3-inch gap between the seats ahead of you and approximately 15 strangers. AND your seat will still be there every time you return! Just don't get too cocky about all that extra space and step too close to the mezzanine wall. 

3. You'll have a clear view regardless of your height.

I started to pitch this one as a solution to short people problems because it's why I (at 5'2") wanted these seats, but with the capabilities of cell phones and the ever-present inconsiderate few, having your view blocked at a concert is now an everybody problem. Luckily, the first row location of these seats guarantees a great sightline free from obstruction no matter your height or obnoxious surroundings. There will be no tall people, selfie sticks, chronic live streamers, face timers, rogue puffy paint signs, or kids on shoulders to block your view. You can just sit back, relax, and play Statler & Waldorf to the mayhem below.

4. You can take your time buying merch. 

I don't know about you, but I usually skip the merch booth at GA shows unless it's after the show and the line looks abnormally short. Even if you luck out and find yourself in a quick line after the show, sizes are usually picked over by then and things will be sold out. Having a specific seat means you can go straight to the merch booth when you enter the venue without worrying about establishing a spot in the crowd or making sure you have a friend capable of saving it. It also means you can put your merch under your seat and not be stuck holding it all night long. Win-win!

5. You can enjoy being a tourist.

You can visit the CN Tower, the St. Lawrence Market, the Hockey Hall of Fame, an array of museum options, or take a day trip to Niagara Falls and still make it to your seat by show time without ever setting foot in the line. Sure, you could go back home and tell people you saw Hanson in Toronto, but wouldn't you rather go back home with memories of seeing a whole lot more?

6. They're the best seats you'll find and at the best price.

The entire mezzanine is currently sold out on Ticketmaster. Of course, you're welcome to purchase the only pair of mezz tickets currently available on Stubhub that are a few rows behind these and over double the price. If your happy place is 3rd row overpriced resale balcony tickets, I support you, but I also have questions.

All jokes aside, I wish I could make this one work, but I'd rather resell directly to a real fan at a fair price than use a resale site that will charge you way more while paying me less. If you're interested and don't already have me on social media, feel free to send me a message on instagram https://www.instagram.com/_hollywouldnt/. Have fun and eat some poutine for me!

Time Machine: 2024 EP Review

If you've made it to this page, it's probably safe to assume that you're already aware of Hanson's fan club and the fact that they release an exclusive five(ish) song EP every year to fan club members. If not, well, now you are. You can visit this page on hanson.net to learn more, sign up, or renew. If you're already a member, there are two ways to listen. 1. You can stream the EP (and Hanson's entire catalog!) directly in their media player, or 2. If you're renewed through 2025, you can visit your order history page and download the song files directly to your device. Happy listening! 

Before I dive into each song, I want to point out that this year has provided a new challenge for anyone attempting a closer look at Time Machine. They haven't released the digital lyric booklet yet, which means I'm working off of what my own ears hear and a few crowdsourced fixes. I'd like to believe I'm a step up from some of the awesomely bad auto-generated youtube captions out there, but consider this your disclaimer that I've written these lyrics down as I hear them, and as of now there's no way to prove me wrong unless you can track down a Hanson and ask. Best of luck with that.

1. Every Time We Touch

At the end of each song segment you'll find my best attempt at transcribing the lyrics, and in the interest of transparency, I've made any text that I'm unsure about red. While "Every Time We Touch" is a contender for my favorite song on this EP, it's also the clear winner if we're giving a ribbon to the song with more red text than a King James New Testament. I really wasn't expecting an Isaac song to give me so much enunciation trouble, but this one had me going "What in the Taylor Hanson are you saying, sir?" on more than one occasion.

Good-natured heckling aside, the song is really fun. It has an 80s power-pop vibe that reminds me of songs like "Stop Me In My Tracks" (complete with similar car imagery) and "Somebody that Wants To Love You." Even without the complete lyrics, I can tell the general storyline is boy meets girl he likes and drives off into the sunset with her. I want to say that the "green lights, bright stars, and deep cuts" line is my favorite, but first I would need to be sure that's what he's saying. It just creates the perfect image of driving fast at night with a good sound track playing in the background, and I think the green light is more than just a traffic signal and is symbolic of the girl returning his feelings.

I didn't get to watch the listening party stream until I returned home from Tulsa, and I was shocked to learn that this song was born during an Isaac solo show at BTTI back in 2018. I was there in person and even briefly commented on how good his off-the-cuff writing was in my blog from that year. I can totally hear it now thanks to a little help from a clip shared on hansonstage, but I don't think I ever would have made that connection on my own. I'm glad to see it finally became a whole song and found a home on an EP.

2. Ahead of Your Time

This song immediately reminded me of the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling, probably partly due to the fact that I had to memorize it in middle school, but also because I've heard Isaac bring it up a few times in passing. Without going full English teacher on you, I'll quickly say that "If" was published in 1910 and shares an author with The Jungle Book. The general premise is a father imparting wisdom on his son, and the structure is essentially a bunch of lines beginning with "If you can (insert responsible life lesson here)" and ending with a final line stating that if you can do all of these things, then "Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, / And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!" Basically, here's the formula for how to succeed in life.

I'm not suggesting that "If" was a conscious source of inspiration for "Ahead of Your Time," just that they share a common universal theme and a similar structure. And I PROMISE I'm not going to put the two side by side for a deeper nerd-level comparison, but if I did, I'd applaud the Hanson version for being more self-deprecating. Instead of implying "Here, son, learn from the master!" "Ahead of Your Time" takes a lot more subtle approach with a tone more along the lines of "I only know a few things for sure, but I'd like to share them with you." Honestly, I fall a little bit more in love with this song the more time I spend digging into it.

As for the sound, I think they nailed matching the melody to the lyrics. The chorus just oozes this sort of melancholy nostalgic feeling that's perfect for a song about the passage of time. Yes, it sounds like "Down" in places, but more than that I'm reminded of so many sad but catchy country songs of my childhood. It may not have the drawl or twang of a country song, but it feels like it has the heart of one.

On a less sappy, somewhat ridiculous note, between the "master of time" and "heart of a child," I feel like the wording in the chorus is a little bit Hocus Pocus, a little bit Doctor Who. If you mix the right ingredients: wisdom of elders, strength of your prime, and heart of a child, you can create a master of time. Were the Sanderson Sisters actually Time Lords?

3. I Don't Want To Work That Hard

"I Don't Want To Work That Hard" narrowly escaped the red letter lyric treatment, but only because re-watching the listening party stream corrected my misheard "Buddy, I'm sure" to "money off shore," and "Marry an influenza" just doesn't make grammatical sense even if it's 1,000% what he's saying.

In the stream, Zac mentioned that the character from this song is basically the same persona from songs like "White Collar Crime" and "Gold Miner" (he didn't say Seymour, but it sounds like Seymour, too). I love the idea of revisiting that guy from time to time with a new song updating us about his latest scheme or screwup. The song is pretty straight-forward and doesn't need an explanation, but I do love the bridge where you realize that maybe the guy is more than the lazy privileged tool he sounds like in the beginning. The mask of indifference slips off for just a moment, and you get a glimpse of a person who is incredibly overwhelmed and spiraling underneath all the fake bravado. But then the moment passes, and he goes right back to playing the role of the shallow guy who only cares about getting ahead and taking shortcuts to an easy life. It's kind of sad, but it makes for a better song.

4. Forever

"Forever" was giving me slightly religious vibes before I ever watched the listening party stream to confirm it. It sounds more like a romantic love than the type of love between a person and God, but it has several references to transcending the time we have on earth, so I think it's simply about a Godly marriage and spending the rest of your life with someone that you know is going to literally follow you into eternity. There's even a gospel choir in the background to tie it all together. Hanson left it all vague enough that you can take or leave the religious context and listen to it as just a love song if you want, but I do think it's there if you're looking for it.

This one has a few lyrics I'm unsure of, and ironically the one I'm least sure of is probably my favorite. During my first listen in my car, I was so sure I heard "You are the sixth string, the start of every daydream." I questioned for a moment what it meant. What has six strings? The answer I came up with was that a bass guitar typically has four, but a regular guitar has six. Musically, the sixth string brings the ability to play a melody and creates more harmony and depth in a song. It sounded like a great metaphor to me until I sat down to write out the lyrics, and after listening more closely, it sounds like "slip string." I asked a few friends and they echoed hearing "sixth string" and "slip string," but also added "sleep stream" and "sleep's dream." Whatever it is, I'm wondering if this is going to be that awkward moment where I wind up liking my own accidental lyric better than Hanson's.

P.S. I gave up transcribing the lyrics at the end because it kind of goes on, well, forever. I'll let you decide if that was a cleverly intentional choice.

5. Can't Stop Starting

I've already said that "Every Time We Touch" is a contender for my favorite song on this EP. "Can't Stop Starting" is its competition. I just love the ridiculously catchy tune, and it's the kind of song you can hear for 30 seconds and still be singing two days later. I also have to give it props for putting up a pretty good fight for my favorite cheesiest Hanson lyric of all time with a line like "I guess some just play with fire, 'cause pyros can't retire." (For now, first place is still held strong by "Have it sauteed, grilled or filleted, we're cooking up a backbeat, so pick up a plate.")

It also has a fun nod to their TTA song "Can't Stop" at the end, which led to a fun segue from "Can't Stop Starting" directly into "Can't Stop" at the Hanson Day concert.

The thing keeping "Can't Stop Starting" from taking first place, though? I can't get past the fact that the title/chorus sounds like a clever play on words at first, but when I stop and think about it, the meaning isn't immediately clear. Every time I hear it (which is plenty throughout the duration of the song), my grammar-trained brain begs "Finish your sentence! Can't stop starting WHAT?"

Obviously it's a song about a guy who can't help falling for a girl he meets, so I think logically the thing he can't stop starting is falling for her. Once those feelings get going, there's no putting it in reverse. It's already started, and he can't stop. There, it does make sense. But I still can't stop starting to wish there was one more word in there to make it a complete thought.

Do you hear any lyrics differently than I did or have any suggestions to fill in my blanks? Let me know!

Hanson Day 2024

Dearest Reader,

Those not in attendance at Cain’s Ballroom this past fortnight have surely missed the social event of the season.



Translation: My review is late because I used my only day off after flying home to binge watch the new season of Bridgerton instead of writing this post. My bad.



Fortunately, there was hardly enough drama, scandal, or match-making at Hanson Day to warrant the continued use of the Lady Whistledown format. (Though it is this author’s humble opinion that many young ladies in pursuit of making the acquaintance of a Hanson brother would be well-matched in tenacity and enthusiasm with the marriage mart mamas of the ton amidst a shortage of eligible suitors.)


But let’s put one nerdy fandom aside and focus on the one that actually brings us here.
As usual, I find myself struggling with how to discuss an event that's always a good time but looks the same as previous years on paper. I could probably write the entire post by copying and pasting excerpts from past reviews. Is it still plagiarism if I'm copying my own work? For now, I’ll spare you the memory lane mashup of quotes that still ring true and start by focusing on what wasn’t the same as past Hanson Days.


Food On The Move

The first difference for me was coming in a day early and attending my first Food On the Move event. To be completely honest, I’ve always supported Taylor’s involvement in FOTM from a distance, and it has never been clear to me if the organization really wanted Hanson fans to get involved in person or if they simply accepted that stamping Taylor’s name on something is going to draw our interest. If anyone has had the same reservations, I have to say that Taylor and Kevin’s speeches at the luncheon showed nothing but gratitude and encouragement for fan involvement. I’m not saying you should book a flight to volunteer at FOTM in hopes of rubbing elbows with Taylor (the same way the walks were never meant to be a mobile M&G), but if you have the ability to give back with your time or make a donation, they clearly want to make FOTM bigger and better and are thankful for any support they can get. Taylor and Kevin both spoke so passionately about what they are doing to help make things sustainable for a long term difference, and I can't wait to see how much progress they make by next Hanson Day. You can visit https://www.foodonthemoveok.com/ to learn more or make a donation.


HTP & Karaoke

The biggest change to the Hanson Day agenda this year was moving both Karaoke and the HTP recording from their usual location at The Vanguard to Cain's Ballroom with a much larger capacity. While I’m all for preserving the intimate vibes of a successful event, it has never made much sense to me to create an event that excludes people when you know so many are traveling extensively to be there and want to participate. It’s one thing to be disappointed that you can’t travel to go to an event; it’s another to make it all the way to the right city and still not be able to get in the door. I was happy they risked moving things to include more fans, and I enjoyed not panicking quite so much while buying tickets!

The HTP reporters asked great questions, and I have to agree with Katie's suggestion to release the EP a week before Hanson Day. Back in the day, we used to be handed the new EP at registration, IF it was ready, and then it was a scramble to locate a CD player and try to listen (I can recall one year's impromptu "listening party" crammed in a car in a Taco Bueno parking lot). More often than not, our first listen would be in Cain's with no clue of the lyrics, glaring at the loud talker next to us hoping they would shut up so we could make sense of what we were hearing. And let's be honest. Taylor's enunciation can be questionable on the clearest recording; there's no chance we're hearing those lyrics right for the first time in a crowd. (Cool song, bro, but why are we dancing like donkeys?). It was always a privilege to hear those songs for the first time ever in a live setting, but it also felt like a challenge to fully appreciate them until I got home and listened on my own.

The streaming EP listening parties offer an easier solution, but trying to listen in a room of six friends I haven't seen in a year is like trying to play a game of "who can stay quiet the longest" with a room full of kindergarteners. We just can't help excitedly talking over it. Releasing the EP on May 6th seems like the perfect way to give us more time to learn the songs and also celebrate actual Hanson day, which often gets passed over quietly. I understand Hanson's perspective of not wanting to take away part of the excitement of going to HDay, but consider me part of team release the EP on May 6th. Maybe the compromise is putting it in the media player for us on the 6th and still streaming a listening party during HDay with all of the behind the scenes/making of content.


In the interest of not wasting this whole segment feeding you my opinions on the EP release, I’ll also mention that there was a funny moment during HTP where Zac implied that they strategically crafted Hanson Day and waiting in lines on purpose to provide us with the opportunity to form bonds and make friends, and that we should be grateful for the opportunity to wait. Not quite wrong, but also…not quite right. Dear Zac, some of us make friends by the 3 hour mark and enemies by the 8th. If you’re going to take credit for my friends, just know that you’re equally responsible for ALL the interactions we've had in your lines. (In all seriousness, I haven’t made a line “enemy” in years, and the registration line has improved a lot in recent years. The store line is more of an enter-at-your-own-risk, you know what you’re getting yourself into if you see 200 people ahead of you and still choose to stand behind them situation).

As for karaoke, I’m not sure if I’m about to put an unpopular opinion in writing or if everyone in attendance will agree: Karaoke @ Cains > Karaoke @ Vanguard. They still capped the attendance to less than the full capacity so that it wasn't overcrowded, but it didn’t feel empty, either. Isaac was constantly present, and the crowd loved surprise co-host Mac Hanson. The two sang “Country Roads” together to kick things off, and I quickly lost track of how many times Isaac popped up to sing with fans. “Goodbye Earl” will always be my jam at these things. Mary Anne & Wanda 4ever; I bet their friendship could've withstood 8+ hours in a Hanson line...but probably don't try to cut them.

Beyond Perennial  & Hanson Day Concert

Whether you loved the Beyond Perennial setlist or not, the stats don't lie: every last song of that set was a fan club release. They played about half of Perennial and filled in the rest with other fan club songs. No singles, setlist staples, or MON songs, and for that I think they deserve a round of applause. My favorite song of the night was "Time Baby Take It," which tbh I kind of forgot existed, but to be fair, I think Hanson did too. It was just really, really good in the moment and I'm so glad they let it out of the vault.

One minor outtake is they introduced "Better Man" by saying it had never been played live before, but my brain was shouting "You played that on the Wintry Mix Tour!" followed immediately by a memory of hearing Zac sing it as "Trash Man" in Jamaica. Hansonstage confirms I've now heard it 7 times and they've played it 14, so I'm not sure how they collectively forgot playing it a whole 13 times. 

I was fully prepared to dedicate my first sentence about the Members' Only concert to the fact that they didn't play the entire new EP this year, but then I double checked the set list and proved myself wrong. I'm taking this as another sign that they should just give us the EP sooner so I know what I'm hearing at the show. In addition to the full EP, we got several of the setlists staples missing from the first night, a pretty somber ending ("Young and Dumb" and "Tonight"), and a Taylor solo of WYIYD that I am convinced needs to have time restrictions placed around it because sir, you already made us sob over that one in January and I would like a break. 

Dance Party

I am such a sucker for these themed afterparties. I don't care a thing in the world about dancing, but I am here for a good excuse to wear something fun and unpredictable. This year's theme was a little all over the place with Star Wars references and nods to Y2K, but it resulted in a fun range of outfits from inflatable aliens to storm troopers to Zenon cosplays. Everyone looked great!

I'm sure if you saw me in my starry outfit, I blended in with every other basic girl there, but the truth is I stepped out of my comfort zone to put on that dress in public. I originally had another outfit in mind, but while struggling to find the right matching top, I came across this see through bodycon mini dress covered in stars that I felt too old/too conservative/too fill-your-own-insecurity-in-the-blank to wear, but for some reason I couldn't stop eyeing it. I told a friend that I kept going back to this dress every time I tried to finish out my outfit, and instead of talking me out of it, she told me if I felt like I could pull it off that I should wear it now while I can (real talk: girl, you're not getting any younger!). I bought it; I wore it; I had a fabulous time. Get you a friend that will tell you to wear what makes you happy and dance around with you in matching ridiculous boots.

Themes I'd like to see in the future: Slumber Party, Masquerade, Crayon Box (is this a thing? It should be a thing. Everyone just picks whatever color they want and dress in it head to toe).

Bonus Content

In addition to all of the usual Hday things, this year:
-I was coerced into daily STG gelato, which is delicious if you've never tried it.
-I accidentally gave a stranger terrible directions to the baseball stadium, only to then accidentally wind up at the stadium at the same time as him and be heckled mercilessly for it. Sorry to uphold the stereotype that women don't know directions. At least I know he's not still out there looking for it.
-I got to celebrate a dear friend's wedding, and I'm so happy we were able to take all the cheesy wedding photos and see her looking so beautiful. It's fitting that we met on a sidewalk when she was 14 and now we're taking sidewalk wedding photos. Congratulations, Morgen & Jacob <3 

TL;DR

In summary, Hanson stepped up their setlist game by playing fan club songs at a fan club event, the semi-unclear dance party theme ended up being a hit, and the new EP is my favorite of the last several years. I'll leave you with this: Support the cause, wear the dress, buy the ticket, get on the plane, and while you're doing it all, don't forget to be the person that encourages others to do the same. Also probably don't ask me for directions.

If you are a fan club member, you can log in and click here to watch the Listening Party, Hanson Time Podcast Live, and Hanson Day Concert & Nightcap.