The words of the evening were nonstop energy and raw power--any other adjectives would be trite at best. Not that the show didn't deserve them; it's just that finding any others would just seem like a letdown when compared to the evening as a whole. Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls are on The Never Ending Tour of Everywhere 2022 tour. As if the tour name wasn't daunting enough, Frank had to step it up a notch and is trying to do "50 States in 50 Days" aka the official tour title. New Orleans marked day 17 and show 20 on this tour. It also was Frank's 2647 overall show. I've seen him open for Gogol Bordello and Shovels and Rope, but never a headlining gig, so the evening was even more special.
Frank's tour support this time around included two amazing punk bands, UK's Pet Needs and Los Angles based The Bronx. Pet Needs came out swinging with a fast and succinct set--no bells or whistles--just straight a up rampage to get the audience warmed up. Up next was The Bronx, who were no strangers to the House of Blues as they opened for The Bouncing Souls the last time they came though. That being said, the staff was still surprised when lead singer Matt Caughthran climbed over the barricade and made himself comfortable in the crowd. He expressed his gratitude and the encouraged the crowd to let loose, but to be respectful of their fellow concert goers. There's something strange and fascinating seeing a mosh pit circle someone singing. After the audience experiment was over, Caughthran returned to the stage to finish off the band's set.
The evenings main event Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls started off slowly with Frank, and acoustic guitar, and a spotlight. The opening song grew and so did the lights as the band took to the stage. That was the last time anyone really stood still as the rest of the evening was nonstop, at least until the acoustic portion of the show, just before the encore. Frank managed to find every corner of the stage, catching air every now and again, one of his trademarks if you've ever seen him live, it's just expected. It may have been a soggy evening outside but inside the House of Blues we were anything but wet and a glorious evening of punk music was had. You can see more pictures here.
