Show Review: Senses Fail, Saves the Day, and Narrow Head at the House of Blues in Chicago, IL

November 29, 2024

Known for Atlantic City, The Sopranos, gabagool, Frank Sinatra, and the Jersey Devil, New Jersey also contributed two of the most iconic emo acts in the form of Senses Fail and Saves the Day. It’s New Jersey versus the world this fall as these two heavy hitters invade a city near you for a night, or multiple nights, delivering a nonstop, hard-hitting rock show performing all your favorite throwback emo tracks meaning you can relieve your troubled, angsty youth once more. Whether or not you were an edgy teen in the early 2000s or had a stereotypical older sibling who was one doesn’t matter; all that does matter is if you’re ready to sing your heart to these certified emo classics with the bands rather than at your local emo night.

Setting the night off, Narrow Head brought their lush-laden, textured sound that is as rooted in hardcore/metal as it is in grunge. With big riffs and catchy choruses, Narrow Head bring a mixed bag of sounds that’s reminiscent of Alice in Chains or Smashing Pumpkins meets My Bloody Valentine. Narrow Head rock and hit hard, which isn’t surprising since they share members with heavy hitters in Skourge. Gritty, loud, and energetic, Narrow Head aren’t new cats on the block, but bring a sort of fresh air that a new band would usually have around them.

Foundational acts for emo/pop punk, Saves the Day and Senses Fail are the perfect tour parring for each other, as they both compliment each other without overshadowing the other. Making the night even more exciting was Saves the Day performing their pivotal album, Through Being Cool, in full right alongside Senses Fail’s Let It Enfold You playthrough.

Sounding better live than on record, Saves The Day are part of a generation of emo/pop-punk bands when the live performance was the focus over the studio recording, meaning that you had to both perform and even sound better live than on record to have fans gravitate towards you. It was an era when word of mouth was how you made your mark, not Spotify numbers. While times have changed, Saves The Day haven’t. Performing at max velocity, Saves The Day are underdog performers wowing everyone in the room with just how well they play and how good they sound. Two back-to-back foundational emo records being celebrated is a guarantee for an awesome evening.

With its pop punk influence, Through Being Cool would end up being the record that catapulted Save the Day into the music stratosphere, eventually inspiring the third wave of emo and pop punk acts like Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, and Taking Back Sunday. With certified heaters like “Shoulder to the Wheel,” “Rocks Tonic Juice Magic,” and “You Vandal,” it shouldn’t have been a surprise this record would become a blueprint for future acts. Seeing the record in full was even better, as the crowd surged forward like a tidal wave with crowd suffers aplenty as they ripped through this legendary record from start to finish in an equally legendary fashion.

Across 25 years of being a band, Senses Fail have been called a lot of things—emo, screamo, post-hardcore, metalcore, and even pop-punk—but rather than being combative about this, they embrace it as it demonstrates their versatility and evolution as musicians. Releasing a slew of tracks that are guaranteed to be played multiple times at your local emo night, Senses Fail are legends in the genre for good reason, one of which being their iconic and beloved record, Let It Enfold You.

Filled to the brim with throwback anthems, nonstop movement, and a heavy dose of nostalgia, Senses Fail never fail to put on a great show. A certified emo classic from front to back, Let It Enfold You is one of those first records so many people were exposed to leading down this specific music path. Therefore the only way to do this record justice is a full tour committed to it, plus amping up the energy up a few levels compared to their usual 10. Jumping, mic-swinging, rolling around, handstands, and everything in between, Sense Fail are among the most energetic bands doubling up the high-octane energy for the special occasion.

Kicking off their set with a band and right at the beginning, Senses Fail ripped through “Tie Her Down,” “Lady in a Blue Dress,” and “You’re Cute When You Scream.” All adrenaline-fueled, hard-hitting tracks perfect for opening up the set with, but the fun didn’t end there as they went through the rest of the record followed up by a smash hits encore rock block of “Calling All Cars,” “Can’t Be Saved,” and even some covers of Suicidal Tendencies’ “Institutionalized” and My Chemical Romance’s “Helena.”

An awesome album playthrough of an iconic and beloved record, Senses Fail continue to impress and keep fans on their toes even if you’ve already seen them a dozen times. Whether you were around when this record came out or not, this is a must-see performance by the New Jersey emo titans.

Senses Fail