Show Review: Neck Deep at The Regency Ballroom - San Francisco, CA

Jared Stossel
Music
Ben Barlow of Neck Deep performing in San Francisco, CA at The Regency Ballroom. February 27, 2018. Photo Credit: Jared Stossel

Ben Barlow of Neck Deep performing in San Francisco, CA at The Regency Ballroom. February 27, 2018. Photo Credit: Jared Stossel

Neck Deep
w/ Seaway, Speak Low If You Speak Love, Creeper
The Regency Ballroom
San Francisco, CA
February 27, 2018

Photos and review by Jared Stossel.

I'll admit it: I showed up quite late to this show. It's highly out of character for me to not show up and catch the openers of any show, particularly when the lineup is stacked with a slew of pop-punk and alternative-indie acts like Seaway, Creeper and Speak Low If You Speak Love. But alas, I showed up about twenty minutes before Neck Deep took the stage (due to a scheduling conflict).

With that being said, I clearly underestimated just how big Neck Deep have grown since they started only a few years ago (check out our interview with them before they were signed to Hopeless Records). The room was packed, clouds of haze and sweat were hovering in the air above the crowd, and I hadn't seen The Regency Ballroom that packed in years. I thought, "How awesome." It's inspiring to see a band from their humble beginnings grow as the years go on, and achieve success in bigger and bigger venues each time they come around.

The second the lights went out, the packed San Francisco crowd broke into a frenzy. The five-piece pop-punk act from England took the stage, launching headfirst into "Happy Judgement Day", a highly energetic track from their most recent album, 2017's The Peace and the Panic. These were followed closely by "Lime St." and "Gold Steps", two choice selections from their massively successful sophomore effort, 2015's Life's Not Out To Get You. While this tour was in support of The Peace and the Panic, the band pulled an even number of selections from their latter two records, including Life's Not Out To Get You. But no matter which selection they pulled from whether it was those albums, their debut EP Rain In July, or it's follow-up EP (A History of Bad Decisions), fans ate up every minute of it. Crowdsurfers barrelled over the barricade and into the arms of security while all members of the band played with a smile on their faces and an extreme amount of caffeinated, pop-punk energy.

After a stunning set that lasted well over an hour, including full band and acoustic selections like "December" and "Wish You Were Here", the band returned for a well-received encore with "Can't Kick Up The Roots (Life's Not Out To Get You) and "Where Do We Go When We Go" (The Peace and the Panic). Based on the crowd reaction, fantastic song selections from their catalogue, and overall musicianship, it's easy to say that the band left all in attendance more than satisfied, eagerly anticipating Neck Deep's next move within the music scene.

Neck Deep Setlist

Happy Judgement Day
Lime St.
Gold Steps
Motion Sickness
Kali Ma
What Did You Expect?
Rock Bottom
Citizens of Earth
Don't Wait
Parachute
In Bloom
December
Head to the Ground
Wish You Were Here
A Part of Me

Encore:
Can't Kick Up the Roots
Where Do We Go When We Go

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