The Roxy (West Hollywood, CA)
09/23/23
In honor of the 50th anniversary of the iconic Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California, several bands agreed to perform for an intimate crowd of 500 people. On September 29th, alternative-rock band Wallows were on the bill. According to venue staff, some fans even spent the night on the Sunset Strip in an attempt to get front row at the show the following night. Once inside on the big night, the Roxy was completely packed from wall to wall. Since the venue is general admission, fans were bunched together in one big group. Despite the amount of people packed into one small area, everyone was taking pictures together and mingling with strangers around them. Just before showtime, a videographer with a camcorder started filming the audience from above in the green room and everyone screamed, holding up their homemade posters. Fans began chanting the band’s name over and over as anticipation grew. Once the lights began to dim, the entire room erupted into screams.
The band, made up of Dylan Minnette, Braeden Lemasters, and Cole Preston, started off the night with an unreleased song called “Only Ecstasy.” It was impressive how many fans knew the words to the song already. The following song, one of their most popular hits, “Are You Bored Yet?,” was met with an even louder reaction from the crowd. Once the first note began, everyone began singing along to the beat of the music. It was almost hard to hear the band themselves, as it sounded as if all 500 people in the room were shouting the lyrics at the top of their lungs. The band went on to play “These Days,” followed by “Bad Remake” and “Don’t You Think it’s Strange” later in the set for the first time live.
After playing sold-out shows at the Greek Theatre (6,000 capacity) and Shrine Expo Hall (6,300 capacity) in Los Angeles, California last year as part of their North American tour, 500 lucky fans were treated to this once in a lifetime intimate performance by Wallows at the historic venue on the Sunset Strip. It was obvious that everyone in attendance was a fan of the band, as most people were decked out in merch from past tours and many had made homemade signs. If ever given the opportunity to see Wallows live, especially in an intimate setting, I would highly recommend going! The energy of the room was unlike any other show I’ve experienced!
