Photos and review by Zachary Coleman
The word that comes to mind when thinking of The Wldlfe is grind. The Wldlfe has released music consistently almost every year since the band began in 2016 with their first release entitled “New, 2016.” The band released their most recent project, "Heaven Is A Place, 2024” on August 16, 2024. This is the band’s longest project yet and feels almost like a debut album from the band. It is also the first release where the artwork is completely different from past artworks in the band’s discography. Older artworks were unique paintings in the shape of a rectangle whereas with this latest project, it is a picture of a field with flowers that encompasses the entire artwork instead of inside a rectangle. The album takes a more mature tone than their past work and focuses on falling in love rather than having the focus on breakups which can make a listener feel like the band has not only grown musically but personally as well. The band embarked on their largest headlining tour yet across North America on September 17, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio, and made their stop at Velvet Underground in Toronto, ON on September 28 to play a near sold-out show as well as their first international headline show.
Young Culture opened up the show with a pop-punk energy to pump up the crowd for The Wldlfe. Young Culture is not the type of band I would imagine opening up for The Wldlfe, but the worlds collided effortlessly and it brought an energy to the show that wouldn’t have been there without them opening the show. The energy was kept in between the sets but the pre-show playlist playing songs everyone knew ranging from “Misery Business” by Paramore to “Taste” by Sabrina Carpenter. Most of the time crowds mingle or keep to themselves in between sets, but this crowd sang almost every word to every song on the pre-show playlist. The energy in the tiny, long room was something I’ve only experienced with other fan bases who truly love the artists they are supporting and aren’t there just to hear one song played.
The Wldlfe came out matching the energy of Young Culture with their alternative rock love song “Simple Math.” The Wldlfe played songs from releases from the past four years. One thing that surprised me was when lead vocalist, Jansen Hogan, traded places with brother and guitarist, Carson Hogan, on stage to give Carson the spotlight on songs he was the main vocalist on starting with “Wreck My Life.” It’s a move that makes sense, but not one that a lot of bands would make, which makes me respect Jansen for not keeping the spotlight. Most bands just stay stationary in their designated spots, but not The Wldlfe. The brothers made the switch back when it was time for Jansen to take the lead on their song, “Sweet Tooth.” The band then went into their 2023 re-recorded version of “Waterfalls” off their 2016 release. After the fan-favorite song, The Wldlfe had a surprise in store for Toronto. Jansen brought out a huge coin and had the crowd flip it to decide the next song. The coin landed on the song “Both/And,” but the band decided to play both surprise songs for Toronto with the other one being “Good@Bad@Us.”
The Wldlfe may have ignored four of their releases on that night in Toronto, but giving attention to the newer releases paid off since everyone in the room knew every word. It is very rare for a band whose first-ever international headline show to have a crowd that much in the palms of their hands. The crowd knew every song the band played and loved them for it. There was no fighting with the band for other songs to be played. The crowd was just happy to see the band play. I have listened to The Wldlfe since 2020 and finally seeing them live for the first time was something I didn’t know I needed. Songs such as “You Don’t Love Me (Like You Used To)” and “Blood Orange” had permanent spots on my Spotify playlists for a long time during that period of my life. Now, The Wldlfe’s newer songs such as “What If You Change?” and “Here We Go Again” are the type of songs making it onto those playlists. Growing and maturing along with the music you listen to is a very unique feeling. The music almost feels like a friend and sometimes you drift apart, but then when you come back together it is like no time has passed at all.
Get tickets for the rest of their tour here
