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Celebrates 20 Years of “Catalyst”
Live at House of Blues Anaheim
October 27, 2024 by Kevin Gomez
New Found Glory returned to California for yet another sold-out show at the House of Blues Anaheim Thursday night. This time, the Florida band was celebrating the “Catalyst” 20 Years Later tour.
The album, which eventually went gold, holds an important place in the band’s history and fans from all around gathered to celebrate.
It’s not easy for an opening act to draw a crowd in Los Angeles, especially at 7:30 p.m. on a Wednesday. But Sincere Engineer did just that, and a couple songs in it was clear why. Sincere Engineer is the brainchild of Chicago’s Deanna Belos on lead vocals and guitar. She has an uncanny knack for creating catchy, punk ballads highlighted by her unique vocals.
For my favorite song, “California King,” Belos said, “This song’s about wanting to leave Chicago for California, which isn’t true.
Even though I love California.” She said “Fireplace” is about hating mean people, and she showed almost Dave Mustaine-like vocals for “Trust Me,” the last song of their set.
New Found Glory wasted no time launching into the album’s opening track, “Intro,” their fastest and most aggressive song, clocking in at just 37 seconds. As the album does, they immediately transitioned into “All Downhill from Here” effortlessly. Although the band looked and sounded spectacular, I’d be remiss to mention there was a huge part of New Found Glory missing that night.
Co-founding member and lead guitarist, Chad Gilbert has been battling a malignant pheochromocytoma tumor, originally found his in adrenal gland, and eventually spread to his lungs and spine. Gilbert has undergone numerous surgeries and bouts of chemotherapy. Filling in for him in was Four Year Strong’s Dan O’Connor.
O’Connor, rocking a Deftones’ “Around the Fur” shirt, had some fantastic backing vocals on “This Disaster,” which should come as no surprise as he is Four Year Strong’s lead singer. Although Gilbert’s presence was painfully missed, he was here in spirit and the New Found Glory family wouldn’t have it any other way. O’Connor’s playing really showcased what a damn good songwriter Gilbert is, particularly his guitar chops such as “Doubt Full.”
Also playing with the band on this tour is Real Friend’s guitarist David Knox, to provide the classic two-guitar sound from “Catalyst.” Knox also lent keyboards that truly shined on “Failure’s Not Flattering,” providing spacey sound effects.
Knox’s keys sounded beautiful on “Ending in Tragedy,” mimicking the violins from the original recording. Lead singer Jordan Pundik instructed the crowd to put up the lights on their phone, lighters, and vapes for the song, as the crowd lit up the House of Blues.
Pundik can spit out rapid-fire vocals, such as on “Intro,” but then just as easily go into a ballad like “Tragedy.” From running across the stage and bouncing along with the crowd, he’s so good at connecting with fans, often letting them sing along as he points the mic out. He’s a big part of what sets New Found Glory out from the horde of pop punk bands that exploded out of the late ‘90s.
The other thing that sets them apart would be drummer, Cyrus Bolooki. He truly is not only the backbeat but backbone of New Found Glory. Just look at the hardcore-esque “At Least I’m Known for Something” and the chorus’ heavy double bass drum.
Pundik even commented, “fucking AEW up in here,” referring to the rowdy pit that looked more like a pro wrestling match. Bolooki continued to impress on “Over the Head, Below the Knees” and “Failure’s Not Flattering.”
Pundik said he fought with bassist Ian Grushka about whether “I’d Kill to Fall Asleep” would make the record. Grushka said he argued for the eventual B-side, “Constant Static.” To be honest, I think he was kind of right. Either way, even a slow song like “I’d Kill to Fall Asleep” shows how good Gilbert is with a complicated riff and screaming vocals from O’Connor. Belos, aka Sincere Engineer, came out to take lead vocals on “No News is Good News.” The band left the stage and audio from “The Little Mermaid” played on the PA, then the band returned with Pundik wearing an Ariel wig and performed “Part of Your Word.”
For the encore, they gave us the popular “Understatement” followed by “Truck Stop Blues.” They played their first hit single, “Hit or Miss,” and staying with the Disney theme, Pundik switched to a blonde wig this time as the band did “Let It Go” from “Frozen.” They closed an epic night with “My Friends Over You.”
It truly was an incredible night at HOB with another amazing performance from New Found Glory.
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