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Live at House of Blues San Diego
April 2nd, 2026 Review by Joey Clark
Hawthorne Heights packed the House of Blues San Diego during their Lonely World Tour, devised to celebrate their second studio release, “If Only You Were Lonely.”
Within the confines of those 12 tracks was an emotional journey that resonated with many pop-punk and emo fans alike, which is why the album remains the band’s highest charting record to date. It was evident that the passion for their 2006 release was stronger than ever.
As I scanned the barricade, it was easy to see the love for Hawthorne Heights was not limited to the fans who caught them on the Vans Warped Tour over two decades ago; their fan base had expanded to the high school/college kids now carrying pop-punk torch.
Before Hawthorne Heights was unleashed upon the audience, the horror punk band, Creeper from Southampton, England took command of the stage. All of the members emerged with a sense of mystique and intrigue as they donned a uniformed, black and white facial make up design.
The ringleader of this spectacle was frontman Will Gould. He led the group with ferocity and excitement through their six-song set. It’d be criminal to not mention the secret weapon of the group, Hannah Greenwood. Providing backup vocals and keys earlier in the show she remained a subtle presence in the background, but when she emerged as a lead vocalist, the audience was shocked.
She came out in full force. Greenwood’s vocals were powerful and her intention was clear: she was here to cement this show into the concertgoer’s minds. She accomplished just that. The band performed like a headliner and delivered a performance that reminded the crowd of early Misfits shows combined with the theatrics of glam rockers from ‘80s.
As the changeover occurred the audience was buzzing from Creeper’s standout set and awaiting SoCal’s own, letlive. The house lights fell and two figures emerged: drummer Ryan Seaman, and rhythm guitarist Jeff Sahyoun.
Both had drumsticks in hand as the stage became bathed in an eerie, red light. Seaman approached his kit and Sahyoun poised himself in front of a metal trash can, in unison they began pounding away and within seconds the rest of the band took to the stage. What was about to unfold would be arguably the best set of the night.
Lead vocalist, Jason Aaron Butler went off like a powder keg as he dove headfirst into the set. Sweat began to fly within a couple of songs, and the band made sure they gave each moment their absolute best during their nine-song performance.
Spitting powder, high jumps, Butler turning the stage into a Slip ’N Slide and treating the balcony like a personal jungle gym left the audience clamoring for more.
What was truly amazing about their time on stage is that on top of the wild antics, letlive.’s musicianship rang true throughout every single song. They have mastered their craft and are thankfully moving forward together as a band despite doing a farewell tour last year after an eight-year hiatus.
Following some much-needed stage clean up, the house lights went down again, this time for the band we all came to witness, Hawthorne Heights.
The Warped Tour veterans strolled across the stage, they paused, gauging the audience’s excitement for a moment then launched into first track off “If Only You Were Lonely,” “This Is Who We Are,” the perfect sentiment to open up the evening.
March 23rd, 2026
After the first song, frontman JT Woodruff took a moment to reminisce on the band’s past performances in the San Diego area and let everyone know that, “The rules are still the same: we’re here to have a good time.”
As the band progressed through the rest of record it was wonderful to see that the fans weren’t just singing along to the hits like “Saying Sorry” and “Pens and Needles,” they gave it their all with deep cuts too, like the melancholy “Dead in the Water,” and cathartic anthem “Where Can I Stab Myself In The Ears?” They left the stage triumphantly after wrapping up the 20th anniversary set.
To close out the celebration Hawthorne Heights performed an encore consisting of “Bring You Back” off of “Skeletons,” “Dandelions” from the “Lost Lights” EP, their latest song, “Like a Cardinal” (released earlier this month), “Niki FM,” and the final song of the night, “Ohio Is For Lovers” (off of their label debut, “The Silence in Black and White”).
Hawthorne Heights didn’t concoct a half-baked anniversary tour; they cultivated a phenomenal night of music to gift their diehard fans. With the theatrics of Creeper, the high-octane performance of letlive. and Hawthorne Heights’ stage prowess, I can’t recommend enough catching a date on their Lonely World Tour while you can!
SHOW PHOTO GALLERY
by Joey Clark | Highway One Photography
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SID 260404 | TRACI TURNER | EDITOR
