WATERPARKS ROCK OUT IN PHILLY

BY HOLLY VAN NESS

On Wednesday night, I headed up to Philadelphia to catch Waterparks during their Sneaking Out Of Heaven tour. The pop-punk group was supported by artist Sophie Powers and up-and-coming band Loveless. Unfortunately, I came from class and only caught the tail end of Sophie’s set but from what I saw, she was super energetic and pumped up the crowd for an unforgettable night.

I finally joined the photo pit during Loveless’ set and it was super heartwarming to see such an engaged, active crowd during an opener. The first few rows of the crowd knew all of the words to their songs and were dancing and jumping along to the music. 

When Waterparks finally came on stage, it was like an explosion of energy and emotion. Lead singer Awsten Knight wore a bedazzled cowboy hat that said “Soul Sucker” and had neon green crosses painted over his eyes. The stage layout was something I had never seen before–there were multiple screens, kind of like stacked TVs, behind the guys that would show different visuals based on the songs. 

I wasn’t able to see drummer Otto Wood super well due to the stage at The Fillmore being super high but I caught a better look at him once I moved to the balcony. When I looked over the railing, all I saw was a sea of fans that were having the time of their lives. At some point, Awsten ran to the back of the venue and sat inside a caged B-Stage to perform a couple acoustic songs with a piano. The other band members stayed on stage but the focus was primarily on Awsten. 

The band often gave shoutouts to their openers, especially Sophie Powers. Awsten mentioned that they were in Sophie’s position once (being the first support on a tour bill) and it was nice to hear the underdog acknowledged in that way. Waterparks put on an awesome concert and I can’t wait to see them again!