Emo music has been making a comeback lately, with many of our favorite bands from the early aughts having reunited, but one band has remained a steady force within the scene. Since Hawthorne Heights debuted on the scene 25 years ago, they have consistently released music and toured, keeping the emo spirit alive all these years. It has been two decades since the release of their acclaimed sophomore album, “If Only You Were Lonely,” and to celebrate 20 years, the band is taking the album across the US, playing the album that left a mark on so many in full. On March 24, 2026, the band brought their “Lonely World Tour” through Tempe, AZ, stopping at Marquee Theatre and bringing along an ecclectic lineup featuring bands letlive. and Creeper.
The evening kicked off with a theatrical and genre-bending performance from English rock band Creeper. The leather-clad band, who is known for constant reinvention of their aesthetic and sound, performed tracks like “Mistress of Death” and “The Ballad of Spook & Mercy” from their two most recent albums, “Sanguivore” (2024) and “Sanguivore II: Mistress of Death” (2025). Their sound evolves with each of their eras, with the current era described as a blend of gothic rock and heavy metal, and with past projects incorporating horror punk, emo, glam rock, post-hardcore, and psychobilly elements. While they may have been a new band for many, they had quite a few diehard fans within the crowd, faces painted to match Creeper’s vampire-inspired makeup and screaming the lyrics along with the band. Although the genre was quite different than what you might expect for a Hawthorne Heights show, the crowd was drawn in by the theatricality of it all, heads bobbing, throwing fists in the air, and even opening up a circle pit. Frontman Will Gould put on a performance that gave a Freddie Mercury meets Dracula type vibe and won over many in the crowd. If you make it out to one of these stops, make sure to arrive early enough to catch their set!
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Within seconds of letlive. taking the stage, pit photographers and fans along the barricade found themselves drenched as frontman Jason Aalon Butler burst onto the stage and doused himself with water, transforming the stage into somewhat of a “slip and slide.” And it would become just that, as Butler ran side to side, diving and sliding headfirst towards stage equipment as he passionately delivered lyrics of tracks like “Le Prologue,” “The Sick, Sick, 6.8 Billion” and “Renegade 86′.” The band puts on one of the wildest live shows I have ever witnessed, with crazy energy from the entire band. Butler is unhinged in the best kind of way. You never know what you’re going to get with him, with onstage antics ranging from things like duct taping microphones to his head, chucking the mic across the stage, hurling metal trash cans into the crowd, to climbing scaffolding and jumping into the crowd from the second-story balcony. On this evening, Butler found himself in a circle pit before tossing his mic to a fan on the balcony above, making his way upstairs, and performing the remainder of “27 Club” standing atop the ledge of the railing while grasping a ceiling tile. Security had a death grip on his legs to ensure he didn’t go over the edge, and while Butler repeatedly assured them he wasn’t going to jump, there was no doubt they were aware that he is no stranger to making that leap. Between tracks, Butler took moments to be vulnerable with the crowd about his upbringing, express his appreciation for women, and share his thoughts about the current political climate, ensuring that everyone in the room knew that this was a safe space for all. letlive. disbanded in 2017 and reunited in 2025 for what they described as a tour to give a proper goodbye. It’s not certain how long they’ll continue to perform, so catch them while you can! You will not be disappointed.
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