Rock band Waterparks brought the ‘SNEAKING OUT OF HEAVEN’ tour to Houston’s House of Blues, also marking their homecoming.
Rock trio Waterparks took over the House of Blues for a fun Saturday night in their hometown. The Houston band formed in 2011 and currently consists of members Awsten Knight, Otto Wood, and Geoff Wigington. From performing opening sets at the venue to fully performing a headline and sold-out show in the main room, it was a full circle moment. Waterparks released their first debut album called Double Dare in 2016, and most recently released their fifth album Intellectual Property in 2023. The last album also marked their first album with rock record label Fueled by Ramen, which has represented names like Paramore, Twenty One Pilots, Panic! At the Disco and more. On top of garnering love and attention from fans all over the world, they deemed themselves the worthy and righteous name of ‘God’s Favorite Boy Band.’
They announced their ‘SNEAKING OUT OF HEAVEN’ Spring 2024 tour earlier in October 2023 in support of the release of Intellectual Property. Awsten and Otto even performed an acoustic set at Warehouse Live Houston’s official closing party in December of 2023, so it was exciting to see their return to home.
Saturday night started off with killer performances from openers Pollyanna and Loveless, both who accumulated large crowds and loud screams. Waterparks took the stage promptly at 8:55PM, as the lights dimmed and fans began to cheer for Waterparks. Otto and Geoff walked out from the fixed stage doors, while Awsten jumped out of nowhere and began to sing “Watch What Happens Next.” The track was followed by “Blonde,” and a fun medley from their album Greatest Hits, dedicated to all of the Greatest Hits truthers according to Awsten. The band proceeded to play a momentous cover of Liz Phair’s “Why Can’t I” before throwing it back to the Double Dare era and performing “Stupid for You.”
Setting up for the second part of the show was introduced by the “Religious Guilt” Interlude, which is exactly what it sounds like. With outfit changes, Waterparks returned to the stage and began their Intellectual Property portion of the show with the song “SOULSUCKER,” followed by “SNEAKING OUT OF HEAVEN.” Mosh pits were opening all over the place, and it was crowd surfers galore in the general admission floor. Awsten took multiple pauses throughout the night to acknowledge the sold-out show in their hometown, and how the band themselves grew up in Cypress / the Woodlands. The band’s family was in attendance, including Geoff’s daughter Rory. As it was her birthday, the crowd screamed for Rory and chanted her a happy birthday tune. The band also brought out special guest Vicente Void, a native in the Houston metal scene, for the track “RITUAL,” which was the absolute highlight of the night.
Awsten continued to give gratitude to Houston, and shared many memories that occurred at the House of Blues venue, including his band promoting music outside of pop-punk shows as well as being barricade for Childish Gambino back in 2012. The singer settled on the piano and exclaimed that he learned the following songs on piano specifically for the tour, and continued to play – versions of “High Definition” from the album Fandom and “Snow Globe” from Greatest Hits. The band also performed an acoustic version of “21 Questions” from their debut album, eventually helping close the set out.
For the encore, the band returned to play “Numb” and “Turbulent,” ending the night with “REAL SUPER DARK.” The energy was at an all-time high in Houston that night, as the band made sure each song was filled with momentum and strong-willed vitality. Through fun impromptu quips, a rowdy (in a good way) crowd, a great mixture of Waterparks’ greatest hits (pun intended), Houston definitely welcomed their pop-punk boy band with open arms and lots of love.
WATERPARKS
Photos + Review by Keylee Paz | Exclusively for Music, Why Not!
