The Used and Pierce the Veil in Portland, Maine – June 10, 2023

On June 10th in Portland, Maine, we had the pleasure to cover the co-headlining tour of emo-rock legends The Used and Pierce the Veil at the Cross Insurance arena.

DeathByRomy

Romy is the kind of performer that immediately catches your attention from the moment she graces the stage, and continues to captivate and capture your attention throughout the entire performance. This stop was her and the band’s last stop on the tour, and she made sure to end it with an absolute bang. Romy, hailing from Los Angeles, opened her last night on tour with an absolutely passionate set that left me mesmerized at how absolutely talented she and the band were. Although this was the band’s last stop, you can find updates on where they are headed next on their website.

Don Broco

I have personally seen Don Broco a few times, and I will say every single time I am absolutely floored by the amount of passion and energy lead vocalist Rob Damiani brings to the set. Don Broco is a british rock band that formed in 2008 and have been touring over in the states for a couple of years now. Leading the set, they played “Pretty” which is a song off their 2019 album Technology.

Fans of Don Broco could expect to hear songs such as “Come Out to LA” (personally a favorite), “Gumsheild”, and “Bruce Willis”. Closing out their high energy set, they played their much loved song “T-Shirt Song”. One thing that can always be guaranteed when witnessing a Don Broco set is immense energy and fun.

The Used

One of the most impressive things about The Used is their longevity and commitment to being together. 23 years together in fact, and lead vocalist Bert McCraken proudly let the audience know of their dedication. The Used formed back in 2000 in Utah and as stated, have been going strong since.

The set was led by their song “Take It Away”, from the much loved and appreciated album In Love and Death. Although the band had a new album, Toxic Positivity, released just a few weeks previous to this set, fans were treated to majority of deeper cuts such as “The Bird and the Worm”, “Buried Myself Alive” and “I’m a Fake”. We did hear songs from their new album such as “Giving Up”, which still received the same excitement and love as their older pieces.

It’s not at every show you get an entire room to chant “Fuck You” and then proceed to absolutely give a hell raising show, but McCraken did and his energy continued throughout the night. McCraken even brought out lead singer of Don Broco, Rob Damiani, for their song “Box Full of Sharp Objects”, and the duo had the stage absolutely lit up. Ending the night, they played “Pretty Handsome Awkward”, which was a fitting end to the killer performance they played.

Pierce the Veil

Closing out the dual-headliner tour, Pierce the Veil started their set with “Death of an Executioner” off of their album The Jaws of Life released this year. Pierce the Veil is a rock band from San Diego that formed back in 2006. They were founded by lead singer Vic Fuentes and his brother Mike, who plays the drums.

Vic Fuentes was highly interactive with the crowd and his fellow members on stage, it was an absolute delight to witness. Fans were treated to songs such as “Bulls in the Bronx”, “Southern Constellations” and “Pass the Nirvana”. Vic asked the crowd if they had brought their best friend with them today, and to hold them close while he sang a newer song titled “Emergency Contact”.

Midway during the set, lead vocalist Vic Fuentes brought up an audience member whom he serenaded “Hold On Till May” to. Following after, he generously gifted his guitar to that member of the audience. Closing out the set the band played the much loved songs “Caraphernelia” and “King For A Day”. Both songs are off of their album Selfish Machines, an absolute staple in any early 2010s Myspace Emo kid’s Limewire library.