SAD SUMMER FEST AT THE PAVILION AT TOYOTA MUSIC FACTORY IN IRVING

I hadn’t been to a Sad Summer Fest since the first initial conception of the festival back in 2015 in Dallas at a venue that no longer even exists. So needless to say, I was beyond excited to get to attend and capture this one! I was pretty much excited to see every single artist on this lineup, which was incredibly stacked. It was supposed to be outside, but due to the excessive Texas heat it was moved indoors instead. If you ask anyone else, they’ll agree this was a wonderful idea.

To kick off the fest, Cliffdiver was set to open and man did they. I hadn’t seen them before but had been a fan of them for years and they left no room for disappointment. They were high energy from start to finish and got everyone ready for all the sets to follow. After them came Stand Atlantic who came to perform this fest from all the way across the pond. They followed suit with the same enthusiasm and energy as the first and kept this going from the first song to the last. Up next was Mom Jeans who had the crowd kick it up a notch starting a HUGE circle pit which lasted for pretty much the entire set. Hot Mulligan came out swinging next, keeping that same energy who, coincidentally, had the fans swinging the barricade to match their energy from their set. Pvris switched up the vibe next with their sweet and serenading melodies, but also brought the heat with new and old, playing even some of their older songs from White Noise. I’ve honestly never seen them play a bad set EVER. The Maine was up next and they somehow raised the bar even higher with their alluring light production and high tier energy, sneaking out Adam from Taking Back Sunday to do guest vocals, and even disappearing out into the crowd to do a song with the fans in their seats. They quite literally brought the music, energy, and concert to them. Andrew McMahon took it a step further and started the set from within the pit with the fans, making his way back up to the stage and giving insanely high energy for the entire set. He even worked his way back out to the crowd, giving fans the best time possible. He ended with taking a rainbow parachute out to the pit, having the crowd hold it up and rotate it, and having everyone under it dance and sing with him to close it out. Taking Back Sunday was up last and they all came out in matching suits bringing a different type of high, groovy energy. They got the crowd dancing and singing along to the sounds of their songs, bringing the fest to an end the only way they know how - by being nothing short of amazing. If you were having doubts about attending this fest my advice to you is DON’T doubt, just do it.

CHECK OUT THE GALLERIES DOWN BELOW NOW!

CLIFFDIVER

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CLIFFDIVER 〰️

STAND ATLANTIC

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STAND ATLANTIC 〰️

MOM JEANS

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MOM JEANS 〰️

HOT MULLIGAN

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HOT MULLIGAN 〰️

PVRIS

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PVRIS 〰️

THE MAINE

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THE MAINE 〰️

ANDREW MCMAHON

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ANDREW MCMAHON 〰️

TAKING BACK SUNDAY

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TAKING BACK SUNDAY 〰️