Golden Mixtape

The last time New Found Glory toured, I remember my roommate and I talking about their music quickly and how they don’t really have those songs you attach yourself to. We love their music, and I know there are songs of theirs we LOVE, but how many of those are the kind that give us, what the kids call, “feels?” For me it’s one. One song in their deep discography sits on a list of all-time favorites. It’s the one song that has lyrics that make me go, “Yup, that’s totally me.” So why is this one of my favorite bands, why have I not missed one SoCal tour since I was 16? Because they have to be one of the best live bands out there.

Having gone to a good amount of shows, I know when a band is great live or not. A band that stands there in a robotic haze, or one that sounds like shit – those are the ones I would rather just sit at home and listen to for free on Spotify. New Found Glory has never and will never be one of those bands. You can tell that being on that stage is just an innate aspect of their being. Other bands do it to pay the bills, and yes – I’m sure the guys who make up NFG appreciate they can live a so-so life playing music, but I think they’d perform on the side of the road for truckers for free, if that’s what it came to one day because they just love it too much. The smiles on their faces when they come out, they’re proof that you really have to not only love what you do, but have passion for it to make it your life.

Are they the richest guys in music, oh hell no. I’m sure they’re not raking in the same cash flow as Ariana Grande or Adele, but unlike those artists – NFG has longevity in their scene. Not to say those two won’t go on to have careers that span for decades, but once you’re a fan of NFG, it’s really hard to shake them. It’s different for those pop stars, who are on top of their game one day and just a faint memory on a NOW compilation the next. For a decade now, I’ve seen a lot of the same people going to their shows and it’s like, well – the whole gang’s here…again. That’s another thing with this band. You can always count on them. I never know when the hell I’m going to see Backstreet Boys again, but NFG…I can usually schedule them at least every year and a half or so for a date in SoCal.

They have a dedicated fan base thanks to their ability to tour more often than not, and love what they do on stage but you want to know my favorite moment of any show in recent years? Whenever they play that one song, that one song of theirs that makes me go, “Yup, that’s totally me.” What song is that exactly? “Truth of My Youth.” Oh that song…as someone who relies more on written words that those spit out of my mouth, this song makes me feel something comparable to when shuffle lands on The Tower & The Fool’s “Scoliosis,” and when the line, “…words written down on paper, it’s my only savior,” comes on – it makes me do nothing more than smile warmly.