28 years in, it still can’t be easy to miss a hometown show. Even more so, a hometown show when you’re on the cusp of releasing your first full length release in a decade.
However, Day Two of Minnesota Yacht Club for Motion City Soundtrack had them down a lead singer. The band and Justin Pierre broadcasted to their socials the day before that while he had fought to get medical attention as much as possible to make it to the festival, the doctor ordered not just vocal rest, but actual bed rest. In the post shared to the MCS Facebook page, they teased, “The guys have lined up a bunch of very special guest singers to fill in for me, and from what I hear, it’s gonna be wild.”
I only had a Day Two wristband for this festival, and MCS were already a must see for me. I haven’t stopped listening to their first single off the new album, which we covered a couple weeks ago. As of my writing this Monday morning, their second single from the upcoming record JUST dropped. (No spoilers! This new single along with the new Tyler, The Creator record are part of my plane playlist for later today as I head back to Denver.)
In any case, I don’t blame Justin at all for being cautious here. I know many artists would fight it out regardless of doctors orders. The Midwest heat and humidity of July even had me seeking shade, sustenance, and a seat after getting a decent sunburn at the set. For me, all worth it for what the band was able to do being down their spiky-haired lead singer.
Staring off their set was no surprise to those familiar with the Motion City game. Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy popped out to start the first three songs. Patrick has been known to be the hardest working man at the festival, like back at When We Were Young Festival 2024, where he joined MCS for “Everything Is Alright” and Cobra Starship both days. While the bright sun made the lyrics a bit tough to see on the digital teleprompter, Patrick was not shy about speaking to how Justin is one of his favorite writers and while he “knows Motion City Soundtrack” he didn’t know it like the missing Justin.
The front row of the crowd didn’t let up in assisting the special guests. Energetic as if nothing was different, the diehards helped as Ber joined for two songs — notably mentioning having to follow Patrick Stump, along with Nadi McGill and Kathy Callahan from Gully Boys each joining for a track. The local artist community really came through for Justin at this set. Signs from the fans wishing him well and shout outs from the special guests hopefully reaching him, assumingly through a live stream of some sort.
Patrick re-joined the set to close out with four more songs, including “L.G. FUAD,” “Everything is Alright,” (with Nadi McGill rejoining where Patrick would have made his appearance in former bills with MCS and FOB), and “The Future Freaks Me Out.”
While Justin was sorely missed, the band and special guests made this one of my favorite MCS sets to date, and even more excited to see them on their upcoming dates with Say Anything. Motion City Soundtrack is a band everyone should have always been watching, and should be watching as they enter into this next chapter.
Stream “She Is Afraid” and newly released “You Know Who The Fuck We Are” and keep an eye out for “The Same Old Wasted Wonderful World” this September.
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