It's fair to say that Waterparks have had an incredible journey within the past decade. Going from being a relatively unknown band in Texas with a small, local fanbase to suddenly being noticed and signed by the Madden brothers lead to appearances at Warped Tour and Leeds + Reading Festival, opening for All Time Low and Good Charlotte across the UK and the USA, and then going on to have their own successful headline tours around the globe. Regardless of your opinion on them, it is undeniable that their success if justified and something to be admired.
They earned their success through literal blood, sweat and tears, they never expected it nor felt that they were entitled to it, and they did it through their own creativity and identity. In a nutshell: they got to where they are now through not giving a fuck what others think and by refusing to stick to one repetitive sound. Sure, that may have ruffled feathers in the pop-punk community because, oh yes, how dare they experiment and speak their own minds with no filter instead of following what everyone else does and suffer in silence. Then again this is the same community who would complain of an artist sounding the same with every new release and for being 'safe', so you can't really win in this crowd.
What then follows is said complained about artist fading into obscurity to be forgotten amongst the combined, blurred noise of others that fell before them. Waterparks have simply refused to copy that trend. Frankly they rightfully represent the punk attitude of not doing what others say, doing what they want when they want, and not giving a fuck about what others think.
Before going into the tour itself, a shoutout needs to be given to their opening act: De'Wayne Jackson. A beautiful blend of rap/hip-hop and rock music that takes inspiration from the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Velvet Underground and The Stooges, De'Wayne is a vision for the future of rock music. He is bringing back a sound not really been seen since Rage Against The Machine split up, although they have now reunited so here's to hoping that they, along with Jackson and other rising artists, will bring back this genre back to life. De'Wayne Jackson is one to watch over the next few years.
It was on this tour that Waterparks announced that they will be releasing a documentary in the near future, with fans being able to watch the first teaser just before the encore. This next step in their career is no surprise given their growth in the last few years, so it feels like a natural step. It was in Birmingham where they announced that they would be filming the show for a concert DVD but until the trailer was shown no one knew of the size of this project. It was almost a shock, but a pleasant shock, when the trailer/intro was shown (not sure what the right word is).
In that moment, when stood with friends who had been made through this band, the nostalgia hit. Thinking back to seeing them for the first time in a crowd of less than twenty people at Slam Dunk and then going on to having their first headline UK tour completely sell-out less than 18 months later, all of the people who we met at the shows who would now be considered to be life-long friends, and just all of the experiences had during and outside of their shows. They have had a positive impact on people's lives, so it was a proud moment to see a summary of their career within a two minute span.
To also showcase their career, we were treated to the two mash-up's done of their albums Double Dare and Entertainment. To hear both albums helped to show-off their growth, not only as performers, but as musicians in their own right. We were able to go through the history of how their sound developed from being typical pop-punk/pop-rock with elements of EDM snuck in (as at the time they had no idea how people would react) to now being a full-blown mash-up of different genres that they enjoy. It was mentioned in the teaser that they were so grateful for how fans had embraced them and their ever-evolving sound as it meant that they could be themselves. That's the type of growth that anyone should love to see within an artist.
Whilst on the subject of personal growth and confidence, if you were to compare one of their shows from 2016/17 and then one of their shows in 2020, some differences would be the overall staging, lighting and special effects. All valid, but the most obvious change is the growth of confidence of Awsten Knight as a frontman. And before anyone says anything; yes, he has always been a confident person as seen through his stage presence, unfiltered charisma and, at time questionable, humour. But he has gone from just standing behind a guitar and mic where he would occasionally move/bounce/dance about to now full-on jumping around the stage, hyping up the crowd and just overall looking like he's having the time of his life without a single care in the world.
Whether he agrees or not on this being down to a growth in confidence, it's still a lovely change to see.
Overall, the FANDOM tour is just the start of showing off their exciting growth and development as a band in their own right. They are no longer the underdogs in a community split in opinion on whether they belong there or not. They have risen above that and no longer consider themselves as one-genre-only type band but as almost 'genreless'. Other artists like Paramore have labelled themselves as that and, while at first people moaned at them no longer being the pop-punk/emo band that they were at the start, they are now praised for being different and unique in their sound. It was embraced by old and new fans alike.
A similar pattern is emerging here with Waterparks and it's wonderful. This is a band that will help influence so many others in the future. That's why they are where they are now.
