NOTE: All photos are copyright of Howard Shiau Photography 2025
It’s been almost exactly three years since I last saw the Silversun Pickups on a double session at the Paste Studio, then Terminal 5 in NYC. A pandemic and a record release later, I was able to catch them at the Roxian Theatre in Pittsburgh (actually McKees Rocks if you want to get technical) as they continue their 2022 tour supporting their sixth studio album, 2022’s “Physical Thrills”.
Opening the evening was Paris Jackson, alt rocker and daughter of the late great Michael Jackson. After releasing her first studio album “Wilted” in 2020 and subsequent EP “the lost” last year, it’s nice to see that, she’s touring as a support act rather than leveraging her most likely many industry connections and jumping straight into headlining tours. As with many indie artists, she writes about relationships, heartbreak, and all the emotions that come with those. On stage, she’s a more subdued performer, letting her music speak for itself, but is backed up by an incredibly energetic and animated band made up of Michael O’Grady on guitar, Nick Diiorio on bass, and Anthony Salazar on drums. I look forward to seeing more music from her and, I’m sure, a headlining tour in the next year or two!
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Having seen the Silversun Pickups nine times already, not too much of their show surprises me except maybe the lighting and setlist. Bassist Nikki Monninger was, as usual, dressed to the nines in a blue sequined dress. The boys were more casual with drummer Chris Guanlao in his usual white tshirt and keyboardist Joe Lester in a dark shirt. Guitarist Brian Aubert was in an interesting shirt that looked like it had blood or paint stains on it!!! Nikki, tell the guys to get with the program!!
With colored light sticks providing most of the lighting for the show, unless the band members were right in front of one that was on, it could be pretty dark…kinda haunting like the album! Monninger was active jumping and flashing that dazzling smile at the fans. Brian was his usual jokester, bantering with the crowd in between songs. When he thanked Paris Jackson and band, he mentioned that they were great “huggers and kissers”! Funny guy!
The set was a great combination of songs from the new record and older favorites. They opened with “Stillness (Way Beyond)” and “Sticks and Stones” from the new record before playing “Well Thought Out Twinkies”, one of my personal favorites. It really was a great mix of tracks, although I’m sure as their discography gets longer, some fan favorites have and will continue to end up not making the cut. They played a nice long encore, finishing as usual with “Lazy Eye”, which still has not aged, continuing to generate excitement from the fans whenever it’s played. If you get the chance to catch the Silversun Pickups (and Paris Jackson) on this tour, definitely do so. You won’t regret it!
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Setlists:
