You Me At Six bring Night People tour to Philly

You Me at Six | photo by Tiana Timmerberg for WXPN

I remember going to the public library near my neighborhood over the summer to check out and download albums (…is that legal?). The selection wasn’t huge by any means but they somehow had almost every CD I was looking for: I picked up albums by All Time Low, Marianas Trench, Paramore and You Me At Six’s entire discography up to 2012’s Sinner’s Never Sleep. I was immediately hooked and shocked the English four-piece didn’t have more of a presence in the US, a mindset I still hold five years later.

This past Friday, You Me At Six stopped through The Foundry on the third US date of their Night People tour, supporting the release of their latest album. Before Night People’s January release, the band continued playing shows but hadn’t released music in about three years. They gave few updates before returning with a bang and treating fans to a new album and both European and US tours within the span of a few months. Lead singer Josh Franceschi indicated a much more prompt return to Philly after this time, “like 6-9 months, not 3 years…. Sorry about that!”

Los Angeles’ The Score started off the night with an upbeat combination of indie rock and pop. Their contrast of spacey and classic rock n roll guitar worked incredibly well together and helped create a unique and defining sound. Lead singer and guitarist Eddie Anthony gave a nod to their clever mix of genres, asking “I know it’s a rock n roll show, but you’re allowed to like different music, no? Except jazz, you can’t like jazz.” Keeping with a common theme I’ve seen at concerts recently, Anthony commented on music’s incredible ability to bring people together and take them away from the mess that currently is the world before going into their song “Revolution.” “I guess this is the best city to play it in since this is where all the sh*t went down!”

You Me At Six took the stage to title track and pure rock n roll jam “Night People.” I usually find that crowds know the newer albums the least by far, especially when, like Night People, it’s only been out for a few months and there was a substantial gap between their last two albums. This wasn’t the case here by any means and fans knew every word from songs spanning their entire career — from their most popular singles to the lesser known but just as fantastic tracks that often get lost in the album. They used the small stage at The Foundry well and packed their set with high energy and powerful messages everyone could connect to.

Their diverse setlist catered to everyone, managing to include long time favorites like “Loverboy” and “Stay With Me” but still focusing on their latest release. Franceschi’s charming banter and piercing eye contact made me really feel connected to the band. That, and him taking my camera in an attempt to take pictures from the stage but sadly completely failing. Franceschi noted “The more you drink, the better we sound”; I was completely sober and they sounded absolutely fantastic so I can only assume the experience would have been completely surreal after a few beers.