An emotional Taking Back Sunday back on LI
Taking Back Sunday headlined at the Paramount Theater in Huntington this evening. Taking Back Sunday is a rock band originally from Amityville and formed in 1999 by guitarist Eddie Reyes. Adam Lazzara is the lead vocalist; John Nolan is the lead guitar, vocals and keyboards; Eddie Reyes is the group's rhythm guitarist; Shaun Cooper is on bass guitar; and Mark O'Connell (who still has ties to Rockville Centre) plays drums/percussion. Photo Credit: Steven Sunshine (Dec.27, 2011) Credit: Steven Sunshine
For a moment, Adam Lazzara, the normally chatty lead singer of Taking Back Sunday, was at a loss for words.
"I had so much I wanted to tell you," Lazzara told the capacity crowd at the Paramount Theater in Huntington Tuesday night. "But I was taken aback by how beautiful this venue is and how beautiful you all are."
It was an emotional night after all -- the first show the "Tell All Your Friends"-era lineup has played on Long Island since reuniting last year.
Lazzara peppered the energetic set with Long Island references, explaining how the standout track "180 by Summer" was written in Lindenhurst, and name-checking tiny, fallen venues like Ground Zero.
The Rockville Centre-based band mixed its indie classics with new songs from its underappreciated recent Warner Bros. album. It fit the mood of the night, showing the strength of the area music scene.
It was an all-Long Island bill -- just like the old days -- including promising newcomers Wiretap Crash and 1776, and a hard-hitting set from Bayside, headliners in their own right. Of course, now these Long Island bands are known the world over, with Taking Back Sunday set for its first South American tour next year.
But Lazzara wanted to make the Paramount show memorable, so he climbed into the balcony, stretching his microphone cord across the entire venue.
"I didn't think this through," Lazzara said. "But I'm gonna stay up here awhile."
