Angels & Airwaves at the PlayStation Theater

Tom DeLonge

Tom DeLonge received his first guitar as a Christmas present while in the sixth grade in the suburbs of Poway, California. While in high school, he co-founded Blink-182 in 1992; the band's third album, 1999's Enema of the State, featured three hit singles and went quadruple-platinum in the U.S., selling upwards of 15 million copies worldwide. From 2001 to 2003, DeLonge experimented with post-hardcore music on a side project called Box Car Racer, pursuing darker concepts that he felt were not suited for Blink-182. When Blink-182 dissolved in early 2005, DeLonge pursued an effects-laden progressive-inspired sound, experimenting alone in his home studio before gathering musicians to form a band. In late 2005, DeLonge announced Angels & Airwaves, which would be an alternative rock band and an "art project" encompassing various forms of media. DeLonge reunited with Blink-182 from 2009 until his dismissal from the group in 2015; during that time, DeLonge also worked on Angels & Airwaves, solo recordings, films, and business projects. Angels & Airwaves' fifth and most recent album, 2014's The Dream Walker, was followed by promises of films, soundtracks, and graphic novels, much of which have not yet seen light. Angels & Airwaves consists of Tom DeLonge (lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, bass), David Kennedy (guitars, keyboards), and Ilan Rubin (drums, keyboards, bass, backing vocals).

Angels & Airwaves, featuring DeLonge, Kennedy, and Rubin, with former Taking Back Sunday bassist Matt Rubano, is on its first concert tour in seven years and headlined tonight at the PlayStation Theater. Amid lights that flashed and blinded the audience much too frequently, the four musicians appeared on stage blasting like a rocket, launching with "Surrender" and maintaining that burst of energy for most of the set. DeLonge sang wordy lyrics well, and the band provided a wall of sound to amplify the immediacy of the sonic moments. Several songs utilized pre-programmed accompaniment, however, noticeable when keyboards or synthesizers dominated the melodies and no one stood by the two keyboards on stage. Slower songs like "It Hurts" and "Wolfpack," interspersed through the set, softened the band's punch while still cracking a throbbing pulse. Midway through the set, the tempo relaxed when DeLonge sang a three-song acoustic medley of parts of Blink-182 and Box Car Racer songs. Angels & Airwaves recorded two songs earlier this year, "Rebel Girl" and "Kiss and Tell," and rocked both towards the latter half of the set. Overall, the concert rallied and satisfied the band's fans, but the fans left unclear as to whether Angels & Airwaves will resume the recording and touring regiment of earlier years.

Setlist:

1. Surrender
2. Overload
3. It Hurts
4. Everything's Magic
5. Paralyzed
6. Moon as My Witness
7. Anxiety
8. The Wolfpack
9. Kiss with a Spell > Drum Solo
10. Rebel Girl
11. The Adventure
12. Anomaly
13. Medley: I Miss You (Blink-142 song)/There Is (Box Car Racer song)/Aliens Exist (Blink-142 song)
14. Hallucinations
15. Young London
16. Breathe
17. Kiss & Tell

Encore:

1. Do It for Me Now
2. Heaven