Though famed indie/alt/emo rockers Motion City Soundtrack played Nashville twice last year, after not having hit Music City since 2011, the group are set to return tonight, Aug. 9 at Cannery Ballroom for one final, special performance, as part of their So Long, Farewell tour (notably featuring the return of longtime drummer Tony Thaxton). Despite a successful 10th anniversary tour last year for fan-favorite 2005 effort Commit This to Memory, as well as the 2015 release of their sixth (and now final) LP Panic Stations, nearly two-decades of constant touring, influential albums, and scene stardom has apparently taken its toll on the beloved group, who will permanently disband later this year. Genre-bending and eclectic, MCS have managed to stay fresh and relevant throughout their admirable run, and have a reputation for being an incredible live force, performing with an unrivaled energy and earnestness. Obviously if you have any desire to see them in action, or you’d like to catch them one last time, this is likely your last chance, so grab tickets right here and read on for more!
Hailing from Minneapolis, Motion City Soundtrack burst onto the scene in the early ’00s, and have since become one of the most beloved and influential contemporary groups in the “emo” wave of popular music. Though technically formed by frontman Justin Pierre and guitarist Joshua Cain all the way back in ’97, it wasn’t until 2002 that the band’s lineup became finalized, with their debut full-length, I Am the Movie, released that same year (tastemaking punk label Epitaph would scoop them up and re-release it a year later). An early wave of buzz, fueled by independent touring, treks on Warped Tour, and the strength of their songs helped find the group a broader audience, and by 2005’s Commit This to Memory, produced by Mark Hoppus, marking the first effort where all five members worked collaboratively on new material, Motion City Soundtrack were a certifiable breakout success, touring extensively with artists like Fall Out Boy and Blink-182, and finding broader attention from radio, television, and the music press. 2007’s Even If It Kills Me continued the band’s popular trajectory, and helped bag them a major label deal for 2010 effort My Dinosaur Life, which garnered extensive praise from fans and media, and managed to become the group’s highest-charting effort of all time. 2012’s Go would fall a little short, and, after slowing down somewhat and seeing the departure of longtime drummer Tony Thaxton, as well as paying fan-service for Commit‘s 10th anniversary in 2015, MCS released what will be their sixth and final LP last fall, Panic Station, shifting back to a more raw and uninhibited sound as an attempt to capture the energy and spirit of their live show. Influenced as much by ’90s alternative and emo as pop, indie rock, and punk, and characterized by their synth heavy sound and the personal, neurotic lyricism of Pierre, Motion City Soundtrack have always been a band able to transcend genres, linked to, but not fully characteristic of, the “pop punk” scene. An earnest, emotionally charged, and frenetic live force, they’re a band you absolutely have to see live to fully appreciate, and considering this is your last chance, you’d be crazy to pass it up.
Motion City Soundtrack will perform tonight, Aug. 9 at Cannery Ballroom. The show is all ages, begins at 7:30 p.m. (doors at 6:30 p.m.), and tickets are available for $24.50.