It’s not a phase mom: emo nostalgia with Pierce the Veil at the San Jose Civic

Photo by Lily Ramus

When I was 13 I ‘discovered’ rock music. The pop music in my iTunes library was replaced by darker and heavier punk rock, and my tights and dresses were swapped with band tees and black jeans from Hot Topic (much to the chagrin of my mother). My suburban home was suddenly filled with the sound of electric guitar and the once pink walls of my room were painted black, plastered with posters from Alternative Press and Kerrang!. I was pissed off and pubescent, and there was one band that stood at the center of it all: Pierce the Veil.

Almost a decade later and not much has changed. I still wear all black, the walls of my room are still covered in band posters, and I’m about to graduate music school with my electric guitar in hand. I’m sorry mom, but it wasn’t a phase…and I’m not alone. As a generation of emo kids raised on the pop punk and metalcore of the 2010s comes of age (and accumulates adult money), so too does the marketability of nostalgia for this era. With the insane ticket competition of the My Chemical Romance reunion tour and the soaring prices of When We Were Young Festival, the past few years have shown that your local emo nite is not only going mainstream, but is also incredibly lucrative. 

It was on a cold autumn night in late October that Pierce the Veil took the stage at the San Jose Civic. After the resignation of drummer Mike Fuentes and a five year break from the stage, the band resurfaced earlier this year and announced they would be accompanying I Prevail on their upcoming “True Power Tour.” While fans of Pierce the Veil were ecstatic about their return to the stage, the news that they would not be headlining was disappointing and seemed an odd choice from the emo powerhouse. Regardless, the band played a jam-packed 55 minute set, leaving the audience begging for more and proving that they are ready to reclaim their place atop the emo throne. 

Photo by Lily Ramus

The diehard fans packed into the sold-out venue knew that the highlight of the evening was about to begin when “El Rey,” a song by Mexican cultural icon Vicente Fernández, began to play through the venue’s PA, an obvious nod to the band’s heritage. Soon the house lights went down and the band came on stage to “May These Noises Startle You in Your Sleep Tonight,” which was immediately followed by “Hell Above,” the two opening tracks off of 2012’s Collide with the Sky, an album largely revered as the band’s magnum opus.

After a brief greeting to the audience, lead singer and guitarist Vic Fuentes announced the next song: the band’s new single “Pass the Nirvana.” While it was clear the audience preferred the band’s nostalgic older material, the release of a new single was nonetheless exciting after five years. 

Formed of all Latino members and hailing from San Diego, a mere 17 miles from the Mexico border, Pierce the Veil profess their heritage with pride in a scene where both the bands and fans are predominantly white. In a political climate so recently scarred by Trump-era racism towards Latinx communities, it’s incredibly refreshing to see. Fans bring Mexican flags to hold up in the audience, and the stage lights frequently bear its green, white, and red. The band’s song “Bulls in the Bronx” includes a flamenco guitar break, and during the show a flamenco dancer came on stage to perform.

During “Caraphernelia,” the only song the band played from 2010’s Selfish Machines, Eric Vanlerberghe from I Prevail came on stage to sing Jeremy McKinnon’s (A Day to Remember) part. The band played “Circles” and “Texas is Forever” from their most recent album, 2016’s Misadventures, before closing with three more songs from Collide with the Sky: “A Match Into Water,” “Hold On Till May,” and of course, “King for a Day.” 

Photo by Lily Ramus

While the band’s three remaining original members, Vic Fuentes, Tony Perry, and Jaime Preciado, approach their 40s, they are energetic and limber as ever following the five year break. I’ve seen Pierce the Veil twice before at 2015’s Warped Tour and 2016’s “The Misadventures Tour,” and have always been impressed by their stage presence. While the band does not use any costumes or gimmicks, their lighting design is always impressive and despite being slightly restrained by their instruments, you can tell that each member loves what they do by their spirited performances. The stage was also equipped with smoke cannons which released billows of white smoke during high energy moments.

After Pierce the Veil’s set ended, nearly half of the audience left the venue to get in the merch line in a telling display of the headliner’s (I Prevail) lesser popularity. As a band that was widely successful in their heyday, it makes sense that Pierce the Veil is slated to re-achieve that as a nostalgia act. Still, I can’t help but remark how well the band’s music has aged in contrast to some of their fellow scenecore acts; the intricate layered production, unique instrumentation, and complex vocal harmonies make their records stand out as genuine works of art against the generic song structures and squeaky clean overproduction typical of metalcore. But hey, maybe that’s the nostalgia talking.

Article and photos by Lily Ramus