I know I said this on instagram but I HAVE to repeat here how upset I am with ALL OF YOU. HOWWW did I not know this band existed? This band formed in 2006, my PRIME freshman college year when I was heavily emo. What a waste of 20 years. But it’s fun to be able to listen to them now. AJ opened the show with an acoustic set & killed it. Seemed like a summer chill dude & I hope I get to the see the entire band on tour in the future!
The song Under the Influence(r) got me through a lot of rough emo nights this year so naturally when I saw The Summer Set was headlining with Senses, I knew this is a show I had to be at. But for the life of me I couldn’t figure out who to message for a press pass. All my emails were getting kicked back. I tried messaging on social media but that’s always a last ditch effort as a lot of bands get messages all day from being tagged and yours will get buried and unseen. Finally I was just like oh well. At least I’ll get to see them play.
Cut to being at the venue. I hadn’t shot at The Beacham before and both ends of the barricade were open. Being a rule follower, I needed to know which side to come in on, so I went to security to ask. They must of been confused because after leaving for a minute he came back with the tour manager for The Summer Set. In the sweetest tone I’ve ever heard she said “Hi, I’m J******, I heard you had a question?” “I am so sorry,” I replied, “my question was more for the venue about which side they want us to enter the barricade on. I didn’t mean to waste your time. But while I have you here, I am already shooting for Senses and wanted to see if it was alright to shoot The Summer Set as well?” She was so nice and gave me the go ahead and stipulations. Sometimes things just happen the way they’re supposed to. So with that, enjoy The Summer Set.
Senses first came across my instagram feed when I was in a very emo mood. The song “Better than This” felt like I could be emo but hopeful at the same time. It was literally perfect & I kept it on repeat for days, finding videos people used with it, looking up all their socials & becoming an instant fan. Especially with a female lead singer, yes please. Madison Taylor not only has pipes, but she runs around with more energy than my kid after sneaking an entire bag of nerd clusters. More and more songs resonated & were added to my emo playlist ironically with joy. If you like a pop-punk-emo sound, if you wanna punch a heartbreaker who hurt you in the face, if you also wanna kiss that person, this is your band.
Opening the night for Beauty School Dropout, Nightbreakers set the pop rock stage perfectly. They were just a whole vibe, genuine, & one gent was even wearing a twilight shirt. I fell in love with the song Apartment & went back to my hotel to listen to more. I realized I was already following them on instagram because they’re from Tampa! Also, they had a super cool & unique band shirt that was mesh, perfect for the Florida heat. My only regret was not realizing I could shoot from the stairs and I was kind of stuck in one spot for most of their set. That just means I’ll have to get in to photograph them again sometime!
A couple of bands (or members of) got together to do an acoustic benefit show for victims of ICE. The event had Deanna of Sincere Engineer performing. Not only did she show up while fighting bronchitis, she sang her heart out & helped raise a collective middle finger to ICE and this bullshit administration. It’s so refreshing seeing artists with backbones. A few days later she posted she will be doing a polar plunge for special olympics. As a mother of two kids with special needs (one who does cheer and gymnastics with special olympics) I couldn’t love this woman more. She’s so sweet and down to earth, and even gave me a food recommendation while in Chicago. It was called the Chef’s Special. I got there early and got a seat at the bar. I’m severely allergic to citrus, watermelon and mango so eating out is anxiety inducing for me. This restaurant went above and beyond with my allergy, even offered to move me to a private table (even though they were packed) since a lot of the bar drinks had orange peels. I’m ok as long as I don’t eat it so didn’t want to take a whole table to myself. I asked the bartender for a Diet Coke & she quickly washed her hands before handling my drink. This might seem like bare minimum stuff but I can assure you it’s not the normal. One time I told my server at a restaurant about my allergy and they brought my Diet Coke with a lime, or my calamari with lemons. But when I’m traveling I have little options other than to eat out so I’m super thankful when restaurants make me feel comfortable. Anyway, here is the Queen of Corndogs – Deanna
Flew to Chi town this weekend for two incredible shows. One was Beauty School Dropout. I’ve had them on my crashout playlist for a while. Even though I knew I was going to see them open for MGK in May, I wanted to see them on their own headlining tour. A more intimate experience if you will. It was great! They put out the vibes, and the lead singer was in his merch booth signing and taking pictures until the line was done! He had to be tired after that set but was humble and gracious with each and every fan. One fan even brought him some custom cookies! It was so cute. Every single member was on stage serving too. It was a photographer’s dreammmmmmm! Posing, working with the light, giving it their all. If you’re strobe sensitive be warned there was quite a bit of strobes on this tour but the show was a banger, the crowd had great energy, the venue was chill AF, and I even got to see snow again.
BNS played the same night with Nonsense. I wasn’t there to shoot them but I took some shots of them while I messing with my new camera. They approached me after the show asking if I got anything & how they could compensate me. I’m still very much in the imposter syndrome phase of concert photography (after shooting portraits for 22 years you would think I’d be more confident but it’s so different). But the fact they immediately let me know they weren’t asking for anything for free was the best & very validating. <3 A deal was struck & I’m now the proud owner of their cd & a cute band Tee. ^_^
Nonsense is my favorite local Orlando band (sorry not sorry). I met them at a house show mid 2025 & every single one of them was chill & nice & down to Earth. Not only that they’re always super appreciative when I’m shooting. Sam the dummer is the reason I have a logo because he asked me to make him a shirt so I had to figure it out for a shirt haha! Couldn’t ask for more genuine dudes. I think I’m just going to start spreading random nice rumors about them. As a matter of fact my tire was flat after the show & they carried my car to the auto shop barefoot.
If you like punk or pop punk with that New Found Glory/State Champs vibes you should check them out!
To say I was humbled during this set was an understatement. I thought I knew WAY more songs than I did. I’m not sure why, I only listened to their 2005 album (are you seeing a trend here yet with my music lol) But did I scream my heart out on the two songs I did know? Yes. Did I hear new-to-me songs that I loved & added to my playlist? YES. I really like the new song Your Days Are Numbered. MCS also sent out a thoughtful response to the ICE killings & injustice happening while promoting an organization you can donate to to help.
Overall it was an awesome time & the crowd knew all the words (as I hung my head in shame).
The Instagram algorithm was algorithming with this band. I was just scrolling, minding my own business when BAM, what is this???? A raw punk band with a sick lead singer chick & they love CORN DOGS?! Am I dreaming? Is this angsty glizzy heaven. Quickly, I searched for a tour & sure enough they were cruising through Orlando. *insert Lizzy* This is what dreammmssss are made offfff….
