Written and Photographed by Liv Foltiny
Underestimating the time it would take me to walk to the venue from the parking garage, I got to The Met a few minutes after 7 p.m. and rushed in to find the opening band, del Amitri, on the third song of their set. The audience was fairly quiet yet attentive as the band performed, but that all changed later in their set. As del Amitri began to play their hit song “Roll to Me,” multiple people stood up, danced, and swayed to the music. This initial shift in the crowd’s energy was only a small taste of the energy that would overtake the crowd as the night carried on.
After a short intermission and set change, Five For Fighting (John Ondrasik) took to the stage, opening with “America Town,” “Chances,” and “The Riddle.” A few songs later, the mood in the venue changed as the lighting on stage switched to a central spotlight, and Ondrasik took a moment to speak directly to the audience before he and his band continued with their next song, “Can One Man Save the World.” Ondrasik explained how he and his bandmates traveled to Ukraine to record the song with a Ukrainian Orchestra at the Antonov Airport, which was attacked by Putin and his forces last year. Acknowledging how every orchestra member had suffered from the war in some way (e.g., losing loved ones, having loved ones serving on the frontlines, etc.), he expressed his respect for their “fortitude.” He said being able to witness events in Ukraine brought up “every emotion you could imagine.” He then stated, “We got it good here [in the United States],” The audience applauded before sitting down at his piano to play.
While performing “Can One Man Save the World,” Ondrasik was bathed in blue and yellow lights as photos and video footage of Ukraine (including some Ondrasik and his bandmates took with their cellphones) played in the background. Airplane and airport ruins, destroyed buildings and homes, contorted vehicles, and images of local citizens were on display for everyone to see as he sang his poignant words to an audience that listened to every word.
Following “Can One Man Save the World,” Five For Fighting performed two other hits —”Superman (It’s Not Easy)” and “100 Years” — before turning to the audience. Claiming he had heard that the Barenaked Ladies‘ fans were good singers, Ondrasik led everyone in some vocal warm-ups before covering Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” with his band and with help from the audience. As Five For Fighting’s set ended, the crowd was energized and ready to see their headliner. They just had to wait for the digital hourglass, which appeared onstage, to run out.
When the final digital grains of sand passed through the hourglass, everyone rushed back to their seats, and shortly after, the Barenaked Ladies took the stage. Starting their set off with “Matter of Time,” “It’s All Been Done,” and “The Old Apartment,” the Barenaked Ladies commanded the stage and got everyone up on their feet.
Standing before a vibrant backdrop bearing the band’s name, Ed Robertson (lead vocalist), exuding his self-proclaimed Muppets Show humor, exclaimed that he was happy the show was indoors, considering the band recently played an outdoor concert where he was “sweating [his]balls off.” This joking banter would pop up throughout the rest of the show, and the band even made sure to bring the audience in on jokes. At one point, they said they had been working on a new album that hasn’t been given a title yet, and, in response, a fan a few rows behind me enthusiastically shouted, “Call it Philly!” As a result, “Call It Philly” became an ongoing joke throughout the night. Between the jokes and Robertson’s “I care that you’re here” attitude, which seemed to be held by the other band members, the Barenaked Ladies created an environment filled with positivity where it felt like you were among friends.
As the band continued their set, they played various songs, including “Pinch Me,” “The Township of King,” “Loving Life,” “Big Bang Theory Theme,” and “One Week.” I don’t know whether it was because I wasn’t familiar with the band or their catalog, but I wasn’t expecting the fantastic yet hilarious medley of covers that was about to happen. Before I knew it, the band was performing “Flowers” (Miley Cyrus), which was followed by “As It Was” (Harry Styles), “TakeOn Me” (a-ha), “Climb Every Mountain” (Sound of Music), “So Long, Farewell” (Sound of Music), and “Rock of Ages” (Def Leppard). The mixture of songs was one that I would never have thought of, and its chaotic randomness brought about smiles, laughs, and cheers — with one of the biggest cheers being when Tyler Stewart (drummer) danced alongside and, subsequently, caught Jim Creeggan (bassist) who jumped into his arms. 
While the medley of covers closed out the Barenaked Ladies’ set, it didn’t close out the night. Wanting to perform one more song, the Barenaked Ladies called del Amitri and Five ForFighting, back to the stage. Together, they performed a cover of “Jet Airliner” (Steve Miller Band), where every member of each band had an additional moment to shine as they all played, danced, and sang together. It was apparent that there was mutual respect between the bands as artists and friends, and this positivity and connectedness permeated the audience when the show concluded.
After the final song finished and the bands gave their thankful goodbyes, everyone left the venue. As I walked back to my car, I saw people talking together and a woman jokingly photobombing another concertgoer’s picture, so it’s safe to say that, even though the show ended, the happiness and positivity did not. If this truly was the Last Summer on Earth, like the tour title stated, at least it went out with a beautiful bang we should probably call “Philly.”
Barenaked Ladies
Website丨Facebook 丨Instagram 丨Twitter丨YouTube 丨 Spotify
Five For Fighting
Website丨Facebook 丨Instagram 丨Twitter丨YouTube 丨 Spotify
del Amitri
