By Rachel WebsterYou might have seen elements of the show before: five young guys playing head-bobbing power pop, jumping around the stage energetically while an equally young audience screams and coos at all the right times. But this particular show is one you won’t see again.
There’s no tomorrow for Beyond Tomorrow.
The Athens band called it quits with flair befitting their popularity, packing out the 40 Watt February 22 with over 400 friends and fans.
Considering the pop feel of the music of these five gentlemen, fronted by a decidedly strapping Patrick Hoydar, there were a surprising number of males in the audience, most of whom knew a surprising amount of Beyond Tomorrow’s lyrics.
“Take off your clothes if they don’t feel right!” sang the crowd in unison with Hoydar, affectionately called “Hodar” by fans and band mates alike.
That’s how this band is. The guys are open and friendly, and the shows are relaxed and energetic.
Here’s a band with something for everyone: enough grit and guitar to satisfy rock sensibilities mixed with enough fun and earnestness to cause swooning. The guys were probably there willingly, and the girls were positively flocking.
Beyond Tomorrow has performed in Athens venues many a time since forming at the University of Georgia in 2005.
They have plenty of practice. That was obvious in their smooth transitions between songs and comfortable banter with the audience. They have energy, unflagging through fifteen songs even as the time approached 2 a.m. By now, the show could easily have become stale, but the guys threw in some new spice for their final appearance.
Take, for example, the band’s encore: a spirited cover of The Who’s “Baba O’Reilly” flowing seamlessly into Beyond Tomorrow’s original “This One’s For You.”
The former felt like a tribute to Athens’ football Saturdays (the song plays in Sanford Stadium before every Bulldogs home football game), while the latter literally dedicated the set to the fans. It was heartfelt and full of hometown appreciation.
This show, however, had something extra.
It had nostalgia, coloring every “It’s been fun” anecdote and “We couldn’t have done it without you” acknowledgement between songs. It had the cocky swagger appropriate to a band of talented twenty-something males. Mostly, though, it had finality. The band’s bows were like a sigh of relief upon coming to rest after a long journey.
They played well, sounded great, but also seemed accepting of the fact that it was over.
There are probably other pop-punk bands jamming assiduously around Athens, imploring crowds to make some noise and put their hands in the air. With this farewell show, however, Beyond Tomorrow showed the heart that Athens will miss.
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