With Confidence in Concert
Sydney, Australia quartet With Confidence formed in 2012 while its members were still in high school, after bonding through a mutual love of the most high-school-centric rock subgenre: pop-punk. But from the first notes of their 2013 debut EP, ‘Youth,' With Confidence displayed a musicality that transcended the typical crowd-surfing fare, powering its opening salvo "Tonight" with a propelling drumbeat and fleet-fingered guitar arpeggios. And in bassist Jayden Seeley, the band boasted a charismatic frontman whose melodic exuberance was undercut with a deeply felt sensitivity. ‘Youth' would earn With Confidence airplay on national alt-rock radio station Triple J and opening slots for Aussie phenoms like 5 Seconds of Summer; by the time the follow-up EP, ‘Distance,' was released in 2015, they were embarking on headlining tours of their own. The band's homegrown success caught the attention of the iconic California punk/metal imprint, Hopeless Records (All Time Low, New Found Glory, Avenged Sevenfold), who released With Confidence's full-length debut, ‘Better Weather,' in 2016. The album was a testament to Seeley's growth as a singer and a writer: While calling-card single "Voldemort" barrels out of the gate like a ready-made stage-diving soundtrack, its adrenalized rush conceals Seeley's heartfelt pledge to help a girlfriend through her mental-health struggles, with the song's communal acoustic breakdown serving as the comforting hug. Upon its release, the band received the ultimate pop-punk coronation: an invite to join the Vans Warped Tour for its entire summer run. And they'd repeat the feat in 2018 following the release of their second album, ‘Love and Loathing,' which sees the band continuing to expand their aesthetic to encompass Fall Out Boy-style arena-sized pop anthems ("That Something") and gently foot-stomping campfire-folk serenades—like the aching breakup ballad "Pâquerette (Without Me)." But the album still comes loaded with enough fleet-footed rave-ups — see: "Jaded" — to ensure the circle pit will keep spinning.