2024 was a great year for live music and the experience of getting to see bands play live. Personally, I got to see some of my favorite bands, and even check off some new ones from the concert bucket list. January tends to be a bit slow, and many musicians take a much needed break to be home with loved ones, rest, and recuperate for the coming year. However, some artists are already itching to get in front of crowds, and fans are itching for live music. Emery decided to kick off their year with a short eight show run across the west coast, bringing with them a few different line ups. When they came to the Glass House in Pomona, CA Emery graced us with a lineup that included Lacey Sturm, Bad Luck, and 7D7D. It was a chilly night in Pomona, but as we packed into the venue, the place was warming up quickly waiting for the music to ring out over the speakers.

Opening the night was the duo of Time Commerford on bass and vocals, and Mathias Wakrat on drums, known as 7D7D. Many people may know Commerford’s name, as he is the bassist of Rage Against the Machine. However, with 7D7D he traded in those hard hitting, in your face tunes, for a more alternative rock groove. While on vocals, Commerford has a deep droning voice that comes across as hypnotizing. All the while, playing technical and grooving bass lines locked in with Wakrat. Wakrat isn’t sleeping behind the kit as every song he fills with groove and texture. 7D7D doesn’t just have Wakrat be the time keeper of the band, but they put his musicianship up front in the songs to star. The two men were on top of their craft for a solid 30 minute set. Though I can’t imagine many people knew who this band was, or even recognized Commerford as he was dressed down in disguise. It was an honor for our ears to hear such masters of their craft play for us.

Up next was a rock band from New York known as Bad Luck. Lead singer and guitarist Dominick Fox greeted the crowd with a heart warming deadpan hello. His demeanor as he snarkily hyped up the crowd actually came across as welcoming and I feel helped people connect with the band. Kicking into the music, Fox shimmied and danced in place behind the mic while playing his guitar. Lead guitarist Charlie Caruso crafted driving guitar lines filled with distortion and fuzz. While bassist Joe Fox was the chaos magnet on stage, dancing around anywhere he could get. Drummer Michael Sichel let his long hair be the show man, as he whipped it around while slamming on his kit. Bad Luck’s music got people bouncing and rocking in the crowd with songs like “Love Song,” “Noise in Your Head,” “Top Drawer,” “Cold Bones,” “Matching Tattoos,” “Willoughby,” and ending with “Impressive Depressive.” A special moment during Bad Luck’s set was when all the band members spotted a 10 year old girl holding a sign that said “This is my first concert, and you are my favorite band.” Each band member made sure to acknowledge the girl, and I can only imagine how special her first concert was because of it.

It was then time for the legendary Lacey Sturm. This singer rose to prominence with her decade tenure with the band Flyleaf, who she recently rejoined in the last couple years. But she is still carving out time to perform as a solo artist. With the reaction of fans in the crowd as she walked on stage, her solo work is just as beloved as her Flyleaf work. Opening with a song off her latest album Kenotic Metanoia, “Intro (My Heartbeat).” This song was all emotion and vibes with the lighting being dark and dramatic, but it bled perfectly into Flyleaf’s “I’m So Sick.” Kicking things off with one of her band's biggest hits captured the attention of the crowd and had the whole place singing with her. You can tell how much passion Lacey sings with as she is constantly dropping to her news as if the power of the song is too much to stand up against, and instead just letting the raw emotion spill through her lyrics. Lacey has a very strong connection with her religion and God and took a few moments to talk about it with the crowd. Something that was different though, was this wasn’t a preachy sermon about God. But was the story about how Lacey found him and how he saved her from committing suicide as a teenager. The speech was incredibly heartfelt, and you could see fans shedding tears as we got to connect with a true human aspect of Lacey Sturm the person. Lacey Sturm filled the remainder of her set with songs from her chart topping solo albums, and other Flylead favorites like “State of Me,” “Vanity,” “Rot,” “Are you Listening,” “Terrible Mistake,” “Fully Alive,” “Wonderful,” “All Around Me,” and ending with “Forever.” It was truly a passionate set to get to experience.

Finally, it was time for our headliner, Emery. The band took a poll asking how many people in the crowd was this their first time seeing the band. They’ve been around for over two decades, and I was one of the people to raise my hand. Seeing all the new faces with their hands raised in the crowd, just encouraged Emery to truly send it and give us a kick ass show to start off our year. Co-clean vocalist Toby Morrell skillfully blended more soulful singing and melodies along with in your face screams when the song called for it. Fellow co-clean vocalist and bassist Devin Shelton helped to harmonize and create a unique dichotomy of clean singing with each song. But a lot of the ferocity came from keyboardist and unclean singer Josh Head who would step out from behind his keys to roar at the crowd. Near the end of the show, even jumping into the crowd to crowd surf while still tearing it up on vocals. Guitarist Matt Carter and Chris Keene were heating the stage up with their licks that fans have come to love. While drummer Dave Powell was in his own world at the back of the stage, getting lost in the rhythm of his playing. This was a special show as the band was celebrating their album The Weak’s End by playing it in its entirety, along with other fan favorites like “The Ponytail Parades,” “Disguising Mistakes With Goodbyes,” “The Note From Which a Chord is Built,” “By All Accounts (Today Was a Disaster),” “I Don’t Know You at All,” “Fractions,” “Studying Politics,” “The Party Song,” “Under Serious Attack,” “Edge of the World,” “As Your Voice Fades,” “The Secrets,” and ending with “Walls.”

For my first concert of 2025, this was a great way to kick off the year. Surrounded by other people jonesing for a fix of live music straight to the veins. 7D7D was a groove machine, and a great way to warm up the crowd. While Bad Luck brought in some hard rock pop punk vibes that every elder emo appreciated. Lacey Sturm had the most passionate set I’ve seen in a long time and created that special human connection with the crowd. While Emery created a space where everyone got to let loose for the first time in 2025. Emery set the bar high, and now that I got my first official fix of the year, I can’t wait to see what other bands are going to bring it in 2025.