Back in the mid-2000s, I was a bit of a music snob. If the music didn’t come out before 1995, I didn’t care about it. Eventually, I realized I should probably start checking out more modern music but didn’t know of any bands at the time. I asked my younger sister for some artists she would recommend, and one of those bands was Jack’s Mannequin. This was shortly after they released their debut album, Everything in Transit, and surprisingly, I enjoyed it. After a hiatus with Jack’s Mannequin, as Andrew McMahon focused on his solo work, he has decided to do a tour, Celebrating 20 Years of Jack’s Mannequin the MFEO Tour. The penultimate stop of the tour was a hometown show at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA. This was one of the most packed, sold-out shows I had ever seen at this venue.

Opening the tour was another Los Angeles native band, Illuminati Hotties. This indie rock band was a personal project from music producer and audio engineer Sarah Tudzin. Though Tudzin started the project in 2017, the music of Illuminati Hotties feels like it would be the soundtrack to any 2000s Michael Cera movie. It has a softer, respective feel to it. Even though their sound carries a mostly indie rock vibe, for those harder-hitting punk moments, Tudzin takes those moments to step out from behind the mic and jam out with her fellow bandmates Tim Kmet, Sapphire Jewell, and Zach Bilson. During the song “MMMOOOAAAAAYAYA,” she even got onto the barricade to sing right in the faces of the fans. Illuminati Hotties kept up this mix of indie and punk with songs like “Can’t Be Still,” “Falling in Love with Somebody Better,” “777,” “(You’re Better) Than Ever,” “Pool Hopping,” “Joni: LA’s No. 1 Health Goth,” “frequent letdown,” “sandwich sharer,” and ending with “Didn’t.” This might have been the first time hearing Illuminati Hotties for most people, including me, but they left an impression. Andrew McMahon picked a perfect band of melodic vibes and high-energy moments to get the crowd sufficiently warmed up for what was to come.

This was my first time seeing Andrew McMahon in any capacity, and I’ve always heard how amazing of a performer he can be. As a grand piano sat at the front of the stage, I knew with Jack’s Mannequin he would be stuck playing piano for the majority of the show, and I was curious what kind of piano performer he was going to be. Within seconds of their opening song, “The Resolution,” McMahon proved to be one of the most charismatic and animated piano players I’ve been fortunate enough to see.

Andrew McMahon has a face like rubber, as he emoted every emotion on the emotional spectrum throughout the show. From happiness to sorrow, to joy, mania, depression, heartfelt loss, and tears of joy, the man was playing to the back of the theater with just his facial expressions. This energy couldn’t be contained just to his face, as he was constantly leaping from his seat and standing while continuing to play and sing these powerful songs that people have loved for the last 20 years. On multiple occasions, his manic energy caused him to knock over the piano seat, yet this just caused McMahon to perform with an even more heightened level of energy.

Performing songs from all three albums, we got the best of music that helped people fight through some of their hardest moments in life, like “Spinning,” “Crashin,” “Bloodshot,” “I’m Ready,” “The Mixed Tape,” “Bruised,” “Holiday From Real,” “La La Lie,” “Swim,” “Kill the Messenger,” “Into the Airwaves,” “Last Straw, AZ,” “My Racing Thoughts,” “Release Me,” “Restless Dream,” “Amy, I,” “Rescued,” “MFEO: Pt. 1 – Made For Each Other,” “Hammers and Strings (A Lullaby),” and ending with “Dark Blue.”

Fans got two solid hours of Jack’s Mannequin music, and that still didn’t feel like enough. We could have kept feeding McMahon energy to perform every song they have written, but alas, we must wait for the next time any one of Andrew McMahon’s projects comes to town.

While working on their debut album, Everything in Transit, Andrew McMahon was diagnosed with leukemia. Thankfully, McMahon kicked leukemia’s ass and made a full recovery. Because of this, McMahon started the Dear Jack Foundation (https://www.dearjackfoundation.org/), raising money to help fight cancer in adolescents and young adults. The show may have been for fans to come and enjoy the music of Jack’s Mannequin, but for McMahon, this was a way of helping raise money for people fighting cancer, as there were QR codes all around the venue with ways to donate. McMahon even took the time to make a speech to inspire people to donate and help save lives. Please consider donating yourself.