This Wild Life Take On Cambridge’s Sonia

It was a “wild” night at The Middle East’s Sonia this past Monday as the Californian duo This Wild Life took over the venue and turned it into their own pop up coffee shop: Esta Vida Mocha.

At least for a half an hour before they transformed the otherwise silent room into a rocking concert and dance hall.

Around 5pm Monday, around twenty of This Wild Life’s biggest local fans lined up outside the doors to Sonia, eagerly awaiting the band’s unique coffee shop meet and greet.

Featuring a wide variety of donuts from Dunkin Donuts, various sodas, juices, and flavorings, in addition to the band’s own brew of coffee (brand unbeknownst to fans), the former Church’s patrons were buzzing with caffeine and excitement.

Esta Vida Mocha (our pop up coffee shop) has been so much fun and caffeinated crowds are even more ridiculous than our normal hyper emotional fans. Still a few of these VIP’s left in Columbia, Carrboro, Montreal, and Toronto. I guess Canadians and Carolinians don’t like coffee 🥺 pic.twitter.com/VGW7SlonV4
— This Wild Life (@thiswildlife) April 11, 2019

During the meet and greet the duo- also known as Kevin Jordan and Anthony Del Grosso- opened the floor to fans for a Q&A, allowing them to get to know the duo in a unique way- while sipping coffee.

Some fan questions included what it was like to attend Insane Clown Posse’s Gathering Of The Juggalos and when the band members knew they wanted to pursue music as a career.

The answers being “overwhelming but totally worth it,” and “since they were kids.”

Second Society Report’s Mike and Jen with This Wild Life

But it wasn’t until around 6:30pm that the party really started, as the doors opened and crowds of fans rushed in to catch the opening act Crooked Teeth put on one hell of a show.

A three piece band from southern California, Crooked Teeth are a fusion of pop rock and alternative music that had everyone in the crowd swaying and dancing– even those who had never heard the trio before.

“We’d like to say thank you so much to This Wild Life for taking us on our first full US tour. It’s been great!”

With heavier drum and bass sounds, Crooked Teeth were definitely one of the night’s heaviest bands, posing a strong contrast to the acoustic headliners.

But that didn’t stop anyone from enjoying their half hour set, or getting themselves ready for the second opener of the night: Hold Close.

A four piece pop punk band from Springfield, Missouri, Hold Close brought a new vibe and aesthetic to the stage.

With a sound that is a cross between Grayscale and the newer eras of Bring Me The Horizon, the quartet played a variety of songs from their latest album “Time,” released this past January.

And while most of their tracks had a traditional “emo” vibe, no song hit the crowd like “Breath,” a song with an especially sad backstory.

“This song is about a friend of ours who died of an overdose about a year ago,” frontman Braxton Smiley said.

“Don’t do drugs- smoke weed!”

Following Hold Close were Chicago natives Sleep On It, who- based on the cheers alone- were the crowd’s second favorite band of the night.

After taking the stage and being greeted with a round of loud cheers, the four piece pop punk band’s drummer, Luka Fischman, took a moment to stress the importance of stretching before a performance.

“It feels so good to be in our second home,” he announced as he sat down. “We’re gonna stretch out for a little bit first, though.”

He then led the crowd in a few arm stretches before being joined by the rest of his bandmates in their song “Distant.”

With a setlist containing a large mix of new and old songs, Sleep On It was the first band of the night to have fans sing along to every song.

Especially to “Let Me Go,” which like Hold Close’s “Breath” had an interesting backstory.

“When I was 16 I met a girl and fell in love. Don’t aw it was awful,” frontman Zech Pluister joked, “And soon after three or four years I realized that I gave up tons of stuff I love and that she was Satan herself. [Based on the applause] it sounds like lots of you can relate. Maybe you know her. But what I learned was you should never give up on things you care about.”

Keeping it high energy and the crowd hyped up, Sleep On It played a whopping 11 songs, ending on crowd favorite “Fireworks.”

Then, after a short break, the moment everyone was waiting for arrived and This Wild Life took the stage.

Opening with a cover of Post Malone’s “Sunflower,” the band paid a quick homage to their stage decor- which featured a number of sunflowers made out of various materials. Including a large rendering of their latest album cover’s art made out of wood.

“It’s been almost two years since our last headline show in Boston,” Jordan announced. “And for those of you who don’t know, we are This Wild Life. Trying to be the emo foo fighters but we are known as the Hot Topic Mumford and Sons.”

With a setlist consisting of some of the best acoustic songs about heartbreak and sadness that the alternative scene has to offer- including the band’s older never-been-played-live track “Fade,” – the band did take a quick moment to break the emotional tension and lighten the mood.

“We have over thirty breakup songs, and very few love songs,” Jordan announced. “Even fewer that aren’t about dogs.”

“But I want to do something different tonight. Are there any young couples out in the crowd tonight?” he asked before picking two lovers out of the crowd. “I want to see you slow dance. Can we make a circle around them?”

The band then played one of their “very few love songs,” titled “Hold You Here,” and much to the band’s surprise, almost the entire crowd began to sway and dance along with their partners and friends. Some even with strangers.

“Boston I’ve had a misconception about you. I thought you were tough as shit but you’re all full of love. I’ve never seen so many people willingly go into a middle school slow dance so quickly,” Jordan laughed.

Throughout their approximately hour long set, This Wild Life played a mix of new and old tracks, including crowd favorites “Puppy Love,” during which the entire crowd held up pictures of their favorite dogs.

One special dog even got a shout out from Jordan and Del Grosso, who after noticing his photo Jordan announced “That is a very handsome dog. He should have an Instagram following.”