If Bowling For Soup at Motorpoint Arena Nottingham felt like spending time with an old friend, then the same was true for Wheatus, a well-known name you can pluck from the start of the new millennium. Magnolia Park provided the contrast for this excellent evening.
Wheatus – Magnolia Park
Motorpoint Arena Nottingham – 13 February 2025
Words And Photography: Matt Pratt
Wheatus thrust to prominence with their self-titled album and notable global hit Teenage Dirtbag, and the band has shared many punk rock compilation albums with our headliners. Their debut album was recently re-recorded, which Brendan B. Brown told us in an earlier interview meant that the band now “own the only multi-track master in existence. The original was lost.”
This is a perfect band to resonate with the ageing millennials in attendance. Their short but engaging set took us on a blastthrough the band’s past with songs such as Leroy, Hey, Mr Brown and Fourteen. The display even featured a pair ofcovers, Growing On Me by The Darkness and A Little Respect by Erasure.
With great anticipation and expectation, the band concluded with their iconic hit, Teenage Dirtbag. A song that feels as though it was written into our very DNA as if the words existed in our heads before they were ever uttered in a studio. 
This moment generated one of the most raucous sing-along moments of the entire night, which was a surprise toabsolutely nobody.
My only disappointment with the excellent performance was, knowing they were in attendance, that the band didn’t take the opportunity to invite Alt Blk Era onto stage for a rendition of My Drummer’s Girlfriend.
The two bands collaborated on a version of the song late last year and it would have been sure to have generated a fantastic reception for the popular local band. 
Regardless of any thoughts of what could have been, the band’s performance was gratefully received, and I am sure plenty in attendance will see them once more as the band confirms they will be returning in the near future.
Wheatus are always welcome on the side of the pond.
Magnolia Park
Opening the proceedings this evening were Magnolia Park. The exciting, up-and-coming outfit from Florida make for a welcome contrast to the other bands on the roster tonight. 
Whilst Bowling For Soup and Wheatus are deservedly celebrating their successes of the past, it feels as though the greatest moments of Magnolia Park are still on the way and maybe with us sooner than we might expect with the release of their new album just two months away. 
I speak of Magnolia Park as if they are fresh on the scene, and in terms of age that isn’t entirely incorrect, having only been active since 2018. With that being said, the band has worked tirelessly in the studio and has blessed us with three, soon to be four, albums in just the last three years.
The set included a great spread of the band’s offerings, both older songs and new, unreleased ones, showcasing a modern feel of Nu-Metal and Metalcore reminiscent of the early works of Linkin Park. 
Magnolia Park inspired a surprising amount of engagement from the earlycomers. It’s not often you see a flurry of mosh pits and crowd surfers during the opening set in a venue of this size, a credit to the energy and stage presence of the young rockers.
This fleeting appearance definitely won’t have caused any damage to the band’s progression. They have surely won many of the early attendees over and have positioned themselves perfectly for the release of their forthcoming album VAMP on11 April 2025.
With a whole summer of festivals and the following autumn tours yet to come, it seems inevitable the fans that they’ve gained during this breakout tour will have an opportunity to experience the full force of this band’s performance on a stage of their own and I will be waiting eagerly for the tickets to go on sale.
