Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness Celebrates 40th Birthday with Something Corporate Reunion

September 14, 2022 BY Jason Currell

Indie-pop singer-songwriter-pianist Andrew McMahon has spent more than half of his life performing for crowds worldwide and on Friday night, September 9th, he celebrated his 40th birthday in style with a sold-out show at the House of Blues in AnaheimCalifornia in front of thousands of fans, friends, and family. The 2-hour set featured 22 songs highlighting hits from across all of his projects: Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Jack’s Mannequin, and Something Corporate, which came together for a surprise reunion mid-set. The original lineup of the beloved early 2000s Orange County pop-punk band – bassist Kevin “Clutch” Page, drummer Brian Ireland, and guitarists Josh Partington and William Tell – performed six songs, starting with fan-favorite “Konstantine” along with “Fall,” “Woke Up In A Car,” “Straw Dog” and “Hurricane” off their 2002 album Leaving Through The Window and “She Paints Me Blue” from 2003’s North. Though it had been nearly 20 years since all five original members have performed an extensive set together, as the Orange County Register noted, “the guys ripped through the songs as if no time had passed and the crowd loudly sang every word.” The celebratory bash also featured “High Dive,” “Cecilia and the Satellite,” “The Mixed Tape,” “Fire Escape,” and new single “Stars,” which is currently impacting radio nationwide, as well as an opening set from The Juliana Theory. PRESS HERE to read a full recap and exclusive interview with Alternative Press.

PRESS HERE to download hi-res performance photos from the show.

(credit: Connor Lenihan/@connorlenny)

PRESS HERE to view a video recap.

Last month, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness released the jubilant single “Stars” via Nettwerk, featuring Los Angeles singer-songwriter Ella Vos on backup vocals. The new track, produced by Tommy English (Kacey Musgraves, K.Flay, Børns) and Jeremy Hatcher (Harry Styles, Maggie Rogers, Lizzo) alongside McMahon, is impacting alternative radio nationwide with airplay on over 30 stations across the country as well as SiriusXM’s Alt Nation, where it just entered the Alt-18 weekly countdown. PRESS HERE to listen to “Stars” and PRESS HERE to watch the song’s official music video.

In other news, McMahon’s memoir, Three Pianos, is now available in paperback via Princeton Architectural Press. In the searingly honest and beautifully written book, which debuted last fall to acclaimed reader and fan praise, McMahon shares his career and life challenges and triumphs through the lens of his connection to three pianos he has personally played. Behind the seemingly optimistic and quintessentially American story of big dreams come true, McMahon dives into the overwhelming challenges he’s faced, from a childhood defined by his father’s struggle with addiction to his very public battle with leukemia in 2005 at the age of twenty-two. Three Pianos takes readers on a beautifully rendered and bittersweet journey, one filled with inspiration, heartbreak, and an unwavering commitment to shedding the past in order to create a better future. Three Pianos: A Memoir is available wherever books are sold and also as an audiobook, read by Andrew, with special musical sections that he exclusively scored for this – PRESS HERE to purchase.

Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness – McMahon (lead vocals, piano), Bobby Anderson (guitar), Jay McMillan (drums), Mikey Wagner (bass) and Zac Clark (keys) – just wrapped the Hello Gone Days Tour with Dashboard Confessional and special guests Armor For Sleep, Cartel, and The Juliana Theory last week. The co-headlining, 6-week summer outing received rave reviews across the board, hailed as everything from “one of the best concert experiences of your life” to “nothing short of magical mixed with a bit of nostalgia” and simply “a must-see. Up next, McMahon and his nonprofit charity, the Dear Jack Foundation, will host the sold-out 13th Annual Dear Jack Benefit on November 11th at the House of Blues in Chicago with a special VIP event the night before.For all upcoming show dates, visit https://andrewmcmahon.com/pages/tour and for more information on the Dear Jack Foundation or to donate, visit: www.dearjackfoundation.org.

Over the last two decades, Andrew McMahon has successfully experienced musical rebirth many times and has consistently arrived on the other side stronger than ever. The East Coast-born, SoCal-based artist first co-founded the pop-punk outfit Something Corporate in 1998, serving as the group’s singer, pianist, and songwriter and leading the band to major chart success in the early 2000s. Soon after the band went on hiatus, McMahon resurfaced with the more personal solo project Jack’s Mannequin, finding success through three studio albums, with the second (The Glass Passenger, 2008) and third (People and Things, 2011) entering the top 10 on the Billboard 200 chart and their debut, Everything In Transit (2005), reaching Gold status. In 2014, McMahon released his debut album under his own name and new moniker, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, featuring the breakout top 5 alternative radio singles “Cecilia and the Satellite” and “Fire Escape.” Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness has since released the hook-packed albums Zombies On Broadway (2017) and Upside Down Flowers (2018), amassing over 275 million total streams to date, performing at such marquee festivals as Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Riot Fest, and Firefly, and touring alongside the likes of Weezer, Panic! at the DiscoGavin DeGrawAllen Stone, and Dashboard Confessional as well as one of McMahon’s idols, Billy Joel, who he opened for on select dates this summer. McMahon has also sold nearly 2.5 million albums across all of his musical projects and received an Emmy nomination for his work on the NBC show “Smash.”

Critical Praise for Andrew McMahon

“Andrew McMahon is a talent beyond words and a musical force beyond measure.”

– Alternative Press

“Andrew McMahon is the voice of a generation—at least, he is for pop-punk die-hards in the early 2000s.” – Glamour

“McMahon parades around the stage with his infectious charisma.”

– Entertainment Tonight

“Over the years, Andrew McMahon has been a pop-punk superstar with Something Corporate, an emo-leaning alt-rocker with Jack’s Mannequin, and a new-school fun.-style popster with Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness. He’s never pegged himself as one thing.” – Billboard

“McMahon’s music has evolved into something replete with shimmering melodies and ineradicable rhythm, by all means harvesting a continuously more bewitching soundscape as his solo portfolio has grown.” – PopMatters

“McMahon crafts a story-telling unlike any other in its genre.” – Glide Magazine

“It’s impossible for Andrew McMahon to write a bad song.” – Idobi Radio

“Andrew just keeps getting better as an artist, even when it seems impossible for anything to be better than his previous projects.” – The Honey Pop

 Photo Credit: Lindsey Byrnes