LIVE FROM THE PIT: Wheatus and Thomas Nicholas

For the past 25 years, WHEATUS have been living with the strange blessing and curse of writing a song that never goes away. Rather than shy away from it, they have turned their ‘25th Anniversary’ tour into a celebration of the debut album that started it all, playing it in full each night and filling the rest of the set with whatever the room feels like hearing. The result was a loose, charming night that felt as much like a neighbourhood party as a gig.

The evening opened with THOMAS NICHOLAS, best known to most people as Kevin from the American Pie films. Onstage, though, he was far more “local pub hero” than Hollywood alumnus, in the best way possible. It was just him, an acoustic guitar, and a sense of humour sharp enough to keep everyone dialled in. He leaned straight into nostalgia, playing multiple tracks from the American Pie soundtracks, and even pulling out a spirited cover of BLINK-182’s All The Small Things, which instantly lifted the room. He then launched into a parody of BOWLING FOR SOUP’s 1985, changing the lyrics to be a tongue-in-cheek recap of the first American Pie plot. It landed perfectly with the crowd, who were already laughing by the time the chorus rolled around. His whole set had the warmth of watching a mate jump up onstage at an open mic and absolutely run away with it: easy, comfortable, and genuinely fun.

With only one support, the night rolled quickly toward the main event. WHEATUS came out to a roar, but instead of diving straight into album material, they opened with something entirely different - a cover of Growing on Me by THE DARKNESS, chosen purely because someone in the crowd had shouted for it. That choice really set the tone for the rest of the show. This was not a tightly scripted anniversary set, but a night of organised chaos with the band constantly polling the audience for the next song. After decades on the road, it is no surprise that they have become masters at this loose style. The back-and-forth felt natural and affectionate, like everyone in the room was in on the same long-running joke.

Fan favourites landed hard. Leroy came with a bursting of live harmonica that got some of the loudest cheers of the night. Hump’Em N’ Dump’Em and Lemonade kept the energy high, while American in Amsterdam had a large majority of the crowd up and dancing. The band really leaned into some playful heckling in between songs too: when someone yelled for Truffles, singer BRENDAN called it a “piece of shit song” with the sort of mock-disgust that only comes from real affection, then, of course, proceeded to play it anyway. The whole exchange captured the night’s affectionate, familiar tone.

As the show moved deeper into their catalogues, the energy in the room softened slightly. Some of the lesser-known tracks did not get the same full-room lift, but the fans who recognised them were fully committed, dancing and shouting along. This shifting pace never hurt the atmosphere though, and if anything made the night feel more genuine, like the band were just happy to be sharing whatever the crowd wanted, whether it was a hit or a deep cut. It was really refreshing to have the album tracks scattered throughout the set, rather than knocked out front to back as if by obligation, letting them pop up naturally in the middle of all the requests.

One of the more unique and delightful surprises came when they decided to play a portion of Christmas Dirtbag, their holiday-themed take on Teenage Dirtbag. BRENDAN joked that hardly anyone in the room even knew it existed, and judging from the laughter he was not wrong, but the crowd embraced it anyway. It is not every day you get to hear a band perform a festive remix of their most famous song in November, but the novelty only added to the atmosphere.

When the time finally came for Teenage Dirtbag, the room was ready. Rather than charge straight through the whole song though, the band paused to make the crowd sing the female verse on their own. Every single person in that room did it with full commitment; it was the only possible way to end such a special set like this one. Two and a half decades in, the song still carries an impact that few tracks from its era can match.

As people spilled out onto the street afterward, the mood was bright and buzzing. The whole show felt like a reunion where everyone already knew the words, even when they did not recognise the song. For a band celebrating an album that has outlived whole generations of trends, it was a fitting reminder of why those songs stuck around in the first place.

Words: Zuzanna Pazola

Photos: Joshua Cunningham