Three seriously amazing bands rocked The Woodlands on Friday August 4th at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Incubus, Jimmy Eat World and Judah & the Lion came together and the combination was nothing short of fireworks.

The first opening act was Judah & the Lion who in my opinion killed it in a good way. This band started playing back in 2011, but just caught some mainstream attention over the last few years. You may know them from a few of their recent hit songs like “Take it all Back” which reached the #1 spot on the Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart for three consecutive weeks in December 2016 / January 2017. Recently the song “Suit and Jacket” has been taking off on a popularity streak.

These guys put on an amazing show with a lot of passion and energy which was only the beginning of this type of aura for the evening.

Next up was Jimmy Eat World. This part of the show was a very special experience for me.

I’ve been a die hard Jimmy Eat World fan since around 1998 when I owned their Static Prevails album and jammed it on the daily. One of my first jobs was at Schlotzsky’z Deli on Sawdust road here in The Woodlands back in 1999. My friend and store manager at the time Jason Jordan (Cru Jordan Jones) was in a band called Race Car Riot which was an amazing band and still is if you’ve never heard them, and they had spent some time with and gotten to know the guys from Jimmy Eat World.

Jimmy Eat World came by our job at Schlotzsky’s upon Jason’s invite when they were in town getting ready for a show in Houston one night at Zelda’s (Fitzgerald’s downstairs), and we were able to hook them up with food. Jason and I also went and saw them play that night as well.

Note: For anyone who doesn’t know, Jimmy Eat World played a show in the back of The Woodlands in Timber Lakes Timber Ridge at a house party in 1995. This was also where Jason Jordan met Jim Adkins and the rest of the band, and built upon the relationship that led to Race Car Riot getting on Deep Elm Records which Jim had recommended to them.

This is how cool Jim Adkins from Jimmy Eat World is.

Jason was able to hit him up on Facebook messenger a day before their show and let Jim know he wanted to go, and Jim kindly offered him tickets for his whole family. Jim also mentioned many of the events noted above during the middle of their set. It was super cool that he hadn’t forgotten where he came from and those who were around early on.

Not only that, Jim came down after their set and chatted and took pics with a few of us. He hung out, as if we were back at Fitzgerald’s before Jimmy Eat World had major number one hits on the radio. It was an epic night to remember for sure.

They played a great set list opening with Sure and Certain and closing with The Middle. Get the full set list here. They even threw in one of my favorites from their Clarity album “Lucky Denver Mint”. While I was talking to Jim later in the evening I mentioned how happy I was that they had thrown in a song from the Clarity album. Jim said, “Yes, we only have like an hour to play, so we try to get as much good stuff in there as we can, but it’s hard to get everything in you want with an hour.” I completely understand. Being a long time fan, I want to hear Static Prevails and Clarity songs, but they also have to play stuff that appeals to their fan base who may not have been listening that long.

Headlining the show was Incubus.

Last but not least as expected these guys came with a lot of passion and energy. Lead singer Brandon Boyd has a magnifying aura while closing his eyes and singing songs like “Wish you Were Here”, “Drive”, “Nice to Know You”, “Pardon Me” and so many more great hits. They also covered Pink Floyd’s version of “Wish you Were Here” which was incredible. They opened with “Quicksand” and closed with “Nice to know You”, followed by an encore with “Aqueous Transmission”. See the full set list here.

I have to say seeing Incubus is an experience everyone should have at least once, if not more. Front man Brandon Boyd was flaunting a shirt that said “Eye Fu*k on the First Date” which was hard to miss on stage. I’m sure there were many hearts throbbing as he magnetically and energetically owned the stage with the rest of his band. If you ever get a chance to go see Incubus I’d highly recommend it. I can pretty much guarantee if you’re into good music, you won’t be disappointed.