| Tonight Alive | |
| Landscape: | yes |
| Origin: | Sydney, Australia |
| Years Active: | 2008–2018, 2020, 2023–present |
| Current Members: |
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| Past Members: |
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Tonight Alive are an Australian rock band from Sydney. As of 2023, the band consists of lead vocalist Jenna McDougall, guitarists Jake Hardy and Whakaio Taahi, bassist Cameron Adler, and drummer Matty Best.
Formed in 2008 by Hardy, Adler and Taahi, soon joined by McDougall and Best, Tonight Alive recorded and self-released the EPs All Shapes & Disguises and Consider This. In 2010, Tonight Alive signed to both Fearless Records and Sony Music Entertainment Australia[1] and released their 2011 debut album What Are You So Scared Of?.[2] The record was officially released in the UK and US in October 2012, a year after its initial release in Australia. Their second studio album, The Other Side, was recorded in Australia and released 6 September 2013, featuring the singles Lonely Girl and Come Home. It debuted on the ARIA Albums Chart at No. 5. The band contributed the song "The Edge" to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Soundtrack. The band released "Human Interaction" on 30 October 2015, followed by their third album, Limitless, which debuted to mixed response on 4 March 2016. Lead guitarist and songwriter Whakaio Taahi departed the group in late 2017, shortly after the band finished recording their fourth album, Underworld, which was released on 12 January 2018.
Tonight Alive have been listed as one of the top 10 Australian bands in 2010 on American rock radio station KROQ.
Guitarist Jake Hardy and bassist Cameron Adler already had an existing rock project covering other bands' material. Later, they met Whakaio Taahi through mutual friends, and asked him to join in on keyboard and lead guitar.
Jenna McDougall was writing her own acoustic music at the time, and had Adler helping her record and produce a demo. After the demo was finished, Adler gave McDougall a song the band had written and asked her to record her vocals over it. On 31 May 2008, the day before her sixteenth birthday, McDougall joined as lead vocalist, forming the first lineup of the band.
With shows booked and no band name, the band got together and cut out words they thought described livelihood and the band, coming up with the name Tonight Alive.
In 2009, Tonight Alive's original drummer Mitchell Stanger departed the group. Matty Best, a high school friend of Taahi, joined on after learning from Taahi's mother that they needed a drummer. Best, who comes from Ulladulla, travelled three to four hours to band practice.
The band started to make a name for themselves opening for metal bands, playing small festival type shows like Warped Tour, and spent plenty of time playing local shows at youth centres around the Sydney area.[3]
In 2009, the band entered the studio to record their debut self-funded EP All Shapes & Disguises with producer Greg Stace and producer Dave Petrovic, which was released in June 2010, with their music video and debut single "Wasting Away" being released that same month.[4] McDougall was still in school at the time. She took time off school to record, and her parents covered her share of the cost to rent studio space.
The track "Closer" was featured on season six of the US reality TV show The Hills.[5]
In November 2010, the band released a three-track EP Consider This, before heading on a national tour with Australian band Sienna Skies.
After being noticed by some large record labels, Tonight Alive was invited to play a showcase. Despite both guitarists, Taahi and Hardy, snapping a string each on the first song, the band was signed anyway.
In late 2010, a demo of Tonight Alive's new material landed on producer Mark Trombino's desk. He then contacted the band, wanting to take part in producing their debut full-length record.[6] Speaking on behalf of the band, Jenna reflected, "For him to contact us, and say he was interested, was a big deal. We couldn't believe he'd put himself out like that. He's amazing. Mark created the albums we all grew up listening to – the albums that launched the careers of all these great bands."
In the early months of 2011, Tonight Alive flew to Los Angeles and recorded their debut full-length at NRG Studios over two months.[6]
The track "To Die For", originally from the band's first EP All Shapes & Disguises and "Thank You and Goodnight", originally from the band's second EP Consider This, was re-recorded on this record. "Thank You & Goodnight" features guest vocals from Blink-182's Mark Hoppus.[7]
The first single, "Starlight", was released 1 July, and a music video was released three days later.[8] The second single, "Let It Land" was released along with a music video for the track on 19 September.[9]
Tonight Alive toured the US and took part on the annual Bamboozle festival,[10] playing the 1 May date on the Zumiez stage alongside New Found Glory, Valencia, Thrice, The Downtown Fiction and more.
The band is featured on the Punk Goes Pop 4 compilation CD, covering "Little Lion Man" by British indie rock band, Mumford & Sons, which was released on 21 November.
McDougall was part of Good Charlotte's song "Like It's Her Birthday"[11] and was also featured on Simple Plan's song "Jet Lag" during the Australian leg of Simple Plan's most recent tour. She was also featured on the Divided by Friday song "Face to Face".[12]
What Are You So Scared Of? was released under Sony Records Australia on 14 October 2011, however in November 2011 Tonight Alive signed to Fearless Records,[1] and re-released the Consider This EP on 8 November and their debut record What Are You So Scared Of? 4 months later in the US.[13]
The band released their Consider This EP in the UK through Banquet Records on 2 April 2012.[14]
Tonight Alive appeared on the 2011 Fearless Friends Tour alongside blessthefall, The Word Alive, Motionless in White, and Chunk! No, Captain Chunk.[15]
The band was set to play on the Lucky Street Tour with Go Radio and This Providence and SXSW until they had to pull out due to medical issues, writing on their Facebook page: "We're very sorry to announce that we are having to cancel our upcoming tour with Go Radio and SXSW appearances due to serious medical issues."[16] This was later revealed to be due to Mcdougall suffering from severe eczema, making it hard for her to move. They later headed to Japan for the shows with Young Guns and also they had a first headline show at Shibuya-AX. Tonight Alive played the entire Warped Tour 2012.
During their time on The Vans Warped Tour 2012, the band began video production of "Listening", their third single release from What Are You So Scared Of? Despite the fact that "Breaking and Entering" had previously been released as a digital download and music video, according to McDougall, "Listening" served as the third official single from WAYSSO?. The music video for "Listening", released on YouTube on 12 October 2012, was used to document the band's final few days on the summer-long tour in a montage music video.
Tonight Alive released a stand-alone single called "Breakdown" on 12 March 2013 which featured Good Charlotte's Benji Madden. The band recorded their next album, The Other Side, in Coffs Harbour, Australia, which was released on 6 September 2013 through Sony and Fearless Records. The first single is "The Ocean", which premiered on Radio 1 in the UK on 11 July to coincide with the announcement of the album. "The Ocean" was later released to iTunes on 22 July. A teaser for the band's next single, "Lonely Girl" was released 24 July. The single was fully released later that night. An accompanying music video was premiered on 15 August. The track "Come Home" was released as a single in late September, along with the music video on the band's Vevo channel.
Tonight Alive toured the US as part of the 2013 Vans Warped Tour. They played a few dates in Australia before touring again in support of the new album, along with two Rolling Stone Live Lodge acoustic shows.[17] They were also part of Warped Tour Australia lineup in November 2013.[18]
They then went on The Other Side tour to promote their new album in Australia and later the U.S., playing with The Downtown Fiction, For the Foxes, and Echosmith. The tour ended on 23 November.
The band announced in mid-December that they would be supporting All Time Low on their A Love like War: UK Tour. It was announced in late January 2014 that the band would be supporting Taking Back Sunday and The Used on their co-headlining North American tour. The tour began in March 2014.
Tonight Alive contributed their original song "The Edge" for Sony and Marvel's film The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and it was featured on the deluxe edition of the soundtrack in Australia, New Zealand, UK and Ireland.They toured with Mayday Parade, PVRIS, and Major League. They also played The Other Side in its entirety while on tour in the UK.
In January it was announced the band would be supporting All Time Low on their upcoming spring tour with Issues and State Champs.[19]
The band began working on their third album in March 2015, with producer David Bendeth[20] They played at Soundwave 2015 in Australia.[21] They released a statement in April cancelling two headlining shows in the US due to the drummer, Best, needing surgery for tendinosis.[22] Tonight Alive completed work on their third album in July 2015.
On 30 October 2015, the band announced that their third studio album, Limitless, would be released on 4 March 2016[23] [24] The announcement coincided with the release of the first single, "Human Interaction". On 21 November, the band released the second single from Limitless, entitled "To Be Free". The band streamed "Drive" on Spotify on 11 December, and made it available with preorders for their album.[25]
The third single, "How Does It Feel?", and its accompanying music video were released on 12 January 2016.[26]
On 3 April 2017, the group announced they had signed to Hopeless Records and UNFD,[27] and released a standalone single, "World Away". The band recorded material for a new album in Thailand with Dave Petrovic in July 2017. On 16 October they released a single, "Temple"[28] and announced their fourth album, Underworld. The announcement also coincided with the announcement that Taahi had departed the group after the finish of production on Underworld, citing his decision to further his song-writing and producing career.[29] The remaining members embarked on an Australian tour in November 2017 as a quartet.
On 11 December 2017, the group released "Crack My Heart"[30] as the second single from Underworld, while on 4 January 2018, the third single, "Disappear" featuring PVRIS' Lynn Gunn, was released.[31] The album was released on 12 January via UNFD in Australia and Hopeless Records internationally.
In December 2018, after performing at the inaugural Good Things festival, the band announced they were going on an international touring hiatus and cancelled their upcoming US tour, to "address and prioritise" their "mental and physical health".[32] The announcement came after a 46-year-old security guard died during their performance at Good Things in Sydney.[33] The following year, Best relocated to the US and joined Sleeping with Sirens as their new drummer.[34]
In September 2019, the band were announced on the lineup for the 2020 Unify Gathering.[35] Due to Best's commitments with Sleeping with Sirens, he was replaced by session drummer Stan Bicknell. They were also joined during the set by Marie DeVita of Waax, Marcus Bridge of Northlane, Matt Gravolin of Deez Nuts and I Killed the Prom Queen and Dre Faivre of Hellions. Following their appearance at the festival, the band also played a bushfire fundraiser at the Corner Hotel in Melbourne alongside fellow Unify Gathering bands The Amity Affliction, Northlane, Ocean Grove and Windwaker.
On 25 May 2022, McDougall announced a new solo project entitled Hevenshe. The first single under this moniker, "No One Will Ever Love You", was released on 6 June 2022.[36]
On November 15 2023, Tonight Alive were confirmed on the line-up of the third annual When We Were Young Festival in October 2024. There, they will perform The Other Side in its entirety. Taahi also confirmed via his Instagram stories that he will rejoin the band for this reunion, marking his first time performing with Tonight Alive in seven years.[37]
Tonight Alive are described as pop punk,[38] [39] [40] pop rock,[39] [41] power pop,[39] alternative rock[40] and emo[42] by music sources. The band are often compared to fellow alternative rock/pop punk band Paramore.[38] [39] [42] Regarding the comparison, guitarist Whakaio Taahi stated "People are going to compare, it's human nature but we don't really let it affect us. We just do what we love to do and hope people like it."[39]
See main article: Tonight Alive discography.
| Tour name | Participating bands | Continent/Country | Participating from – to | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Don't Trust Me Tour | 3OH!3, Tonight Alive |  Australia | 13–18 October 2009 | |
| The Lying Tour | Amy Meredith, Tonight Alive | Australia | 24 April – 15 May 2010 | |
| Lostprophets Australian Tour | Lostprophets, The Blackout, Tonight Alive | Australia | 27–30 May 2010 | |
| The Streets of Gold Tour | 3OH!3, Tonight Alive, For Our Hero | Australia | 12–15 August 2010 | |
| Hits, Tits and Pits Tour | The Wonder Years, Heroes for Hire, Tonight Alive, Skyway | Australia | 9–18 September 2010 | |
| Consider This | Tonight Alive, Sienna Skies | Australia | 19–28 November 2010 | |
| The Reclamation Tour | The Getaway Plan, Tonight Alive, Secrets in Scale | Australia | 9–19 February 2011 | |
| Spring Break Your Heart Tour | Forever the Sickest Kids, Breathe Carolina, This Century, We Are the in Crowd, Before Their Eyes, Tonight Alive |  North America | 30 March – 26 April 2011 | |
| Bamboozle 2011 | Short Lived Affair, Tonight Alive, Man Overboard, Valencia, I Am the Avalanche | North America | 29 April – 1 May 2011 | |
| The Higher Education Tour | Amy Meredith, Tonight Alive | Australia | 11 May – 10 June 2011 | |
| Tonight Alive 2011 Australian Tour | Tonight Alive, Skyway | Australia | 1–16 July 2011 | |
| Rockvolution Tour | Rufio, The Datsuns, Marky Ramone, Tonight Alive | Indonesia | 23–24 July 2011 | |
| An Evening with Anberlin | Anberlin, Tonight Alive | Australia | 26 August – 2 September 2011 | |
| Get Your Heart On! Tour | Simple Plan, Tonight Alive, New Empire | Australia | 30 September – 5 October 2011 | |
| What Are You So Scared Of? Tour | Tonight Alive, Rufio | Australia | 14–23 October 2011 | |
| Indent 2011 Tour | BIG STAGE w/ I, Soar Eagles, Evacuate the Fallen, Gerkin, Everything Red | Australia | 28 October – 6 November 2011 | |
| The Fearless Friends 2011 Tour | blessthefall, The Word Alive, Motionless in White, Tonight Alive, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! | North America | 9 November – 16 December 2011 | |
| Never Shout Never 2012 UK Tour | Nevershoutnever, Tonight Alive | Europe | 16–27 January 2012 | |
| Bare Bones Club Tour | Young Guns, Tonight Alive, Polar | United Kingdom | 2–15 February 2012 | |
| Soundwave 2012 | 3 Annex w/ Conditions, The Summer Set, Framing Hanley, Dashboard Confessional, Relient K, The Ready Set, Heroes for Hire | Australia | 25 February – 5 March 2012 | |
| No Place Like Home Tour | Tonight Alive, Young Guns, Totally Unicorn | Australia | 17 May – 2 June 2012 | |
| Warped Tour 2012 | Kevin Says Stage with: After the Burial, Captain Capa, Impending Doom, Living with Lions, Lost in Society, Make Do and Mend, Sick of Sarah, Ten Second Epic, Twin Atlantic, We Are the Ocean | North America | 16 June – 5 August 2012 | |
| European Headline Tour | Tonight Alive, LostAlone, Blitz Kids | Europe | 26 September – 9 October 2012 | |
| Collide with the Sky Tour 2012[43] | Pierce the Veil, Sleeping with Sirens, Tonight Alive, Hands Like Houses (replaced by I Am King on Canadian dates) |  North America | 12 October – 23 November 2012 | |
| Kerrang! Tour 2013 | Black Veil Brides, Chiodos, Tonight Alive. Fearless Vampire Killers | United Kingdom | 3–15 February 2013 | |
| The Supply Nation Tour 2013 | The Story So Far, Man Overboard, Tonight Alive, Citizen, The American Scene | North America | 14 March – 13 April 2013 | |
| Tonight Alive 2013 | Tonight Alive, A Sleepless Melody, Because They Can | Australia | 16–19 May 2013 | |
| Slam Dunk Festival 2013 | Main Stage with: The Summer Set, Tonight Alive, Mallory Knox, We Are the Ocean, Sleeping with Sirens, Kids in Glass Houses, Deaf Havana, All Time Low | England | 25–27 May 2013 | |
| Warped Tour 2013 |
| North America | 15 June – 4 August 2013 | |
| Bazooka Rocks II Music Festival 2013 | All Time Low, Tonight Alive, A Rocket to the Moon, RadioDriveBy, Anberlin, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, We Came as Romans, |  Philippines | 25 August 2013 | |
| The Other Side – Australian Tour | Tonight Alive, Hands Like Houses, D at Sea | Australia | 5–15 September 2013 | |
| The Other Side – UK Tour | Tonight Alive, Set It Off, Decade | United Kingdom | 29 September – 12 October 2013 | |
| You Me at Six Fall US Tour | You Me at Six, Conditions, Tonight Alive, Dinosaur Pile-Up | North America | 13–20 October 2013 | |
| The Other Side – USA Tour[44] | Tonight Alive, The Downtown Fiction, For the Foxes, Echosmith | North America | 23 October – 23 November 2013 | |
| Warped Tour 2013 | The Offspring, Simple Plan, Millencollin, Tonight Alive | Australia | 29 November – 8 December 2013 | |
| A Love Like War: UK Tour[45] | All Time Low, Tonight Alive | United Kingdom | 8–11 March, 13–15 March, and 21 March 2014 | |
| Taking Back Sunday & The Used co-headlining tour[46] | Taking Back Sunday, The Used, Tonight Alive, sleepwave | North America | 18 March – 27 April 2014 | |
| You Me at Six Australian Tour[47] | You Me at Six, Tonight Alive | Australia | 5–11 September 2014 | |
| Honeymoon Tour[48] | Mayday Parade, Tonight Alive, Major League, PVRIS | North America | 14 October – 14 November 2014 | |
| Live on the Other Side | Tonight Alive, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk!, | United Kingdom | 24–30 November 2014 | |
| Soundwave Festival 2015 | Tonight Alive | Australia | February 2015 | |
| The Future Hearts tour | All Time Low, Issues, Tonight Alive, State Champs | North America | 15 April – 24 May 2015 | |
| Limitless – Australian Tour | Tonight Alive | Australia | 16–29 January 2016 | |
| Limitless – European Tour | Tonight Alive, Our Last Night, Milk Teeth | Europe | 2–26 February 2016 | |
| The Fight For Something Tour | Tonight Alive, Set It Off, SayWeCanFly, The Ready Set | North America | 1–28 March 2016 | |
| Warped Tour 2016 | Journey's Right Foot Stage with: 3OH!3, Issues, The Maine, Mayday Parade, Pepper, Real Friends, Sleeping with Sirens, State Champs, The Story So Far | North America | 24 June – 13 August 2016 | |
| End The Madness Tour | Sleeping with Sirens, State Champs, Tonight Alive, Waterparks | North America | 3 November – 4 December 2016 |