The Used at House Of Blues, Anaheim
House of Blues Anaheim felt like a time capsule on the third night of The Used’s 25th anniversary tour as they played their 2007 Lies for the Liars album in its entirety. And it’s not because the band was trying to relive the past, but because they reminded everyone why their music has never really left.
The show kicked off with a video projected across the front curtain showing a montage of previous tour stops. As the final clip faded, the screen lifted, and without missing a beat, the band launched into their set with a burst of raw energy that instantly ignited the crowd.
From the moment Bert McCracken walked on stage, the energy was erratic in the best possible way. The crowd was a mix of longtime fans mouthing every lyric of the first song The Ripper, and a younger crowd who probably found the band through a playlist algorithm. Regardless, both groups sang and screamed like they were seventeen again.
Visually, the show was stripped down but intentional. The lighting pulsed in time with the chaos, sometimes washing the stage in sterile white, other times drowning it in blood-red hues. No pyrotechnics, no flashy theatrics. Just a band confident enough to let the music do the heavy lifting.
At one point, Bert asked for volunteers to join the band onstage for a dance-off. Guitars wailed, drums thundered, and a handful of brave fans took turns showing off their moves under the stage lights. It was chaotic, funny, and heartwarming.
By the end of the night, fans looked exhilarated and exhausted, the kind of emotional hangover that only a Used show can deliver. Lies for the Liars might’ve been written in the chaos of their early years, but played in 2025, it felt like a victory lap, proving that emotional honesty never really ages out.
Photographed and written by Lily Ordunez
