X Ambassadors live at the Wonder Ballroom, September 8th, 2025
10 years ago I saw X Ambassadors on their original VHS tour and it still sticks out in my memory as one of my favorite shows from my college years. This year when X Ambassadors announced their “VHS(X)” tour, celebrating the 10th anniversary of their debut full-length album, I knew I couldn’t miss it. VHS for me is one of those albums I will always hold near to my heart. It was the soundtrack to my college days — the soundtrack to early morning runs before class and bike ride commutes to work after class, and the album I turned to when I needed a little extra motivation while studying for finals. I knew hearing the album live, in full, 10 years later, at a much different point in my life, would be cathartic. When the evening of September 8th, 2025 at the Wonder Ballroom came, it did not disappoint.
It was my 69th show of the year, and for some reason I felt more nervous beforehand than most shows, likely because of the significance of the anniversary tour for an album that impacted me so much years ago. A lot had changed since the year VHS came out. Would I still feel the same hearing those songs live? Vocalist Sam Harris alluded to this during the show, too. “I feel like going back and looking at your past self takes a lot of patience,” he told the audience. “I’m a better songwriter; I’ve grown. I’m still the same. That’s the thing — I’m still the same.” And I knew exactly what he meant. I’ve grown so much compared to the 21 year old me at that first X Ambassadors show. Yet I’m still the same, too, and those songs that resonated with me then still hit me in the same way. But also in different ways, too: as I’ve experienced more in life, there are some songs that have taken on a different meaning. It’s the same, but also different.
As X Ambassadors went into the first song of their set, “Jungle”, it felt the same and different, too. Instead of jumping and dancing in the middle of the venue floor like I was 10 years ago, I was in my wheelchair in front of the barricade photographing the show. 10 years ago I did photography, too, just not concert photography — generally concerts were my break from the camera. I also didn’t photograph from a wheelchair then, either, so my perspective and way of navigating has changed. But my perspective is also the same. I’m a better photographer certainly, but how I view shows hasn’t changed all that much. And that feeling I got hearing X Ambassadors live was the same as it was 10 years ago.
Sam Harris talked about how if we all revisited our past selves, our present selves would be much better for it and hearing X Ambassadors perform VHS in full in 2025 felt like revisiting my past self. Songs like “Low Life” and “Unsteady” brought up memories, but also inspired new thoughts and connections to the lyrics I hadn’t had before. Hearing “Unsteady” live again brought tears to my eyes. I thought about all of the ways I had been unsteady, both literally and figuratively, since I last heard the song live.
The band’s energy on stage was just as incredible, if not more, as I’d remembered. Keyboardist Casey Harris danced as his hands glided effortlessly over the keys. Drummer Adam Levin had the brightest smile as he smashed the cymbals, and Sam Harris jumped, danced and moved around the stage, interacting and dancing with his bandmates and his brother on keys. X Ambassadors played “Feather” in the middle of their set, the one song from VHS that was never played live before this tour. Closing out the VHS album play-through part of the set, the band played “Renegades”, the hit that propelled them to fame. Fans dancing and raising their hands at the front sported T-shirts with the song lyrics “running wild and running free” — the same shirt I bought on X Ambassador’s VHS tour 10 years prior.
The band left the stage after “Renegades”, but fans cheered for more. When the band returned to the stage for the encore, they played “Friend For Life”, the song written with Medium Build. They followed “Friend For Life” with “Your Town” from X Ambassador’s most recent release, last year’s Townie. Sam Harris gave a moving prelude to the song, dedicating it to his childhood teacher, who was the first person who told him to go up on stage, and who passed away in 2021. Closing out the evening, X Ambassador finished their encore with “HOLD YOU DOWN” from their 2019 album ORION. Those in the crowd that came with their significant others or friends embraced and sang the heartfelt and uplifting lyrics that perfectly complemented earlier in the evening’s “Unsteady”: “when there’s no one to hold you, I will still hold you down.”
Singer-songwriter Delacey from Orange County, Cali. opened the show for X Ambassadors. Her 8-song set started slow with the blues-inspired song “My Man”, but quickly picked up speed with her next song “Trouble”, during which she jumped and twirled her long curls on stage. Her fourth song,”Lipstick”, Delacey told the crowd was about how when she was younger her grandma would tell her if she was feeling bad to just put on her red lipstick and go outside. The motivational anthem echoed Delaney’s attitude well and of course, her impeccably applied lipstick matched the lyrics of the song.
