Concerts

Concert Recap: Everclear in Wilmington, NC (May 2, 2026)

My fourth time seeing Everclear ended up being somehow even better than the first

Chris Cooney

05 May 2026 • 6 min read

It's surreal to think that I have a bit of a history with the band Everclear — like many people, I grew up as a fan of their music, but when I started Dead Noise in 2022, they were one of the first bands to give me and my coverage of their work praise. My first time seeing them live was in July 2022 in my hometown of Jacksonville, NC on their "30th Anniversary" Tour, and they ended up playing my favorite song of theirs, "The Swing" from the Scream 2 (1997) soundtrack, after seeing it at the top of my "Top 5 Favorite Everclear Songs" list before the show. I met frontman Art Alexakis and bassist Freddy Herrera after the show, and for them to thank me for my writing and enjoying my song choices was a compliment that I'll never forget. When I started doing still concert photography in the fall of 2024, my first photo pass was for Everclear's performance at the Neptune Festival in Virginia Beach, VA. Shortly after, I got to interview Alexakis to talk about the tour and the 25th anniversary of the Songs From An American Movie albums. I got to see them live for the third time at the Welcome to Rockville festival last year, and I'm always on the lookout for nearby tour dates from them. Needless to say, when it was announced that they would be playing at the Bowstring Brewery in Wilmington, NC on May 2, I knew I had to cancel any and all plans so that I could be there.

Originally scheduled to be an outdoor show, the weather had other plans, and a decision was made to move it indoors instead of cancelling it. This made for a much more intimate experience, with the indoor space filled to the brim, but it was a wonderful time nonetheless.

There was only one opener, and it was none other than the local legends in Echostone. I've been a fan of this band since before they ever played their first show, I've had the pleasure of seeing them live several times and interviewing them twice, and it's been great to watch their career continue to reach new heights year after year. They've had several great opportunities to open for bigger artists and play in front of the right crowds, gaining tons of new fans each time out, and this show was no exception. Their music fits right in line with the taste of Everclear's fanbase, and it was awesome to see new Echostone fans being made in real time. It's been over a year since the last time I saw Echostone at last year's JimFest at the Eagles Dare, so to see them open for a band like Everclear was fantastic.

This show was also the day I reunited with my friend and fellow photographer Jason King, who I hadn't seen in a couple years, since before I even started doing still photography. He was actually the one who got me into the venue and allowed me to photograph the show, and I can't thank him enough for that. Getting to shoot with him again at this show was one of the biggest highlights of the night, and I just hope it's not another couple years before the next time.

After Echostone's brief set, Everclear made their way to the stage and blazed through 14 songs like it was nothing. This was my 4th time seeing and 2nd time photographing them, and it was another fantastic experience getting to see these legends do their thing in front of such an excited crowd. It was also impressive to see the different generations of fans in attendance, from pre-teens to retirement age adults, grandparents to toddlers. It just goes to show how timeless their music is, and how far their musical legacy extends past where they may have thought it would when they first started making music. As someone who's listened to this band religiously since I was a teenager, it was awesome to see the various age demographics in the crowd at this show — seeing the crossover appeal that this band continues to have across generations will never get old, and I hope it only extends Everclear's career on the road with so many old and new fans coming out to the shows each time they tour.

This was the last show of Everclear's spring tour, and they surely had a strong crowd in Wilmington to end the run on a high note, with the intimate indoor setting making it that much more powerful. Aside from the massive crowd at Rockville 2025, I would say that this was the most energized crowd that I've seen at an Everclear show, and for that to be the case at a show just an hour away from my hometown made me so happy.

The setlist was incredible as always, and it was awesome to hear my favorite song "The Swing" once again — I speak for many fans when I say we appreciate the fact that Everclear does their best to accommodate requests, adding deep cuts and fan favorites to the setlist when they can, because it truly makes each show unique and also provides a unique experience/memory for everyone in attendance. I've more or less become the token guy to request "The Swing" whenever they play in the Carolinas, but at the end of the day, I'm happy with anything they decide to play — I have an entire dream Everclear setlist that's mostly composed of deep cuts, so I'm excited for just about anything when it comes to their shows.

After the show, I managed to see bassist Freddy Herrera once again, and it appeared that he remembered me from when we met in Jacksonville four years ago. We talked about this show and the crowd, and I gave him a print of a photo I took of him in Virginia Beach the first time I got to photograph them. It was a brief but memorable conversation, and as always, I appreciate him taking the time. All in all, this was another great experience seeing one of my favorite bands once again, and I'm grateful for getting to see them live once again. I can't wait to see Everclear for a fifth time, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Everclear Setlist: