CITIZEN SOLDIER / ADELITAS WAY / NEW MEDICINE – PALLADIUM
By Joe Perusse
Citizen Soldier / Adelitas Way / New Medicine – Secret Songs Tour II – Palladium, Worcester, MA
Citizen Soldier rolled into the Palladium in Worcester with special guests Adelitas Way and New Medicine for an intimate night of acoustic performances as part of the Secret Songs Tour II. It was a different vibe from the typical rock show, but the packed crowd was ready for a night filled with music, stories, and plenty of audience interaction.
You could tell right away this wasn’t going to be a high-energy, fists-in-the-air kind of night. As the lights dimmed for New Medicine, the usual roar of the crowd gave way to a more relaxed atmosphere. Jake Scherer (Vocals/Rhythm Guitar) and Dan Garland (Lead Guitar) took the stage and opened with “Die Trying”. The crowd quickly found its voice, singing along to the chorus as Scherer challenged Worcester not to let New York City out-sing them.
Scherer joked that all the depressing stuff was front-loaded into the set before the band moved into “Past the Past”. Keeping things light, he welcomed anyone who wanted to start a mosh pit, circle pit, or even a wall of death before launching into “Take Me Away.” “Control Freak” followed, then “Rich Kids”, which Scherer introduced as a song inspired by the spoiled kids he grew up around.
After stopping for a group photo, New Medicine rolled into “Fuck It”, which had the crowd singing every word. They wrapped up their set with “Fire Up the Night”, sending plenty of energy into the room for the bands to follow.
Next up was Adelitas Way, featuring Rick DeJesus (Vocals), Trevor “Tre” Stafford (Cajon Drum/Tambourine/Shaker), and Grayson Erhard (Guitar). They kicked things off with “Bad Reputation” and right away DeJesus had the crowd laughing as he spotted a woman on the side balcony and asked if she was some sort of super VIP before greeting her with, “Welcome, Your Highness”.
The good vibes continued with “What It Takes”, followed by “Last Stand” which brought plenty of crowd participation as the band revisited one of their earliest songs. Before “Alive”, DeJesus encouraged everyone to show some love to each other, and the audience happily took over the final chorus.
DeJesus also let fans know that the band’s new record was available exclusively at the merch table and wasn’t on any streaming platforms. He shared a funny story about his teenage daughter asking who he wrote “Criticize” about. His answer — “not your mom” — got one of the biggest laughs of the night.
Taking a moment to praise the tour package, DeJesus talked about how great it was to be out on the road with friends before Adelitas Way closed with “Notorious{“, the band’s first independent Gold-certified single. Judging by the sea of cell phones in the air, plenty of fans wanted to capture the moment.
With New Medicine and Adelitas Way doing their job perfectly, the crowd erupted when the lights went down for Citizen Soldier. Jake Segura (Vocals) and Matt Duffney (Guitar) walked onstage and immediately launched into “Madhouse”.
The audience stayed fully engaged through “Thank You for Hating Me,” clapping and singing along throughout. Segura took time to shout out the opening bands and welcome everyone to the Secret Songs Tour. When the crowd cheered loudly, he joked that maybe they shouldn’t get too excited because the secret songs might not actually be any good.
Deciding the vibe needed something extra, Segura invited Wonitta Rivero to join on keyboards for the first secret song of the evening, “You Can Be You With Me”. From there, Citizen Soldier moved through “Scarecrow” and “Too Loud” before slowing things down for secret song number two, “Flatline”, performed by Segura and Rivero.
One of the night’s most entertaining moments came during a mid-set break when Segura held a Facebook meme contest. While waiting for submissions, he and a fan opened packs of Pokémon cards onstage, with Segura enthusiastically reading his cards aloud as the crowd laughed along.
Back to the music, “Strong For Somebody Else” led into a special performance of “Underdog”, featuring members of both Adelitas Way and New Medicine joining Citizen Soldier onstage.
The final stretch of the evening featured secret song number three, “Wish You the Worst,” followed by fan favorites “I’m Not Okay” and the final secret song, “Tomorrow Needs You”. The night came to a close with “Rock Bottom” and “Face to Face”, capping off a unique evening that blended live music, storytelling, humor, and genuine connection between the bands and their
fans.
Not every acoustic show can keep an audience fully engaged from start to finish, but Citizen Soldier and friends managed to do exactly that, turning a stripped-down performance into one of the more memorable nights to hit the Palladium this year.
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