I was lucky enough to see Young the Giant and Cold War Kids perform live at 713 Music Hall in Houston, Texas, on Thursday, July 9, 2026. As a huge Young the Giant fan, this night had been a long time coming. I purchased my tickets during the Ticketmaster artist presale back in February, and I couldn’t wait for the day to finally arrive.

Well, I’m here to tell you—it was well worth the wait.

Merch

First things first, I always have to check out the artist merch stand. As tradition with all shows I go to, I need to buy a shirt or a hat of the headliner I’m seeing. Young the Giant’s selection didn’t disappoint. I went with shirt #5, though I felt that #6 was the best-looking one, but alas, I have way too many black shirts already. 😞

In hindsight, I probably should’ve gone with the hat since I already have several Young the Giant shirts and my closet is getting fuller with every show I go to. The signed vinyl record was very tempting too, but times are tough and I couldn’t justify both a vinyl and a shirt.

The Cold War Kids and Beach Weather shirts were awesome too, but I’m not a big enough fan of either band to buy one, unfortunately.

The Venue: 713 Music Hall

713 Music Hall - Young the Giant Sign — 713 Music Hall Entrance

713 Music Hall in Houston is easily one of the best venues in the city. The layout is great and the acoustics are fantastic (though I've only ever been on the floor, so I'm not sure how it sounds in the balcony). The drinks, like all venues nowadays, are severely overpriced. A big can of seltzer was over $16.

Yikes. 😬

You can find parking nearby for about $15, but exiting the parking lot is a bit of a clusterf*ck. I guess that’s part of what you get when you pay for the cheaper parking.

Overall, it’s a great place to see a show. If you’re in the Houston area and are on the fence about seeing a show at 713 Music Hall, definitely check it out. It’s worth it.

Cold War Kids

I arrived to the venue while Cold War Kids had already taken the stage, unfortunately. I only missed a couple of songs, according to setlist.fm, but one of them was “So Tied Up” 😭 so that sucked. But I did get to hear “Hang Me Up to Dry,” which is their best song, in my opinion.

When you play that song at home or in your car, the bass sounds incredible, especially during the intro portion of the song. When I heard it live, the bass wasn’t as prominent as it is on the record, which was a bit of a bummer. They need to crank the bass way up during that song. It would get the people going!

Nathan Willett has a great voice live and sounds just like he does on their records.

The bass player, Matt Maust, is entertaining to watch as he slinks around the stage while moving his bass guitar around as he plays.

The drummer, Joe Plummer, was a joy to watch (as most drummers are) while he tore up the drums. He brought the energy and kept it going the whole time.

All members of the band were fun to watch in their own way. They all performed like a well-seasoned band who knows how to properly jam.

Overall, they sounded fantastic. This was my third time ever seeing them perform and they sound great every time I’ve seen them. If you ever get a chance to check out Cold War Kids, I highly recommend you take them up on the opportunity.

Young the Giant

Finally, the reason we were all there—Young the Giant.

They absolutely crushed it.

I do need to start by saying that I’m a huge Young the Giant fan. This was my sixth time seeing them live and I've loved them every time I've seen them. That being said, they honestly do put on a fantastic show.

From the stage design, to how they sound performing together live, it all comes together in a well put-together package that would be entertaining to anyone. I’ve seen some artists who I deeply love put on a bad show.

This was not one of those nights.

The Intro

They walked out to a narration talking about dreams and I couldn’t tell what it’s from, but it set the tone for the show and the journey they were about to take us on.

There was much applause as Sameer Gadhia, the singer, took the stage shortly after the rest of the band members. He wasted no time bringing the energy either.

They started off with “Evergreen” from their new album, Victory Garden. As soon as he began to sing, you knew he was the real deal. That golden voice sounded just the same as it does when you listen to Young the Giant at home.

When Eric Cannata chimed in with the backup vocals, they created a sound that was the fully complete band you know and love.

The visuals behind the band were these five lights with a puffy looking cushion surrounding each of them so that they resembled flowers. The colors of the “flowers” changed and moved, creating a uniquely fun visual that complemented the imagery from the album they were touring, Victory Garden.

“Evergreen” is the first song on the new album and felt like a great way to start the show as well. It has a natural intro for an album and concert, and packs in a lot of energy that sets the tone for an album or show. In other words, you could say it’s perfect. 👌🏻

The Next Few Songs

The next song they rolled right into was the classic, “Superposition” from their fourth album, Mirror Master. It’s hard to believe this song is nearly eight years old now, but life just keeps moving on whether we like it or not.

The roar of the crowd as soon as we heard the introductory plucking of the charango by guitarist Eric Cannata lets you know “Superposition” is a fan favorite. Hearing the whole crowd sing “I want you, to want me” in unison was enough to give me goosebumps all over. It’s such a great song! 🙌🏻

They then went back to Victory Garden with “Bitter Fruit,” followed by my personal favorite song of theirs, “Apartment,” from their self-titled debut album, Young the Giant.

“Apartment” has a special place in my heart and it combines all the iconic Young the Giant elements into one song. The cheering from the crowd when that signature strumming of the guitar intro began let me know I wasn’t alone with my adoration of that song.

A Mashup of Home of the Strange Songs

Next up was a portion of “Repeat” from Home of the Strange combined with a portion of “Mr. Know‐It‐All” from the same album. They did a mashup of the two that flowed perfectly into one another.

Although I wish they played the full-length versions of the songs as I love them both, it was neat to watch them masterfully blend the two together. It was kind of mind-blowing, actually. 🤯

It was true artistry at work right before our eyes.

They followed that up with the full-length version of “Silvertongue” from the same album, which is another absolute banger.

Then, they finished off this stretch of songs from Home of the Strange with “Something to Believe In,” another classic. That song, paired with “Amerika,” is one of the best one-two punches to begin an album you’ll find anywhere.

These several songs from Home of the Strange was a fun callback, as this year marks the album’s tenth anniversary. It was a fitting way to celebrate it.

The Next Several Songs

Sameer Gadhia Performing at 713 Music Hall — Sameer Gadhia of Young the Giant performing live at 713 Music Hall

Now back to Victory Garden with one of their best from the album, “Already There.”

Then they moved on to a deep cut with “Garands” from their debut album, Young the Giant.

Next was the fun bop of “Mona Lisa” from Victory Garden. This one was a joy live. It serenaded us with soothing vocals and a fun beat pattern from Francois Comtois on the drums.

Back to Young the Giant with “I Got,” the classic where the backup vocals from Comtois and Cannata are the most prominent as they are in any of their songs.

The Victory Garden Home Stretch

Next was a stretch of songs from Victory Garden, the last of them besides one later on in the setlist.

“God as Witness” was a jam and you could really tell the band was feeling this one. I wasn’t the biggest fan of this song before this show, but my opinion of it changed after hearing them rock out to it live.

Then was my favorite song from the new album—and one of my new favorite songs of all time—“Ships Passing.” They began the song by playing a snippet of the intro from “Titus Was Born” off their album Home of the Strange and then blended it right into “Ships Passing” seamlessly. I’m very biased, but this song is absolutely incredible, especially live. Hearing Sameer Gadhia belt out the lyrics “I’m up to my neck and the water’s rising, stone on my chest and my thoughts are violent,” sent chills down my spine.

Those three minutes were a mind-blowing experience. 🤩

Next up was their debut single from Victory Garden, “Different Kind of Love,” which Gadhia mentioned was their highest charting single on Billboard they’ve released so far—their first number one single. This one was just as amazing live as it is when you listen to it at home.

The Final Songs

Back to Young the Giant, the band performed their high-energy “My Body,” which really got the crowd moving. All of the other times I’ve seen them live, they’ve finished with this song and they get the whole crowd jumping on their feet.

Although the song was still amazing to hear live again, I missed when they hyped it up and had everyone get off the ground for the final, high-octane finish to the show. Again, it was another amazing rendition of an absolute banger.

Another deep cut was next with “Teachers” from their second album, Mind Over Matter.

This album is one of their most underrated albums. They don’t play much from it, which is so sad, but it’s still one of my favorite albums of theirs.

The final song they performed from Victory Garden was “The Garden.” Not one of my favorites, but they still sounded amazing performing it.

Next was the song that got me into them in the first place, much like many people, “Cough Syrup.” Hearing the guitar intro from Cannata for this song gives me goosebumps every time. Everyone got their phones out, including me, to capture this moment of pure joy.

“Cough Syrup” is objectively one of their best songs and is even better when heard live.

Then, their one and only song from their fifth album, American Bollywood, “The Walk Home.” This song is one of my all-time favorites of theirs so I was very excited it made the cut for the setlist. The hook in this song is incredible and even better live.

I know I keep saying “even better live,” but this band really is one of those artists that makes every song sound better when they play it right in front of you. Trust me.

Lastly, they finished off the night with “Mind Over Matter” from the album of the same name. This is their most streamed song on Spotify, so the crowd went nuts when the intro played. It was a great way to closeout the jam-packed setlist.

Final Thoughts

Jacob Tilley & Francois Comtois Performing Live at 713 Music Hall — Jacob Tilley & Francois Comtois performing live at 713 Music Hall

This was another incredible time seeing Young the Giant absolutely tear up the stage. From the floral-looking stage design, to their unique sound that can’t be replicated, they put on quite the show that will live in my memory forever. Sameer Gadhia’s voice is incredible and he gives it his all every night. Seeing all the members of the band with smiles on their faces while they were serenading us with their wonderful sounds brought a joy to my heart that is unmatched.

Cold War Kids were great as well. Although they aren’t my favorite band, they’re always fun to watch. They sounded fantastic and brought a lot of energy to the stage.

If you ever get the chance to see Young the Giant live, do it. They’re worth every penny you’ll spend on a ticket.

Young the Giant and Cold War Kids Concert Review: Live at 713 Music Hall in Houston (2026)