I had first noticed Smallpools when their management reached out to me for a review on their latest album, Ghost Town Road. Ever since then, they’ve stuck in my brain as being some of the most slick, inventive, and catchy 80’s-influenced electro-pop acts out there. So when I heard they were going to be playing a show in Boston, I knew I had to bring my fiancé (he had mentioned listening to them in college and still enjoying their music today).

The Lovetap! Tour was a special 10-year anniversary celebration of their first full-length album, which is what put them on the map in the music business. Led by the fearless lead vocalist Sean Scanlon, the band is also composed of guitarist Mike Kamerman, drummer Beau Kuther, and former bassist Joe Intile (who rejoined the band for this tour). Judging by the crowd’s reactions, “Dreaming” was probably their biggest hit, with other songs like “Killer Whales” and obviously “Lovetap!” resonating with fans as well. I had made the rookie mistake of listening to more of their most recent album before the show instead of this one. However, it was an absolute blast being in the crowd and hearing the full album live. Plus, I still recognized at least 4-5 songs they played, and found a new appreciation for others.

The concert opened with some artists I hadn’t heard of but was glad to know about. Starting the show was Tana Matz - a charming country starlet with a big voice and a ton of honesty about her songwriting process and the heartache that led her there. Then the energetic fellow electro-pop band Rec Hall took the stage with so much enthusiasm and fun. I also enjoyed their goofy style and the way they didn’t shy away from laughing about mistakes and letting the audience see their truly authentic selves.

After all that, Smallpools took the stage, opening with the tastefully-unique choice to start their first song “American Love” with a xylophone-type instrument, just like the studio recording. It’s a surf-rock anthem about love and the pitfalls that can happen with a romance spanning oceans. I was thinking they would open with “Dreaming”, but that was actually their big closer (more on that later). Then, they kept the energy humming with “Killer Whales” - one of my other favorites of the night. Bonus points for the super cute inflatable whale pool toy they tossed around in the audience. I think this one really resonated with me, because the lyrics are really cleverly written about a love interest that’s always chasing something else, like saving - you guessed it - killer whales. There’s also the deeper metaphor of that person themselves being a killer whale, with an implication of bad intentions just below the surface. How poetic is that?

From here, the concert really took off with some of the songs I was less familiar with, but they were still fun nonetheless (even if they were deep cuts that I couldn’t fully differentiate from one another). “Karaoke”, “Street Fight”, and “Mason Jar” were up next, with very danceable beats and a good pop rock vibe filling the room. You’d think “Street Fight” would sound angry, but this one was really catchy and energetic, featuring lyrics like “go on and use me / I’ll be your Bruce Lee”. Fun fact: lead singer Sean Scanlon mentioned this song was almost called Bruce Lee instead of “Street Fight”.

Next up on the setlist was “Mason Jar”, “Over & Over”, and the titular song “Lovetap!”. All of these had a very similar energy with more clever lyrics, but I found that it was easier to appreciate them with the studio recordings, as the venue sound mixing on the vocals wasn’t the clearest. “Mason Jar” had this sort of Oriental-styled melody to it, which was definitely ear-catching and unique. “Over & Over” was another one of the deep cuts that I think I’ve heard before, and I really enjoyed the dynamic changes in this one. It’s a sweet love song, proclaiming “I wanna call you mine / and never let you down / I wanna feel this ride over and over”. Finally, “Lovetap!” is another one that was familiar to me, with lots of 80s influences that sound like something Journey or Boston might have produced.

Carrying on, the band continued with a handful more songs including “What’s That a Picture of?”, “Dyin’ to Live”, “Admission to Your Party”, and “No Story Time”. While these were all fun in their own way, I wasn’t familiar enough with these to fully form an opinion on them, but can attest that the band is creative and put a lot of energy into both their writing and performance styles. I did appreciate the lead guitar work in “What’s That a Picture of?” - and the energy in the room really responded to this song and all the next ones.

The last couple before the brief break and encore songs were “No Story Time” and “(Submarine)” - the first of which had a great buildup to the outro of the song with some really nice vocal harmonies. Then “Submarine” was a really ambient experience that somehow felt like the band was performing underwater (still not sure how they managed that in the studio but it was really impressive). I caught the lead singer mentioning something about a quick break during one of these songs, and then that’s exactly what they did. Before coming back to the stage to play another six songs, I half wondered if there were only a few more so this surprised me.

Ending the show in the last handful of songs was “Stumblin’ Home” and “Passenger Side” - the last couple songs that I was less familiar with. From here on out, the rest of the songs were things I had definitely heard before. “Million Bucks” was one of those really smartly-engineered tracks that felt almost like a joke song but with really poetic lyrics. Exhibit A: “I've got all my money on you / and though my dollars are few / I feel like a million bucks / and I give no f**** / when I'm with you”. The first time I heard the studio recording, I laughed at this line but later appreciated the interwoven theme of money and wealth being used to illustrate the speaker’s romantic mindset.

Then finally, the concert came to a conclusion with the band’s cover of “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears. This one is one of my favorite 80s songs so it was really fun to hear their cover of it performed live. Then the band continued with one of their newer songs from their newest album, Ghost Town Road - “Swayze” - one of my personal favorites. I remember when I first listened to them, this song had really caught my attention, so hearing it live was super satisfying. The decision to add the Dirty Dancing audio clip really helped set the mood too, while the lyrics told the story of someone caught up in a vintage-infused romance. It was even complete with fun era-relevant references like “The less time that I have left / the more I want you here with me / half dressed in my white shirt / my risky business beauty”. The chilled-out ending brought the energy down to a satisfying halt before the band broke out into the song that put them on the map for their grand finale: “Dreaming”.

The epitome of electro-pop, “Dreaming” has the perfect mix of syncopated guitars, sonic and vocal dynamics, and rhythmic changes to keep it interesting. I remembered that when we were dating, my fiancé had added this song to a playlist for me, so it felt really full-circle that we were now experiencing this song at a concert together, with our whole future ahead of us. Actually, every day with him feels like I’m dreaming - and I’m okay with that.

This concert was a super-energetic high-octane experience from start to finish. Not only did I appreciate the band’s artistry and overall style, but also appreciated that I got to witness this concert with someone very special to me. If you can get to another concert on one of the remaining dates of the Lovetap! Tour, I highly recommend it.

Find Smallpools on their website, Instagram, and Spotify.

Concert Recap: Smallpools Boston Tour 2025

Gallery: Kygo

Gallery: Dylan Gossett