PUP and Jeff Rosenstock with Ekko Astral
The Salt Shed
Chicago, Illinois
September 5th, 2025
If PUP and Jeff Rosenstock’s listeners were to be organized into a venn diagram, we’d be looking at something pretty close to a circle. An apt question for surveying differences between the fanbases would not be if a fan of one was a fan of the other, but something more like: Did you get into PUP through listening to Jeff Rosenstock or did you get into Jeff Rosenstock through listening to PUP? It’s no surprise because the two artists use unraveled pop-punk music to explore similar themes and ask similar questions – Often writing candidly about life as DIY artists, people with mental health struggles, and nihilists who wish the world were a better place. PUP, a Canadian band who debuted in 2010, and American born Jeff Rosenstock came up in staggering eras. Rosenstock began his career in the mid-90s in a ska punk band, taking part in multiple projects until eventually embarking on a solo career in 2012. In 2015, the two went on tour together – A tour chock full of an impressive number of chaotic mishaps, like van breakdowns, gear theft, injuries and food poisoning, inspiring in a PUP album containing a song entitled “If This Tour Doesn’t Kill You, I Will.”
It’s 2025 and both artists have been at this for a long time now – Presently playing larger scale shows and festivals, undoubtedly traveling more comfortably and overall successfully than the infamous 2015 voyage. In the Spring of this year, the artists announced that they would be setting out on tour together once again after a decade between them and those experiences. The Cataclysmic Rapture of Friendshipness Tour began in the Midwest, kicking off on September 3rd in Minneapolis. On Friday, September 5th, they passed through Chicago for a sold out show at The Salt Shed’s outdoor fairgrounds – A 5,000 capacity venue totally packed with members of the aforementioned venn diagram.
In addition to the co-headliners, Washington, D.C. based punk band Ekko Astral is along for the ride on this tour. They kicked off the night as the venue filled to the brim, introducing themselves to a crowd of audience members, many of which were brand new to hearing the band’s music. They fit in beautifully with the tour’s energy, showing up confidently and unapologetically to the party and making sure not to leave the stage without acknowledging that the National Guard was set to be deployed in Chicago the following day, stating clearly their solidarity with our city who does not need or want such fascist intervention. With the audience in unanimous agreement, it was a pleasure to be in a space with only likeminded people for the night.
Jeff Rosenstock played next, opening with “The Lows” and trekking on for a 24 song set. He covered expansive ground between his 5 albums before passing the stage off to PUP, who opened with “No Hope” off of their most recent album Who Will Look After the Dogs?. Perhaps the most exciting and anticipated part of the evening came at the end of the show when Jeff Rosenstock’s full band joined PUP onstage for a joined set. The two alternated between singing backups on each other’s songs, including a performance of “Get Dumber,” the 4th track off of Who Will Look After the Dogs? on which Jeff Rosenstock is featured. For their final trick, they covered “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette, which had audience members chuckling upon realizing what was being played and ultimately singing along to every word.
The tour continues throughout the US for the rest of September and into October. Remaining tour dates listed below.
09/08 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
09/09 — Columbus, OH @ KEMBA Live!
09/10 — Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theatre
09/12 — Washington, DC @ The Anthem
09/13 — Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount
09/15 — Boston, MA @ Roadrunner
09/17 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore Philadelphia
09/19 — Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz
09/20 — Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte
09/22 — Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern
09/24 — Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
09/25 — Dallas, TX @ House of Blues Dallas
09/26 — San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
09/27 — Austin, TX @ Radio East
09/30 — Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren
10/01 — San Diego, CA @ The Sound
10/02 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
10/04 — Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
10/06 — Portland, OR @ McMenamins Crystal Ballroom
10/07 — Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
10/09 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Rockwell at The Complex
10/11 — Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom
