Young the Giant Continues the Legacy, Tours ‘American Bollywood’

When a band continues to make an impact and fill amphitheaters after nearly 20 years, stop and listen.

Young the Giant, fronted by Sameer Gadhia, is halfway through their summer tour promoting their latest record, “American Bollywood,” released in 2022. The longstanding group is joined by Milky Chance– an alternative duo with a similarly impressive 10+ year career.

The American Bollywood tour stopped in Nashville for one ethereal night July 14 at Ascend Amphitheater.

Considering Gadhia’s work toward inclusivity in the music industry (check out his advocacy project Point of Origin with SiriusXM) as well as his decades long creative career, the diversity of the crowd was unsurprising. People of all ages and backgrounds danced and sang along as Young the Giant journeyed through their repertoire.

Of course Gadhia’s stage presence was perfect—confident rocker without being presumptuous. And his wide vocal range is worth noting. (The Glee cast doesn’t cover just anyone, you know. Aren’t you glad Darren Criss graced us with “Cough Syrup?”) I expected Young the Giant to pull out all the stops sonically.

But the visuals surprised me in the best way. The light show, costuming, set and production design were stunning in a way that seamlessly weaved through the performance, elevating instead of distracting from it.

Building a 1.5-hour set from a 20-year catalogue is a daunting task, but Young the Giant came through with an effective tactic. Peppering the old in with the new, the set list was divided into four “acts” made up of three or four songs each, similar to the structure of “American Bollywood.”

These acts were introduced by short videos, creating a narrative for a through line. I couldn’t retell the story quite as well, so I’ll let Young the Giant do the talking:

“With lyrics mostly written by the band’s lead singer Sameer Gadhia, the son of Indian immigrants, the album tells the multi-generational saga of the American immigrant, and the origins, exiles, battles, and denouement of reclaiming their collective identity. ‘This is not just the story of an Indian-American caught in between two worlds,’ the band’s Sameer Gadhia previously said, ‘it’s also our universal search to find meaning in chaos.’

The visuals provided a clever way for the band to keep the audience engaged during any set/costume changes or a much needed breather. After his four themed acts, Gadhia launched his 5-song encore, featuring fan favorites “Superposition” and “My Body.”

The band’s commitment to quality in every aspect of their shows serves to remind fans everywhere that Young the Giant knows what they’re about. They’ve built a much deserved legacy, and they’re not passing on the torch any time soon. After wrapping the North American leg of their tour, they’ll spend a month charming audiences across Europe with their sound that never gets old.