Lacey Sturm Leads Flyleaf Through a Sold-Out Night in Orlando

Bringing their 20th Anniversary Tour to Central Florida, Texas-born alternative rock band Flyleaf took the stage at House of Blues Orlando on Saturday, August 29th, for the second of two sold out nights at the venue. The show marked another stop on a run celebrating two decades since the band's self-titled debut first introduced audiences to their signature blend of haunting melody and hard-rock intensity. 

Opening the night was AKA Bobby, whose acoustic set brought a raw, powerful energy to start the evening. With his strong vocals, guitar, and piano performance, and a surprise appearance by Lacey Sturm herself, the audience was primed for what the night had to offer. Lady Radiator followed, delivering a set that kept the momentum building. Their high energy was a joy to witness, with lead singer Kenny Collette moving around the stage and interacting with the audience both at the barricade and in the pit.

Fronted once again by original vocalist Lacey Sturm, who rejoined the band in 2022 after years away, Flyleaf's current lineup, guitarists Sameer Bhattacharya and Jared Hartmann, bassist Pat Seals, and drummer James Culpepper, leaned heavily into the catalog that built their reputation, drawing from across their two-decade history rather than focusing solely on new material.

The band opened with cuts pulled from their earliest and most beloved work, moving through "All Around Me" and "Cassie" before moving into songs like "Fully Alive," "I'm So Sick," and "So I Thought," three of the tracks most closely tied to the band's mid 2000s breakout. Sturm's vocals, alternating between soft, aching verses and full throated screams, remain the band's defining instrument and sound.

Given the anniversary framing of the tour, the Orlando stop carried a nostalgic weight; less a promotional run for new music and more a victory lap through the songs that have defined Flyleaf's identity since 2004. Selling out two consecutive nights in one city says a lot about the strength of that catalog, and for longtime fans who followed the band through Sturm's departure and eventual return, a night built almost entirely around the catalog's most enduring tracks felt less like a formality and more like the point of the tour. 

Even with both floors of House of Blues packed shoulder to shoulder, the energy of the crowd seeing Flyleaf’s performance never relented. With the tour continuing on through the fall, the Orlando shows offered a clear look at why Flyleaf's return has resonated: two decades in, the songs still hold up, and so does the band performing them.

Photos and Review by Laila Esquilin