The Romantics in San Jose

About The Romantics

The Romantics formed in Detroit in 1977, hitting their stride when new wave and punk were still figuring out how to coexist. They made lean, efficient rock songs that did one thing really well: get stuck in your head. Talking in Your Sleep became their signature, a track so perfectly constructed it sounds like it should have been on the radio for decades before it actually was. What I Like About You came later and proved they weren't one-hit material—it's just as catchy, just as direct. Their whole thing was stripping things down. No excess, no pretense. They weren't reinventing rock, they were reminding people why the basic formula works. The band broke up in the 80s, reunited, broke up again, and came back once more because some songs are hard to let go of. If you've heard their stuff, you probably didn't realize how much of it you knew.

Their shows are straightforward and efficient. Crowds sing every word back to them, particularly during Talking in Your Sleep. There's a lot of movement in the room but it's loose, not mosh-pit intense. They play tight, don't waste time, and clearly enjoy the fact that people still show up.

Known for Talking in Your Sleep, What I Like About You, Gimme Some, One in a Million, Body Talk

The Romantics + San Jose

The Romantics rolled through The Mountain Winery in September 2021 with the kind of set you'd expect from a band that refuses to overthink things. They opened with "Rock You Up" and kept the energy straightforward, leaning hard on what made them matter in the first place. "Talking in Your Sleep" hit different in that vineyard setting—a song about obsession that somehow works better when you're surrounded by wine country quiet. They closed it out with "What I Like About You," which is basically their calling card, the one everyone's been waiting for. Three songs. No filler. San Jose doesn't get The Romantics often, but when they show up, they remember why people still care.

The Romantics in San Jose News

• Bruno Mars to Ignite Houston's NRG Stadium with "The Romantics Tour" on April 22 Hoodline · Jan 8, 2026
• This unusual concert triple-header is heading to your town The Mercury News · Dec 8, 2025
• Frankie Valli announces ‘The Last Encores’ farewell tour. Get tickets New York Post · Oct 4, 2023
• Step Inside: Shoreline Amphitheatre — San Francisco, CA Ticketmaster Blog · Jun 12, 2019
• Round 2 For The New San Jose Sharks Goal Song Teal Town USA · Mar 17, 2016

Live Music in San Jose

San Jose's rock landscape is scattered and uneven, dominated mostly by arena acts and nostalgia tours passing through on bigger circuits. The Romantics fit that bill—new wave veterans who've spent decades playing the same reliable set to people who remember when these songs meant something. The city doesn't have much of a cohesive indie or alternative scene the way San Francisco does, so when a band with actual catalog history lands at a venue like The Mountain Winery, it's more event than regular Tuesday night.

San Jose road trip to see The Romantics?

Stay in Willow Glen, where tree-lined streets and local galleries give you something to do before the show. Hit Adega for Portuguese cuisine that actually justifies the price, then walk off dinner around the neighborhood's vintage shops. If you've got afternoon time, the San José Museum of Art is legitimately worth an hour—it's small enough to not feel like a chore, and their contemporary collection is better curated than you'd expect. Grab coffee at Chromatic before heading to the venue. The area's low-key enough that you won't feel like you're in a tourist trap, but established enough that everything works.