Philadelphia natives, The Wonder Years, came out swinging at The Soapbox Laundro-Lounge March 25, during their stop in Wilmington on their headlining tour. Their pop punk music is inspired by their northeastern roots and has become a remedy for all ages.

All it took was a single command for the audience to jump in-sync with the beats, shaking the hardwood floors. Familiar words echoed into the microphone as lead singer, Dan “Soupy” Campbell, took the stage and crowd by storm as he sang about all of the problems young adults face.

His lyrics speak volumes to fans, while also giving them a glimpse of the band’s origins.

“I came out swinging from a South Philly basement,” Campbell sang.

The band writes songs about the places, people and experiences that have shaped them into who they are now.  But for Campbell, being a rock star wasn’t always a part of his plan. In fact, he dreamed about a wide range of careers.

“The first job I wanted to have when I was a toddler was to be a landscaper,” Campbell said. “Then from there it was briefly professional tree climber. Then there was an honest eight years where I wanted to be a pro-wrestler, while simultaneously wanting to be an NFL running back, and then it switched over to wanting to play music. At some point it came to my attention I was never going to get bigger and that these things were not attainable goals.”

The Wonder Years formed in 2005, and they have released two full-length records, with another coming May 14.  Over the years, the band has accompanied various pop-punk bands such as Man Overboard, Fireworks, Set Your Goals, Yellowcard, Misser, We Are The In Crowd, New Found Glory, and others on tour.

The Wonder Years don’t have any specific goals as a band right now-they just have stories to tell.

“We’ll just keep doing it at a level that we feel is appropriate and whenever we feel we don’t have anything left to say, I guess we will stop,” Campbell said.

Campbell grew up listening to The Get Up Kids, Motion City Soundtrack, Blink-182, The Startling Line, and other pop punk legends. Blink-182 especially gives him inspiration.

“[Blink-182] snapped me out of my brief, three month new metal phase. I only listened to R&B as a kid. It was exclusively Boyz II Men,” Campbell said.

This year, the band traveled to Australia for the Soundwave music festival. Standing side-stage while Blink-182 played a set, Campbell was star-struck.

He had a brief encounter with Blink-182 bassist Mark Hoppus.

“The jealousy you feel is incredible,” Campbell said. “I forgot to tell him I was in a band.”

Growth is a fundamental building block for the band, as their fan base continues to expand. With an upcoming album and the news that they will be headlining this summer’s Vans Warped Tour, there is no slowing down in the near future.

“I am very excited, but it is also very nerve-wracking. It is a new level for us,” Campbell said. “I mean, we’ve never been up there so how do you know if you’re ready? I remember when I was a kid I always wondered: what happens on the other side of that fence?”

Campbell has an insight into what his listeners are going through, because he has been there himself. The lyrics speak true to who he is, providing a message for his fans who are in school or trying to find their way.

“Almost none of this matters in the long run,” Campbell said. “The month you spend upset about your bad midterm grade or that girl, or that boy, even if you spend three months distraught about it-if you looked at that on a timeline of a year, that’s a third of the year and that’s a pretty big chunk of time to spend upset. If you stretch that out to the 60 plus years that you’ll probably live, who cares, it’s a blimp. Realize that in the long run it doesn’t matter. Not to say you shouldn’t try-you should always be trying and I think it’s important to do well in school.”

Looking back on his experiences, the 27-year-old musician now wishes he were more involved in school.

“For us, on the weekends we would book our own punk rock shows. Now, I’m 27 years old and I want to start going to high school football games,” he said.

There is more to life than music for Campbell. He is currently helping book bands so they can get their start, and he also has dreams of opening an after school program.

“I think that after school is really important,” Campbell said. “The hours between 3 to 6 p.m. in a kid’s day are super important. I think if I got a chance to open one of those it would be a really great thing.”

Staying true to his roots, Campbell still believes there is room for him to grow.

“I want to get better at singing. I always want to get better,” he said.

With crowd-surfers flying through the air, Campbell looked into the crowd and screamed the final lyrics: “I spent the winter writing songs about getting better and if I’m being honest, I’m getting there.”

The battle is continuously uphill, but The Wonder Years is proving to be victorious.