Perfect touring lineups are few and far between, but Hot Mulligan assembled three excellent bands to complement their fall headliner. The nearly sold out show took over The Van Buren on Friday for an evening of loud singing, crowdsurfing and enough good vibes to get past the Thanksgiving food coma.
Super American started things off early, playing a set composed mostly of songs from their latest EP. The band’s easygoing stage presence won the room immediately and they spent their time onstage speaking with the audience like old friends. While everyone was excited for the entire lineup, there was more than a little disappointment when their set came to an end.
Sincere Engineer was second of four and another Arizona favorite. Singer Deanna Belos’ earnest lyrics had the fans singing passionately, matching the energy of the band. Each group looked joyful and relieved to be performing again after several postponements and let those feelings permeate the room.
With one of the most memorable names in indie rock, Prince Daddy and the Hyena got attention before they ever played a note. They’ve visited Arizona before and the reception has only gotten warmer with each return. Their setlist was filled with old favorites and the band snuck a few new ones in as well. The band almost seemed dazed by the reception of the packed venue, repeatedly thanking the crowd before yielding the stage to the night’s headliner.
Hot Mulligan’s original venue sold out so quickly that most of this tour was upgraded to larger rooms and it was immediately clear that this is where the band will remain going forward. A setlist of 22 songs never felt overly long and fans threw themselves towards the barricade all night long. Arizona is already excited for the group to return in 2022.
Check out more photos from the show!
Story and photos by Olivia Khiel
