From the days of sweaty shows at The Nile to a packed house at The Van Buren, Joyce Manor and Citizen are on their best upward arcs. The two bands joined forces on Saturday night to close out a magnificent cross country run in Phoenix.
Opening the evening was Phony, a band composed of all the other bands on the tour- which made the night all the more fun for fans of the whole lineup. The setlist was all songs from his latest album (except for the ones that weren’t) and plenty of people showed up early to rock out.
Prince Daddy and the Hyena- besides having the best band name in alternative rock- also has an undeniably refreshing sound. It was the second set of the night for most of the band and they gave us even more of their energy on “Shoelaces” and “I Lost My Life”. P Daddy’s set is where the mosh pit started and the audience was determined to keep up that level of excitement for the rest of the show.
There’s something about Citizen that brings people to life in a room and Phoenix took things up a notch for the last night of tour. Singer Mat Kerekes is magnetizing onstage, whipping the room into a frenzy of flailing limbs and raised voices. The entire band threw themselves into the performance and demanded the same of the nearly full Van Buren. In the true spirit of caring for their fans, they immediately halted the set after being alerted to injuries in the crowd, allowing the safe removal and treatment of those thrown into the eye of the storm.
Citizen and Joyce Manor might be the perfect complement for each other, especially as fans are still slowly making their way back to shows after the pandemic shutdowns. Joyce Manor took the stage like it could be their last show ever and gave the exhausted crowd a reason to get up and keep moving. One thing must always be done at a Joyce Manor show- you stay till the end of “Catalina Fight Song” and then you pick yourself up for an astonishing four song encore.
Fans were sweaty, bruised and overjoyed as they left The Van Buren, already clamoring for more songs and the next chance to see this perfect lineup in person.
Check out all the photos from the show!
Story and photos by Olivia Khiel
