MT. JOY’S HOPE WE HAVE FUN TOUR LIGHTS UP NEW YORK WITH SPECIAL GUEST WHEATUS
FOREST HILLS STADIUM — QUEENS, NY
As Mt. Joy looks to wrap up their tour run for their 2025 album, Hope We Have Fun, singer Matt Quinn tells a packed New York City crowd, “We did have fun.”
PHOTO CREDIT: CHRIS LAVADO / @CHRISLAVADO
The five-piece indie rock band put on an extra special show for The Big Apple, dividing the night into two sets and bringing out a very special guest. The house was jam-packed with New Yorkers ditching their typical black outfits for lighter, Western-style motifs and Mt. Joy hats and merchandise.
Opening the show with “Pink Lady”, pianist Jackie Miclau played the first notes of the evening with each hand on a different piano.
Following up with the title track from their 2022 album Orange Blood, they jammed with the crowd, crescendoing and going into an all-out jam session while the crowd was eating up every second. It was clear even early on that the cadence of the show was different from others. Rather than changing the tempo or volume of songs through the setlist, they switched back and forth between playing for the crowd and with the crowd.
After more than 30 tour dates, they seemed just as excited and sharp as day one. You couldn’t help but absorb the happiness they emanated from the stage while playing music together. Even with 13,000 fans in the crowd, it felt intimate, like we were watching a private rehearsal. Guitarist Sam Cooper and singer Matt Quinn frequently played to each other, leaning in and making full use of the space on stage.
PHOTO CREDIT: CHRIS LAVADO / @CHRISLAVADO
Throughout the remainder of the first set, highlights included their second-ever single, released in 2017, “Sheep”. “God Loves Weirdos” was another hit with the fans, the crowd, and the band clapping hands together.
After a short intermission, Mt Joy took the stage for the second time of the evening. With an hour and 15 minutes left before venue curfew, it was clear they had no intention of wasting a single second.
Fittingly opening up the second set with “Strangers,” Quinn and the crowd screamed to the sky, “riding through New York City like I’m famous.” As cathartic as it felt for the crowd, I can’t begin to imagine what it felt like for the band.
“Rearrange Us”, the title track to their 2020 sophomore album, was a standout moment of the night. Jackie Miclau started by clapping her hands and building up the anticipation of the crowd before Sam Cooper stepped up to play an absolutely unrelenting guitar solo. Cliché as it may sound, Cooper was one with his guitar, rarely opening his eyes while playing. It’s hard not to be filled with joy (pun intended), witnessing someone doing what they were born to do and doing it so well. Next up to the plate was drummer Sotiris Eliopoulos, who was much like the Energizer Bunny in the way that he truly just kept going and going. My arms were exhausted just watching him.
And of course, the most special moment of the night was when the band brought out Wheatus to play “Teenage Dirtbag”, a song Mt Joy has been covering fairly regularly throughout the tour.
After closing the main set with their very first song and mega hit “Astrovan” released in 2016, along with “Silver Lining” and “Jenny Jenkins” on the B stage, it’s safe to say Mt. Joy puts on a fantastic show. The way they breathe new life into their studio tracks for the stage is a real treat to witness . Many shows these days rely on production and theatrics, but not Mt. Joy. They’re leaning harder than ever into the simplicity and the heart of it all: playing good music for good fans.
