Beloved Arizona emo band The Maine spent most of 2025 away from the road to focus on their tenth studio album, and the anticipation of new music and their return to the road has been building for months. In January, that excitement only grew when the band officially announced Joy Next Door in a spectacular fashion — lighting up the night sky with a drone show over their hometown of Tempe. The band is celebrating the new era with their largest tour to date, hitting venues across the U.S. before taking the show overseas for the longest EU and UK run of their nearly 20-year career. 

On March 25, 2026, The Maine returned to Phoenix for a sold-out hometown show at The Van Buren. The evening marked the second stop of their “I Love You But I Chose The Maine” tour — their first U.S. headline tour in nearly two years — and it was already clear that this run would be something special. The “8123” family showed up in full force and decked out in every shade of green, the color associated with the band’s newest chapter. Outside of the venue, the green car featured throughout the album rollout drew fans in for photos, while inside, the excitement was palpable as fans eagerly awaited the main event. With support from Nightly, Grayscale, and Franklin Jonas & The Byzantines, the energy remained high from the moment doors opened, building steady momentum and setting the stage for The Maine to deliver an unforgettable hometown performance.

Kicking off the evening was Franklin Jonas & The Byzantines. While some may recognize him from co-hosting ABC’s “Claim to Fame” alongside his brother Kevin Jonas, from other acting roles, or from touring alongside The Jonas Brothers on their “Greetings From Your Hometown” tour, the band’s set proved Jonas is carving out a lane entirely his own. The singer-songwriter debuted on the music scene in 2023 with the release of his single, “Cocaine.”  In late 2025, Jonas added a band to the mix and began releasing music as Franklin Jonas & The Byzantines. The project, which leans into Americana and country-blues influences, recently expanded by two members, which Jonas explained has really brought the songs to life in a way that feels truer to the spirit of the sound they’ve been chasing. While their sound stood apart from the rest of the bill, the performance never felt out of place. A few songs into the set, during “Road Soda,” Jonas jumped off the stage and into the crowd, weaving through fans, dancing and singing face-to-face with them. That level of interaction quickly won over the room, and by the time they closed with “Break the Levee,” he was once again in the crowd, turning the floor into an extension of the stage. With a growing catalog that includes tracks like “Village Liquors” and their newest single “High and Sad,” released last weekend, the band delivered a set full of energy and personality.

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As fans awaited Grayscale’s return to the Phoenix stage, an orange shamrock, complete with a phone number fans could text, lit the stage, while an Irish jig played in the background. As they took the stage, they were immediately greeted by cheers from a crowd that has become very familiar with the Philadelphia band over the last few years. The band immediately launched into “Through The Landslide,” quickly locking in the room. While their setlist drew heavily from their most recent album, The Hart (Deluxe), they balanced things out with other fan favorites from across their discography, including tracks like “Dirty Bombs,” “Painkiller Weather,” and “Let It Rain.” The set also featured a lively cover of “Twist and Shout” which had the entire room moving and singing along. Frontman Collin Walsh kept the energy high, effortlessly engaging the crowd between songs, while the band delivered a tight, high-energy performance. As they closed their set with “Not Afraid To Die,” Grayscale had proved once again why they are perfect for a tour like this one. 

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Nightly’s signature neon heart illuminated the stage as the Nashville-based alt-pop trio took the stage, continuing the momentum from the acts before them. The band had an impressive 2025, releasing their third full length album, songs to drive to, in March, which was celebrated with a headlining US tour and followed by a surprise drop of their fourth full length studio album, THE VOID, just months later in October. The trio has become a familiar name in Arizona over the years, and their growing fanbase made itself known, singing along to tracks like “like i do” and “the movies,” as well as tracks from the new releases, including “1989,” “tv shows,” and “MESS.” They wrapped their set with “Twenty Something,” priming the crowd for the performance to come. 

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As the lights dimmed and “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” echoed through the venue, the anticipation in the room hit its peak. The green velvet curtain backdrop, large overhead spotlight, and the couch positioned at the back of the stage set the scene as The Maine took the stage. There had been chatter all night about which song the band would open with, as they had vowed to change up the setlist each night, and the response from the crowd was electric as the band kicked off their career spanning set with “thoughts i have while lying in bed.” Every voice in the room was ready from the first line. The room turned into a dance party as the crowd sang along to every word, and from that moment on, the energy never dipped —from the band or from the crowd. Early in the set, frontman John O’Callaghan paused to remind the crowd, “Our band is called The Maine — spelled like the state — but we’re from here,” a line that hit especially hard in a room full of hometown fans.

The setlist moved through nearly two decades of music, pulling at least one track from every album while weaving in newer material like “Die To Fall,” “Quiet Part Loud,” and “Palms,” which had just been released the day before. Before playing it, O’Callaghan joked, “We put this song out yesterday — act like it’s your favorite song in the world,” and the crowd responded without hesitation, although acting wasn’t necessary, as the song is a bop. The band’s personality was front and center all night. Between jokes about switching to Baja Men covers for the rest of the night and playful back-and-forth with bassist Garrett Nickelsen, the atmosphere stayed light even as the performance remained tight. 

Midway through the set, “We All Roll Along” turned into one of the night’s most memorable moments. O’Callaghan stepped off the stage and into the crowd, asking everyone to put their phones away and actually be in it together. What followed was a full-room singalong, with voices shouting “8123 means everything to me!” loud enough to be heard outside of the venue. Near the end of the song, O’Callaghan handed off his mic to fans to close out the iconic song as he danced with the fans surrounding him. 

As the set pushed toward its final stretch, O’Callaghan took a longer pause to reflect on their career, and it landed differently in a room like this. He talked about growing up in Arizona, about the early days of the band playing to small crowds, and about the people who believed in them before there was anything to believe in yet. He spoke about their families giving them the support to chase something uncertain, and about the fans — whether they had been around for 20 years or 20 minutes — being the other half of the reason they were still standing on that stage. There was a mix of humor and honesty in the way he told it, shouting out MySpace and laughing at how far things have come, but underneath it was something real. You could feel how much it meant to be back home, as he thanked the crowd — their 8123 family — for sticking with them, for growing with them, and for turning something small into something that now fills rooms like this.

From there, the band carried that energy through the final run of songs. “blame” and “Black Butterflies and Déjà Vu” had the entire venue shouting along, and as they were about to wrap up the night with “Another Night on Mars,” O’Callaghan declared, “ Will will see you again when we’re looking at ya.”

If this hometown show was any indication, the green era is already in full bloom, and the 8123 family is right there with them every step of the way. 

The “I Love You But I Chose The Maine” tour is just getting started and is one that you will not want to miss! Check out the dates below and purchase tickets here. The Maine’s 10th studio album, Joy Next Door, is due to arrive April 10. Pre-save the album here.

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