Folk/Singer-Songwriter

Mt. Joy Brings Psychedelic Folk to Boston’s MGM Music Hall [Photos]

Mt. Joy crushed two sold-out shows at Boston’s MGM Music Hall last week with no opening acts. Needless to say, we had a blast!

Published

2 years ago

10/09/2023

Kenzie Magnan

Article Views: 2,316

Mt. Joy crushed two sold-out shows at Boston’s MGM Music Hall last week with no opening acts. The band chose instead to play two sets themselves. I’m a huge fan of this idea. Although I very much enjoy seeing openers and discovering new artists that way, sometimes it’s nice to cut to the chase. Especially with artists including 2-3 openers before late start sets recently. For the true fans, the more Mt. Joy, the better.

The band opened the first set with “My Vibe” in front of psychedelic and groovy background visuals. There was a lot of interaction between band members, with lead singer Matt Quinn often stepping away from the microphone to jam on guitar with guitarist Sam Cooper and pianist Jackie Miclau. Jackie Miclau often interacted with the crowd as well, signalling the lyrics to several songs out to the audience. Mt. Joy also included several snippets of popular songs, such as Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” and Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” into their set.

After finishing the first set off with “Cardinal,” they came back out a half hour later with “Evergreen.” They also included covers in this set, including the Grateful Dead’s “Casey Jones,” Drake’s “One Dance,” and The Band’s “Weight.” The second set was even more exciting than the first, with massive hits like “Sheep,” “Bathroom Light,” and last but certainly not least, “Astrovan.” After two sets, Mt. Joy still pleased the audience with a fantastic encore, ending the night with “Silver Lining.”

I was lucky enough to see Mt. Joy twice in the last week, and what an absolute joy they are (no pun intended). The band has a very laid-back and hippie kind of vibe with absolutely feel-good music to get you through the day. Both shows I was able to catch were mesmerizing. I’ve seen them three times, and I’ll keep coming back; with constantly changing setlists and new music coming soon, there’s no shortage of excitement at their shows.