Uncut Collective Media
The Maine Turn a Sold-Out Van Buren Into a Hometown Celebration
March 26, 2026 • by Phyoe Thaung
There’s a certain energy that settles over The Van Buren when The Maine return home, and on March 25, 2026, it was felt from the start. The sold-out Phoenix crowd packed in early, carrying a quiet anticipation that quickly built into something louder and more immediate. It wasn’t just another stop on tour. It felt like a shared moment between a band and the city that’s grown alongside them.
The band leaned into that connection the moment they stepped on stage. The setup matched the new era, washed in green tones with a lived-in feel that mirrored the music itself. Nearly two decades into their career, The Maine carried themselves with an ease that only comes from time, moving through the set with confidence and a clear understanding of the room in front of them.
Opening with “Thoughts I Have While Lying in Bed,” they were met with a surge of voices and movement that didn’t let up. The set pulled from across their catalog, blending newer material with older songs that still hit just as hard. Tracks like “Kennedy Curse,” “Right Girl,” and “My Heroine” drew some of the loudest reactions, each one carried back toward the stage by a crowd that knew every word. Between songs, John O’Callaghan kept things loose, turning the night into something that felt more like a conversation than a performance.
As the set pushed toward its close, the energy only tightened. “Blame” and “Black Butterflies and Déjà Vu” brought the room back to full volume, setting up the final stretch. When “Another Night on Mars” closed the night, the crowd held onto it, voices steady, arms raised. It was a familiar ending, one that still lands the same way, sending a packed hometown crowd out into the night exhausted and satisfied.
