Peach Pit • Briston Maroney • Bnny • June 2, 2025 • Sandy Amphitheater
Reviewed and Photographed by Sam Howard
Sitting in the middle of Sandy, Utah there is a gem for live music to thrive. This place is called Sandy Amphitheatre, and it was quite packed with a crowd for the sold-out Peach Pit show. Though this show happened on a Tuesday night, it did not keep people from taking work off or leaving work early, to camp outside of the venue waiting in line for the show. With an excited crowd and doors opening as early as 5:00 PM, it was time to get the show started.
Bnny
Starting out the show, Bnny took the stage with huge compliments to the venue and Utah’s beauty. This artist from Chicago, Illinois, would go on to play a very chill and mellow sounding set. It was a perfect vibe for those wandering into the venue, waiting in line for merch, or simply settling in for the long haul of music for the evening. Throughout the set, Bnny would talk about the tour, and how Utah would be their last stop. She would also go on to ask just how much it snowed in Utah, to which the crowd laughed, as we all know exactly how much it does snow in our beehive state. From here, Bnny would go on to cover “Undone – The Sweater Song” by Weezer. This is where the crowd started getting more involved and into the set, as they knew every lyric to this song.
After a fairly short set, Bnny’s performance would come to an end. With a clear passion in the sound, and enjoyment of her work, the artist from Chicago did not fail to make this crowd feel good about the day ahead. I would love to see Bnny return to Utah to play venues such as Kilby Court or even Soundwell. She would be a great candidate to perform at next year’s Kilby Block Party as well, as Bnny fits perfectly well into that music scene.
Briston Maroney
Next up on the lineup was Briston Maroney, based out of Nashville, Tennessee. With the release of his new album, “JIMMY,” Maroney took the stage opening with his song “Real Good Swimmer.” This set a very rock and roll tone straight off the bat of the set, and it got the crowd instantly hyped. The immediate overwhelming sounds coming from the stage was enough to get anyone up on their feet to start dancing. Though he had a whole playlist of new songs to play, the mix of old hits and new bangers was a perfect blend for his set. His stage presence and energy took over, and suddenly everyone was entranced by folk melodies and fun guitar solos.
Briston Maroney would go on to play and talk about his time in Utah. He brought up that just the day before, he and Peach Pit spent some time in Moab, UT. “We traveled to Moab and hiked and drove jeeps on the side of a mountain.” It never gets old hearing about bands from all over the world enjoying what Utah has to offer here.
Now about halfway through the set, and at this point Maroney would take his acoustic to play some “campfire” songs. It was at this point he brought out a member of Peach Pit to play violin during his song “Land of Light.” This fun campfire vibe would continue for almost the rest of the set, as he played hits such as “June,” “Caroline,” and other heartfelt acoustic songs by the Nashville artist.
Nearing the end of his set, there was a guided meditation part of the show, led by a voice-over through the speakers. We were getting back to the quicker tempo stuff, and just as the music picked back up, suddenly Briston was running through the crowd, giving out high-fives and hugs to people along the way. Making his way back to stage for the final song, Briston Maroney would close with his most popular song, “Freakin’ Out On The Interstate.” A perfect song for a perfect ending.
Peach Pit
Last up, Peach Pit was set to take the stage. Looking at the stage setup for our headliner, it seemed like there was almost too much space on the stage, until they finally took the stage and showed just exactly why that much space was needed for this Vancouver band.
Peach Pit took the stage, opening with an unexpected partial cover of “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath and morphing it perfectly into their song “Magpie.” Instantly, it was clear that they needed as much space as possible on stage with the way the lead guitarist alone was moving to the music. With a very strong energy on stage, Peach Pit played back-to-back hits, ranging from “Drop the Guillotine” to “Black Licorice” at the very start. It as an exciting display of sound and movement, and you can tell just how much thought and skill goes into their art both recorded and live. From whipping their long hair with heavy headbanging, to the synergy between the guitarists playing, it was very poetic.
Halfway through the show now, the lead singer would go on to talk about their experiences playing in Utah before. “It’s crazy to think that our first show ever in Utah was to 100 people. I think it was at Kilby Court.” The mention of their first show in Utah had the crowd erupting with cheers. Some out of pure nostalgia of being there in person, and some just because of the mention of our beloved Kilby Court. From here, the set became very nostalgic itself and also very emotional, playing their songs such as “Shampoo Bottles” and “Private Presley,” to which they would leave the stage.
After demands of an encore from the audience, Neil Smith would take the stage again alone with an acoustic guitar. From here he talked a lot of how he met his bandmates back in Vancouver, BC, and how Peach Pit started as a band. It was then that he launched into their song titled “Peach Pit.” With the final song, “Tommy’s Party,” the rest of the band came back out on stage and sent off the crowd with insane guitar solos and a wash of sound coming from the amps. It was a very dramatic and emotional end to their set, leaving some in tears with the pure emotion coming from the stage.
With that, the show was over, and I, for one, cannot wait until Peach Pit makes their return to Utah to grace us with their sounds and emotions once again.
