Rainbow Kitten Surprise • Spacey Jane • July 15, 2026 • Sandy Amphitheater
Reviewed and Photographed by Ava Dalton
With a crowd that had reportedly been camped outside the venue since early afternoon, according to several audience members, the Sandy Amphitheater was beyond ready for the long-awaited return of the alternative rock band Rainbow Kitten Surprise. Only the fourth stop of the “bones.” tour, RKS is headed to seventeen more stops in the North American leg of the tour.
Even with the heat and the blaring sun, the audience was electric, waiting for the show to begin. The audience was full of people of all ages, from grandparents with their grandkids to parents with kindergarteners with headphones on. One of my favorite parts about the concert experience is watching how music brings all kinds of people together. Watching people create bonds over the way they all connect to the same music. This show was a perfect example of just that, and I feel lucky to have witnessed it.
Spacey Jane
The Australian band took the stage as an opener on the “bones.” tour for Rainbow Kitten Surprise. From the second they stepped on stage, they brought a new and bigger energy to the buzzing crowd. Founded in 2016, Harper, Le Cornu, and Lama were the founding members, adding Lane in on bass in 2019. Spacey Jane is joining Rainbow Kitten Surprise on the first half of the North American leg of the “bones.” tour.
While they were the openers, there were many audience members singing and dancing along to their set. There was even a group of friends all wearing Spacey Jane shirts. I enjoyed their energy and the flow of their set. Standing on their individual rugs, Spacey Jane opened their set with a kick! Literally. The lead guitarist was kicking karate-style while he was playing.
With a four-piece band, Spacey Jane looked small compared to Rainbow Kitten Surprise. However, their sound, energy, and personality were anything but small. Lead singer Caleb Harper stated that every time he had been to Utah previously, it was so cold, but it was beautiful when the sun came out.
With Caleb Harper on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Ashton Le Cornu on lead guitar, Peppa Lane on bass and background vocals, and finally, Kieran Lama on drums, Spacey Jane came together. Harper has a recognizable vocal tone that sets Spacey Jane apart from other indie bands, and the layout of their songs shows each individual band member’s talent and how they all accent each other. My only complaint would be that I could barely hear background vocals contributed by bassist Peppa Lane. Closing out the set with the hit song “Booster Seat,” Spacey Jane perfectly primed both the stage and the crowd for Rainbow Kitten Surprise.
Rainbow Kitten Surprise
Due to a venue change from the Great Saltair to Sandy Amphitheater, the crowd for the night four stop of Rainbow Kitten Surprise’s “bones.” tour, the crowd was beyond packed. From the front row to the top of the lawn, even the gates were lined with people listening from outside the venue.
I watched the audience members scream, laugh, cry, and hold each other. Two girls were holding each other and sobbing throughout the start of the set. Opening with “Our Song,” Rainbow Kitten Surprise was the most in tune with each other that I’ve ever seen in a live performance. From start to finish, their set was genuinely effortless.
Formed at a university in North Carolina in 2013, you can clearly tell that the members of Rainbow Kitten Surprise have played together for a long time. There’s a chemistry and connection that is visibly and clearly unmatched when a band has been playing together for a long period of time. With a six-piece band, that energy is hard to achieve but impossible to ignore. All six band members contributed to harmony stacks throughout the set.
With three guitarists, one bassist, one drummer, and one singer, the stage should have looked full, but their layout made the stage look like an invitation to the audience to join in the music. Their stage layout made it easier for the band to interact with each other throughout the set. They were set up in a U-shape, with the lead singer in the middle. Singer Ela Melo moved all around the stage, creating moments that showed the friendship between all six band members as she was singing.
Their lights and interactions with each other made their set beyond flawless. Their harmonies flowed beautifully, and their transitions were seamless. With a cancelled tour in 2022, the last time Utah saw Rainbow Kitten Surprise was in 2018. Lead singer and RKS co-founder Ela Melo called Sandy “the greatest part of Utah she’s ever seen.” Performing hits such as “Cocaine Jesus,” “Hide,” and “Painkillers,” I could visibly see the connection that the audience members had with the music.
People of all ages, from all walks of life, were singing, dancing, and crying along to every song. It was beautiful and incredible to watch people illustrate their deep and emotional connections to the music. Rainbow Kitten Surprise’s music is a perfect explanation of the human experience, and I genuinely enjoyed watching people build a memory they’ll never forget.
While both Spacey Jane and RKS were incredible, I do feel like the seated layout of the Sandy Amphitheater dulls the energy of the room. However, it does make for convenient viewing of the show. I walked up and down the seating, and you can clearly see the stage from every angle. The sound quality does decrease the further up you get into the seating, which is to be expected. The layout also did not provide for much coverage from the beating sun previous to and at the beginning of the show, with only a small section covered with trees.
Overall, Spacey Jane was an excellent opener for Rainbow Kitten Surprise, and they got the crowd’s energy increased and ready for RKS to take the stage. Rainbow Kitten Surprise put on a show that was most definitely worth the wait. Personally, I am a huge fan of both bands, and I would love to see them both again.