Utah Concert Review Archives - Utah Concert Review

October 9, 2025October 9, 2025

The Backseat Lovers

The Backseat Lovers • Ally Dean • October 2, 2025 • The Great Saltair

Reviewed and Photographed by Austin Dayton

Under the open sky, right beside the Great Salt Lake, The Great Saltair glowed with anticipation on an early October night in 2025. For the second night in a row, fans gathered in waves across the outdoor stage, the air thick with salt and excitement. It was a homecoming for The Backseat Lovers, one of Utah’s most beloved indie exports, and by the time the sun dipped below the distant ridge of mountains across the lake, the energy in the crowd felt electric. The evening began gently, building layer by layer through two carefully chosen openers—Ally Dean and Theoretical Blonde—each adding their own tone and texture to the night before the headliners took over.

October 7, 2025October 7, 2025

Quinn XCII

Quinn XCII • Allen Stone • October 3, 2025 • The Plaza at America First Field

Reviewed and Photographed by Marlo Matamoros

Quinn XCII stopped by at the America First Field on October 3^rd with Allen Stone for his LOOK! I’m Alive Tour. I was excited to cover this show, not only because of Quinn XCII and Allen Stone but also because I haven’t photographed there before. The stage was on the east side of the stadium. It was outdoors and had an amazing view of the mountains in the background.

October 7, 2025October 7, 2025

Aly & AJ

Aly & AJ • Amanda Shires • October 1, 2025 • The Complex

Reviewed and Photographed by Amelia Weyerstall

Aly & AJ started off October by bringing their Silver Deliverer Tour to Salt Lake City. The sister duo played a fun set showcasing their new album of the same name along with a few of their favorite hits. Aly a & Aj were joined at The Complex by Americana music favorite, Amanda Shires!

October 3, 2025October 3, 2025

Bring Me The Horizon

Bring Me The Horizon • Motionless In White • The Plot In You • Amira Elfeky • September 30, 2025 • Maverik Center

Reviewed and Photographed by Max Taylor

On September 30th, 2025, the people of Utah saw Bring Me the Horizon land in Salt Lake City for the seventh show of their ten-date U.S. stretch on the Ascension Program Tour. Fans filled the Maverik Center to the brim. With a stacked lineup featuring Amira Elfeky, The Plot in You, and Motionless in White, the evening’s anticipation launched fans into an experience they would not soon forget as they became immersed in Bring Me the Horizon’s world.

October 2, 2025October 2, 2025

Some Like It Hot

Some Like It Hot • September 30, 2025 • Eccles Theater

Reviewed by Kevin Rolfe

Photos by Matthew Murphy courtesy of Broadway at the Eccles

The 2025/2026 Broadway at the Eccles season has officially begun! Some Like It Hot, the Tony Award-winning musical, brings the classic 1959 film starring Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, Marilyn Monroe, and written and directed by Billy Wilder, roaring back into the 1930s Prohibition era once again. This time, with a modern lens. Principally around issues of gender identity, inclusion, and discovering one’s identity. The score is by award winners, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray, Catch Me If You Can, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory). The book is by Matthew López and Amber Ruffin, with choreography and direction by Casey Nicholaw.

September 30, 2025September 30, 2025

Polo & Pan

Ogden Twilight • Polo & Pan • Zoe • Mikey Stern • Sarah Lies • September 25, 2025 • Ogden Amphitheater

Reviewed and Photographed by Marlo Matamoros

Polo & Pan performed the last concert that would take place at the Ogden Amphitheater on September 25^th for the Ogden Twilight Series. Sofia Kourtesis was scheduled to open the concert, but had an emergency and could not make it. Utah-based artists, Sarah Lies and Mikey Stern, would replace Sofia.

I always emphasize the park surrounding the amphitheater and how it is always packed before and after the show. I bring this up because I feel like it adds to the concert experience and is an example of how these concerts bring the community together, whether it’s enjoying the sound within the amphitheater or outside of it. Tickets are required for anyone over the age of 4, so if you’re thinking about coming out to a show next year, keep that in mind. I have been to multiple venues, and that is the one thing that stands out with the Ogden Amphitheater is how well they accommodate families.

September 30, 2025September 30, 2025

The Paper Kites

The Paper Kites • Hayden Everett • September 24, 2025 • The Complex

Reviewed and Photographed by Nate Bonney

The Paper Kites brought their 2025 US Tour to The Complex in Salt Lake City. They were joined by Hayden Everett. Utah Concert Review has enjoyed covering The Paper Kites in the past. They’re one of those bands that we always look forward to seeing. Turns out we weren’t the only ones. They had an audience of adoring fans who showed up.

September 29, 2025September 29, 2025

The Struts

The Struts • Dirty Honey • September 22, 2025 • The Depot

Reviewed and Photographed by Amelia Weyerstall

The Struts played a high-energy rock and roll show at the Depot in SLC. They were joined by Dirty Honey as they celebrated the 10-year anniversary of their incredible debut album “Everybody Wants.” The Struts have made consistent tour stops over the last decade. UCR has loved the opportunity to cover this remarkable band from the UK.

September 24, 2025September 24, 2025

Big Thief

SLC Twilight • Big Thief • Kiki Cavazos • September 22, 2025 • Library Square

Reviewed and Photographed by Sam Howard

Grab some tissues, and brace for the emotions to come from the last show of the 2025 Salt Lake Twilight Concert Series, Big Thief. Performing at Library Square to a sold-out crowd, this was about to be the most anticipated show of the entire concert series. Leading up to doors opening, there was a line of people waiting to get in that stretched almost two whole blocks around Library Square, with some of the first people in line arriving at the venue as early as 10 AM that morning. With doors opening at 5 PM and a three-act lineup including Little Moon and Kiki Cavazos, it felt like we were in for a long night of beautiful and emotional live music.

September 24, 2025September 24, 2025

Ice Cube

Ice Cube • September 17, 2025 • Maverik Center

Reviewed and Photographed by Kevin Rolfe

When Ice Cube took the stage at the Maverik Center for his Truth to Power: Four Decades of Attitude Tour, the atmosphere was electric—charged with the weight of history, legacy, and raw energy. The night was a guided tour through the evolution of West Coast hip-hop, led by one of its most uncompromising architects. Cube turned the arena into a living museum of rap, balancing nostalgia with urgency, and proving that four decades into his career, he still knows how to command a crowd. I remember listening to N.W.A. and later Ice Cube solo albums with my best friend in high school. He had an amazing car stereo, and we would play these songs so loud in our Los Angeles suburb. This concert was a trip down memory lane for me. Ice Cube did not disappoint.