It has been years since English singer-songwriter Sam Fender has toured North America, and on Monday, April 21, fans turned up in droves, packing Marquee Theater in eager anticipation of Fender’s first ever appearance in the Valley. The North Shields native has had a wildly successful few months. Not only did he release his third full length album, People Watching, in February, but he is also fresh off of the UK and EU legs of his People Watching Tour, in which he sold out every show, filling massive areas. For the North American leg of his tour, Fender brought supporting act Young Jesus along for the ride.
Young Jesus, the Chicago-based indie rock project fronted by John Rossiter, kicked off the night with a 30-minute set, consisting mainly of songs from their 2024 album The Fool, that had the audience hooked from the start. When he took the stage, Rossiter bellowed, “Tempe, are you ready to rock?” His question was met with loud cheers before he explained that there would be some time before they actually got to the rock, and that the crowd would understand later. His somewhat quirky explanation gave him an endearing quality that immediately drew the audience’s attention, and upon completion of their first song, it was apparent what Rossiter was trying to explain; the band’s songs started off with a more mellow vibe before building into and ending with a much heavier, louder sound. As the sound built with each of their songs, so did the energy from Rossiter and his crew. The band brought their all to the stage and that energy was reciprocated by the crowd who clapped and bopped their heads along with the music. Rossiter engaged with the crowd between songs, telling stories of previous shows played in the Valley, and even yelling “Go Wildcats!,” a risky statement to make in Sun Devil territory, that was met with playful boos from the crowd. The witty banter and groovy tunes were well received by the crowd and perfectly set the tone for the evening.
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Fans were buzzing with anticipation as the crew began setup for Fender’s set, revealing a backdrop with his name scrawled across in large print, and risers which would support many of his 7-piece band. The lights dimmed, and the crowd cheered as Sam Fender and his band took the stage, silhouetted in darkness as the first notes of “Dead Boys” rang out. Although heavy in subject matter, the song from his debut album Hypersonic Missiles has long been a fan favorite and brought the level of excitement from the crowd to another level. Fender would go on to play a perfectly curated 15-song setlist consisting of tracks from his entire catalog, including “People Watching,” “Seventeen Going Under,” and “Will We Talk?”. The setlist also featured “All Is On My Side,” a tune that has not been played in the US since 2019, as well as “Howdon Aldi Death Queue,” which Fender proclaimed as the “studpidest song he has ever written.” Despite his views on the song, the crowd went wild as the band took the energy up another notch with a chaotic light show to match. Fender’s vocals were tight, and his bandmates, many of which are longtime friends of the artist, showcased their talents all night, delivering a flawless performance. The majority of his bandmates played multiple instruments throughout the set, and in addition to swapping between synth, keys, and the guitar, Fender’s longtime friend and bandmate Joe Atkinson served as a top tier hype man, bringing the energy up from the crowd all night long. Brooke Bentham, the newest addition to Fender’s band that is featured on backing vocals throughout People Watching, was a joy to watch as she danced, played tambourine, and added beautiful harmonies to the mix. Fender kept his chatter to a minimum throughout the show, but did take moments to engage the crowd, taking a poll of where his audience was from and providing some commentary on upcoming songs. The singer also took a moment to explain his dislike of encores (just before returning for the encore). Rather than the typical chants of “one more song,” the audience sang “Seventeen Going Under’s” “oh, whoah, oh oh” in unison while awaiting his return to the stage. While it appears that most of the shows on this leg of tour have been seeing “Something Heavy” in the encore, Fender changed things up this evening, playing “I’m Always On Stage,” a new song which he explained would be a part of an upcoming EP. The audience could be seen jumping, dancing, and waving their arms in the air as they screamed the lyrics, as Fender closed out the set with “Hypersonic Missiles,” ending the night on a high note.
Although the North American leg of his tour closes out in Denver, CO on April 24, Fender is showing no sign of letting up any time soon. His new single, Tyrant, is set to release April 25, and he will headline sold out shows in London and Newcastle in June with special guests The War On Drugs and CMAT in venues with a capacity of over 50,000, before continuing to play shows across Europe through the end of September. Tickets to his upcoming shows can be purchased here.
Setlist: Dead Boys/ Getting Started/ Arm’s Length/ People Watching/ Crumbling Empire/ Will We Talk?/ Tyrants/ Howdon Aldi Death Queue/ Nostalgia’s Lie/ Spit of You/ The Borders/ All Is On My Side/ Seventeen Going Under/ ENCORE: I’m Always On Stage/ Hypersonic Missiles
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