TVD Live Shots: Extra Innings Festival at Tempe Beach Park, 3/2

TEMPE, AZ | The inaugural Extra Innings Festival hit Tempe Beach Park for day two to celebrate the combination of music and the start of MLB spring training in Scottsdale, Arizona. The sister fest to the Innings Festival, the combination of events gave tourists a reason to extend their stays in Arizona. While Innings Festival has been around since 2018, the success has expanded into an extra celebration of warm weather activities into a second weekend.

Although following the same stage alignment, Extra Innings Festival took on a completely unique look from the first weekend. While seemingly a country music festival, the event offered everything there is under the country music umbrella. Featuring acts in folk, blue-grass, outlaw country, and more, the specific talents created a unique lineup to remember.

2:00 PM: We started our coverage on one of the dedicated music stages, Right Field. 2:00 PM featured Josiah and the Bonnevilles—albeit no Bonnevilles this time—just Josiah. The Tennessee native set the bar high for the day delivering an extremely intimate, raw set. One of the more humble artists I have seen, Josiah knows what it means to work for his music, explaining failed record deals and having not lost hope. Josiah is an incredibly talented artist and as he grows on social media, I believe he will have a big year.

2:50 PM: The crowd made their way back through the food and vendor entertainment to the Home Plate stage near the main entrance featuring Richy Mitch & The Coal Miners. Another band who grew on social media in the past year, the group is young and promising. They Seattle natives are just entering the scene for what could be a huge stage for them, literally and figuratively.

3:35 PM: The underrated highlight of the day, Larkin Poe hit Right Field. The southern rockin’ blues duo came out swinging and did not stop the entire set. The sisters recently won a Grammy for best Contemporary Blues Album for the 2022 release Blood Harmony, and those songs sound even better live. Lead singer/guitarist Rebecca Lovell’s guitar lines rival anyone touring right now. Megan Lovell compliments Rebecca by playing her invention called the Electroliege—a lap steel guitar designed and structured to be played standing up. Harboring earth shattering guitar lines and innovation, Larkin Poe is an act that deserves substantially more recognition.

5:45 PM: Local Tempe natives, Gin Blossoms played the Right Field stage as the sun was beginning to set. Kicking off their set with “Follow You Down,” a track featured in the movie How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, the crowd was immediately thrown back to the ’90s. The sound is tried and true and remains a hit. There was no shortage of engagement in the crowd either. The Gin Blossoms are timeless and hit the stage like they were just starting in their hometown.

6:50 PM: One of the most recent names to explode in the music industry, Noah Kahan blew the roof off the Home Plate stage. 2023 was a wild year for Noah and his band as he was nominated for Best New Artist at the Grammys. Rightly deserving of a later time slot, Noah Kahan delivers music the fans connect to. Broaching hard hitting topics, he offers a vulnerability that genuinely seems to resonate with the audience. You have to take the good with the bad in life, and Noah Kahan is the epitome of this. He makes jokes about his family, his life, and everything under the sun during his sets. Almost like stand up comedy at times, he balances his sensitive lyrics with lighthearted fun.

7:55 PM: Morgan Wade closed out Right Field as performances on that side of the festival came to an end for the weekend. The star began her career in 2018 and immediately made a name for herself. Releasing music since then, Morgan Wade most recently dropped a single on March 1, just before the festival. She played the single third to last, right before “Jessie’s Girl,” a Rick Springfield nod. The artist and band jammed out and set up the crowd very nicely for the headliner.

9:00 PM: Dave Matthews Band took to Home Plate to close the first of hopefully many Extra Innings Festivals. The household name headlined with the longest set of the weekend with a 9:00–11:00 time slot. Having headlined Innings Festival in 2020, the band was no stranger to Tempe Beach Park. A bittersweet set as the festival was coming to a close, the crowd looked forward to Dave all day. Anytime I went to the Home Plate stage for a set as the day went on, I saw DMB merch and posters. It’s clear what the group means to people, and it’s an incredible thing to see the audience connect with the music. The group has a big name for a reason, and with an extremely loyal fan base the entire grounds for Home Plate was packed.

Capping off a memorable Extra Innings weekend, the festival set the bar incredibly high for the next few years. We’ll stay tuned to what they do, but the inaugural weekend could not have been better.

JOSIAH AND THE BONNEVILLES