by Caitlin Dennis | May 28th , 2025

All images are from Briston Maroney’s - The Long Hair, Long Life Tour in Chicago, IL on 5/28/25.

On Wednesday May 28 Peach Pit, Briston Maroney, and Bnny, made a pit stop at the BMO Pavilion in Milwaukee. While the weather was not ideal, a tad overcast and sprinkles of raindrops here and there, fans still piled into the pavilion to enjoy a night of music.

Unfortunately, a shut down on the interstate caused me to miss Bnny’s set, and I was sad to miss it (oh the joys of traveling from Chicago to Milwaukee, lesson learned, three hours is not enough time to get there apparently) I was looking forward to getting to see them live! Bnny is an indie rock band out of Chicago. They just released their latest album ‘One Million and Three Love Songs’ a walk through love and break ups. I’ll definitely be keeping them on my radar and hopefully get the privilege to see them perform live here in the future.

When I did arrive though, there was an air of energy buzzing around the venue. While it may have looked like there were plenty of empty seats in the venue, the ones that were filled held excited fans, old and young alike. And just like that it was time for Briston Maroney’s set!

I’ve been a casual fan of Briston since he released ‘Carnival’ back in 2018 (would you believe that a singular EP would house two of my all time favorite songs? He is a fabulous song writer.) but this was the first time I’ve gone to see him live. Briston just released their latest album ‘Jimmy’ this May ahead of the tour. The set graced the stage and transported the audience into a forest with rocks, moss, and various flora and fauna that set a whimsical tone. Throughout the set Briston had many fun moments with the audience, telling stories, and if I’m remembering correctly there was a cooler with some drinks they handed out to the pit as well. At one point they brought on a member of Peach Pit to play the violin for a few songs, which was a nice surprise. Briston’s vocals were wonderful live, with raw emotion coming through in every note they sang. I can’t wait to get back to one of his live shows.

As the forest was taken down before our eyes, a sleek, minimalist stage appeared in preparation for Peach Pit, a stark contrast for the two bands. The lighting design on their set was spectacular. A wall of circular lights lined the back of the stage, that created a super exiting visual throughout the show, changing colors and intensities as the music played. Boy does Peach Pit know how to put on a show. Their lead singer, Neil Smith does these wild hair flips and then effortlessly keeps on performing. It almost made me dizzy just watching. Its impressive. Energy was high the whole set, even when the music mellowed down. It was a joy to get to see them perform live and the fans weren’t ready for it to end. They definitely have me wanting to go see them again on the next tour!