Mt. Joy’s latest album is titled “Hope We Have Fun” — and this ethos is imbued not only in the band’s discography, but in the experience of seeing them live in concert. From a snowstorm of confetti to a mid-show proposal, Mt. Joy’s September performance at TD Garden was undeniable proof that the band’s name is entirely deserved.

From the start, the band embraced the infectious enthusiasm of a TD Garden filled with billowing skirts, Carhartts, and cowboy boots. Audience members were equipped with wristbands that lit up in tandem, filling the stadium with waves of color that coalesced in the vibrant onstage set. Many of the digital backgrounds bordered on hallucinogenic: think hazes of blurred colors, eyes pouring out light, and a halo of gold and purple beams. 

The concert was divided into two sets, each delivering a mix of familiar fan favorites, recent releases, and surprising covers. One of the first numbers was a colorful rendition of Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” interwoven with “Let Loose,” a mashup promptly followed by the explanation: “Hell yeah! Such a good song— we had to.” 

And as unexpected of an opening as it is, you have no choice but to admit that in Mt. Joy’s capable hands, it is the perfect start to a concert that explores the many ways “life is a mystery.”

Other highlights of the first act included an entrancing piano interlude from keyboardist Jackie Miclau and a stirring performance of “Dirty Love,” during which a cloud-dusted night sky filled the background of the stage while Matt Quinn crooned at the microphone.

After a brief intermission, the band returned with the simple declaration: “We’re back.”

The second act brought even more excitement. In a nod to the political connotations of the song, “Sheep” was accompanied by red, white, and blue lights pulsing throughout the crowd. “A change is gonna come, love, but it’s all on us,” Quinn sang, a timeless message that nonetheless felt particularly resonant given the current political moment.

The band’s experimentation with color and theme continued with “Pink Lady,” during which a rose-colored frame dominated the background of the stage, and “I’m Your Wreck,” which featured an indecipherable, shifting blur of hues. “Astrovan” was accompanied by a trippy kaleidoscope of colors, apropos for a song that begins: “Angels smoking cigarettes on rooftops in fishnets.” 

Notable covers appeared again during this set, including a mashup which sandwiched “Julia”  in between parts of Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer.” This added a refreshing new lens to two beloved songs, highlighting the themes of displacement and infatuation in both. 

“Bathroom Light” was the poignant backtrack for a proposal in the audience— after which Quinn declared, “This is your engagement party, right now,” before launching into a fiery rendition of Wheatus’ “Teenage Dirtbag.” The moment reframed the song as a celebratory anthem, a sharp juxtaposition with the mellow, emotional spirit of “Bathroom Light” just moments before.

The members of Mt. Joy are masters of crowd work, frequently mobilizing the audience to clap to the beat and praising Boston’s sports teams to raucous applause. Clearly, the band knows their audience. But the most intimate and moving moment came when Quinn spoke about the inspiration behind the song “Lucy,” the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the urgent need for empathy. 

“You can get so sucked into your phone that you can lose hope in humanity and you can forget that there are so many good people who just want to love each other and take care of each other and take care of their families. And that's the vast, vast majority of people, and we travel all around the country and see that,” Quinn said. 

He continued, “Obviously, we're gonna have to fight. It's a privilege to not be going through those things, but people are going to have to stand up and fight for these people… So I hope that maybe this song has shown us the light, that humans are good, and that we are gonna fight through this. We're gonna stand up for each other when we have to and do what's right.“

It would be easy, in a show centered on lightheartedness and fun, to turn a blind eye to the darker, more urgent political realities weighing on our world. In making the conscious decision to elevate these social struggles and spotlight our communal responsibility to fight for change, Mt. Joy reminded listeners that true ”joy” means community care, challenging the power structures that profit from passivity, and advocating for those whose voices have been pushed aside.

The show ended with an encore during which the band materialized at the back of the stadium. These last few songs were triumphant renditions of some of the band’s most beloved hits: “Jenny Jenkins” and “Silver Lining.”

The concluding cascade of confetti felt emblematic of the night: one big celebration of music, of leaning into the messiness of life, of everything that makes us human. In short, after a two hour pilgrimage through musical highs and vocal valleys, we ultimately reached Mt. Joy.

Makenna Walko ’27 is a DJ and staff writer for The Blues Hangover.