Albany’s Empire Live doesn’t usually host weather systems, but on Tuesday, September 30, Marianas Trench tried anyway. The Force of Nature Tour rolled in with fake grass, fake snow, and a vibe that at times felt more like an Ace Hardware display gone rogue than a concert.
For some fans, this was religion. They screamed like the band had crawled straight out of their old iPods, ready to soundtrack every Myspace heartbreak and journal entry nobody admits to writing.
But the real storm that night? It wasn’t Marianas Trench. It was the opener, Senses. From the first note, they didn’t just win the crowd—they owned it.
Madison Taylor’s voice erupted, filling the room like the walls couldn’t contain her. Their songs hit like fireworks: big, bright, impossible to ignore. When they dropped their cover of Chappell Roan’s “Good Luck, Babe!” the place went off.
It wasn’t irony. It wasn’t a TikTok wink. It was their conviction that turned Empire Live into their house. Pure, high voltage. For nearly thirty blistering minutes, Senses weren’t an opener. They were the main event.
Next up, The Summer Set brought nostalgia you could sip like warm milk. Singalongs, sincerity, and memories of summers that probably weren’t as perfect as we’d all like to remember. The moment fans will be talking about long after the amps cooled: Frontman Brian Logan Dales left the stage and waded into the crowd, singing shoulder-to-shoulder with the people who grew up on his words.
It was connection, simple and unfiltered. Empire Live felt less like a venue, inching closer and closer to a high school homeroom packed with old friends.
Enter Marianas Trench. Spotlights rising, harmonies stacked up like skyscrapers, every detail polished until it gleamed. The band sounded flawless, near studio-perfect. The theatrics, usually their strength, came off over promised and undersold, at times pulling focus from the music itself.
The Force of Nature Tour seemed determined to force nature itself: painted wooden grass sprouting from the stage and drum riser, soft flurries of fake snow drifting down and before the band even took the stage, a guy wheeled out an actual lawnmower, started it up and was mowing—a moment that seemed more Pop-Pop’s Honey-Do List than rock show
The gag soared with all the grace of a lead balloon. Awkward, ridiculous and funny for all the wrong reasons, leaving fans wondering what exactly it was supposed to mean. It threatened to overshadow where the band truly shines: the music.
Musically, Marianas Trench were beyond reproach. Harmonies airtight, setlist stacked like a Jenga tower, fans singing every lyric like many had been waiting a lifetime. “Good to You” swelled into a venue-wide duet, the kind of thing only years of devotion can deliver. Their chops were undeniable, and at times the connection was unmistakable.
The biggest highlight, came from the unexpected: Senses blowing the roof off before Trench even took the stage.
For diehards, a career-spanning set was the payoff after years of waiting. But for anyone watching with both eyes open, the storm had long passed and its name was Senses.
Setlist: A Normal Life, Rhythm Of Your Heart, Desperate Measures, Lightning and Thunder, I’m Not Getting Better, Here’s To the Zeros, One Love, All To Myself, Into The Storm, Down To You, Cross My Heart/Celebrity Status/Shake Tramp, Turn and Run, Pop 101, Haven’t Had Enough, Who Do You Love, Only The Lonely Survive, Porcelain/Good To You, Stutter, Fallout
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