PHOENIX — Arizona weather has been chaotic recently. We’ve had our sweltering days, relentless in the waves of heat emanating from every direction, making residents want to stay inside and bask in the glory of central air. Recently, with the monsoons, we’ve even been granted some of that humidity we’ve all heard so much about but rarely experience. We needed a reprieve from this heat and occasionally muggy air. Seeing Fitz and The Tantrums’ recent performance at the Arizona Financial Theatre was a spiritual amnesty — a stay of execution from excessive heat, if you will. 

Fitz and The Tantrums

“We’re Fitz and The Tantrums!
Now, get your hands in the air!” 

Fitz and The Tantrums’ arrival on stage seemed perfectly timed, as the seats had just completely filled, and the general admission around the stage had swelled to occupy every inch of space. The band’s dynamic hybrid of neo-soul and indie pop was the ideal remedy to combat the steamy temps and stifling air, a refreshing breeze that cools the body and revitalizes the soul. 

The band opened with “Sway” and “Heaven,” letting the audience fully feel the moment, come alive, and cosmically link with the music. The energy was immediate, like an electric current surging through the crowd, passing from one person to the next. In those two songs, there was a moment of magic as the crowd began to dance. In the pit, they moved in unison, and it continued, like the wave at a sporting event, rising through the crowd and bringing those in the seats to their feet as they began to move. 

What makes Fitz and The Tantrums so appealing and beloved by their audience — which ranged from young children to adults who have followed them for the entirety of their 17 years of existence — is their ability to blend old and new sounds into something wholly unique. For example, I noticed a family in front of me with three kids, approximately five to early teens, all of them overjoyed and grooving to every song, never once sitting down during the set. Each song seamlessly combines elements of classic soul, funk, and jazz, evoking an auditory experience that is both timeless and undeniably fresh. — a perfect cocktail of nostalgia with a modern twist. 

As they powered through the next few songs — “OCD,” “Good Intentions,” and the relentless pop of “123456,” accompanied by the most enthusiastic, theatre-wide clap-along anyone has ever witnessed — they built momentum, with the band visibly feeding off of the crowd’s energy. Multi-instrumentalist James King, bassist Joseph Karnes, keyboardist Jeremy Ruzumna, and drummer Blair Sinta kept the heat up so that co-lead vocalists Michael Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs, leading the clapping, could cook. Their cover of The Eurythmics “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” originally released on their Live in Chicago album, was a delightful mid-set surprise. 

With “Out of My League,” the band really hit the gas, urging the crowd to “lift a big heart into the sky.” The audience responded majestically, with both hands flying to the sky to form a field of swaying hearts, moving back and forth as if the music was the winds blowing them to and fro. Just as Fitz and the Tantrums got those symbolic hearts swaying and their literal hearts thumping, they built a giant backing-vocal ensemble from the crowd with “Moneymaker.” 

In a personal moment, Fitzpatrick spoke about his wife, a native of Gilbert, and the time they spend in the area, visiting her family during holidays, signifying how much Arizona means to him and is in his heart, like a second home. Phone lights illuminated the theatre for “I Just Wanna Shine,” creating a sea of light. “All the Feels,” “The Walker,” and “Moneygrabber” propelled the show into the home stretch. After a moment when Fitzpatrick and Scaggs reflected on their journey as a band across the past 17 years, they led the show to a triumphant close with “Hand Clap.” 

Right now, Arizona may be sultry on its best days and searing (mostly) on its worst, and Fitz and The Tantrums brough love and cool vibes to refresh us all.

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Photographer: Katherine Amy Vega

Fitz and The Tantrums – Arizona Financial Theatre 8-8-24

Photography © Katherine Amy Vega, Kataklizmic Design
All Rights Reserved.