Saint Motel comes to Grand Rapids
By Ashlyn Armock, Arts Editor
An indie pop band, Saint Motel, came to the Intersection in Grand Rapids on Oct. 11 as a part of their international “Symphony in the Sky” tour. The group was joined by Adan Diaz as their opener.
The band Saint Motel grouping together for a final bow at the end of the concert – Photo by Ashlyn Armock
In addition to various cities in the United States, Saint Motel also performed in Australia and Europe including but not limited to: Paris, London, Amsterdam and Croxton. Once the group goes through the rest of the scheduled spots in the United States, the band then is planned to head down to Mexico to play in Guadalajara, Monterrey and Mexico City.
Throughout Saint Motel’s tour in Europe, they had openers such as indie-pop artist Natalie Shay, singer/songwriter Iraina Mancini and singer/songwriter Charlie Collins perform. Saint Motel also supported the band Young the Giant in a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado.
Saint Motel performing “Wait & See” – Photo by Ashlyn Armock
The “Symphony in the Sky” tour showcases not only the band’s album “Symphony in the Sky,” which was released on Feb. 14, 2025, but also the band’s newest album “Afterglow.” The newest album was released on Oct. 11, 2025 and is a continuation of the “Symphony in the Sky” album.
The concert began with Adan Diaz as the opener featuring songs such as “bestfriends girl,” “jerk x2,” “legroom,” “shake, shake” and their most recently released single “annie’s got a gun.” The band also performed a new song which has yet to be released.
Adan Diaz performing “bestfriends girl” – Photo by Ashlyn Armock
The last time that Saint Motel performed in Grand Rapids was at the Hoogenboom Center, almost exactly ten years ago before their performance at the Intersection.
The first song performed by Saint Motel was “Puzzle Pieces,” the most popular song on Spotify off of their debut album. The group continued to play songs from each of their albums, as well as their newest album, which had just been released the day of the concert. Some of the songs performed include: “My Type,” “Sweet Talk,” “A Good Song Never Dies,” “Fine Wine,” “Get It At Home,” “Move” as well as many others.
Saint Motel setting up to perform “A Good Song Never Dies” – Photo by Ashlyn Armock
During the concert, AJ Jackson, the lead singer of the group, mentioned that the band had explored some of downtown before the concert. This included spots such as Madcap coffee in downtown Grand Rapids.
One of the concertgoers, Elizabeth Vredevelt, was particularly impressed with the performance. “I felt that the Saint Motel concert was a smashing success,” said Vredevelt. “The band was able to seamlessly weave their beloved classic hits into the set list of their newer repertoire in a way that both new and old fans could appreciate. Their voices sounded the same, if not better than their recorded song versions, and the stage presence of their lead singer was particularly notable.”
Due to the popularity of their tour, the band has added 25 new show dates to the tour as well as six new openers: Angel White, Brigitte Calls Me Baby, Great Good Fine OK, Oliver Hazard, Stolen Gin, and The Divorce.
Future tour dates and tickets can be found in the link below:
The Saint 