joan held their first headlining show in Manila with a pop at the New Frontier Theater on September 19. Presented by Live Nation, their Superglue Tour was met with hundreds of avid fans who jammed with them.

The American indie pop duo, composed of Alan Benjamin Thomas and Steven Rutherford, are no strangers to the Filipino stage. They had been part of a widely successful music festival and had a run of co-headlining mall shows with Honne in 2019.

“We’ve been here 3 or 4 times. Every time we come here, it feels like a big, warm hug,” Alan told the crowd.

joan opened the show with the sentimental “life death & everything between”. This was immediately followed by their lighter bops “simple”, “feeling like dancing” and “something special”.

It was easy to get into the groove of joan’s music. Their blend of light rock, interspersed with 90s electro-pop, saccharine tunes, and relatable lyrics, easily makes them familiar and likable. The duo’s stage presence was also electric and captivating.

The mood turned mellow for their stripped-down set for “magnetic”, “monsters” and “i loved you first”.

“We released our debut album called superglue. We put a lot of work into that like every band ever, but it means a lot to us since it’s our most personal album yet. We wrote songs about our new babies, we talked about our wives, heartache, loss, the meaning of life,” Alan said before playing the song. He also thanked the crowd for the unforgettable evening.

The good vibes kept rolling as the band played their signature tracks like “tokyo”, “love somebody like you” and “so good”.

Special thanks to Live Nation Philippines!

by Sandra Mae Laureano