Review by Val Tapia
Photos by Fred Kuhlman
One could fairly say that downtown Tempe was “the place to be” during the weekend of February 20th – 22rd for the eighth-annual Innings Festival. With plenty of “alternative rock” acts from headliner Mumford & Sons as well as Goo Goo Dolls and Grouplove to name a few, most seemed to have a good time overall.
Given the baseball-themed nature of the festival, everywhere you looked, there were fans wearing their favorite team’s jersey, cap, etc. Who knows, maybe some of them came after attending one of the many Cactus League spring training games? Like most day-long festivals, the crowds tend to increase significantly by 7:00 p.m.
It’s good to see that the word is getting out more and more for what the Left Field has to offer for both baseball and music fans. On paper, yes, the live mid-afternoon talk show “Off The Mound w/ Ryan Dempster” probably doesn’t sound ideal to many. But if you picture a late-night talk show with a “house band” (called The Hemispheres, in case you were wondering) to accompany the host, that’s exactly what this is. Like I said, the only difference is that this gig takes place outdoors.
Fans had the chance to meet Major League Baseball players such as Dontrelle Willis and Brandon Crawford, as well as ESPN MLB analyst Jessica Mendoza.
It should be said that getting into the festival was relatively smooth. The lines were fairly small and the “Innings” staff seemed to be well organized during this first weekend of the festival. I think that’s partly due to the “clear bag” policy, making the line go a bit faster than people might realize.
One beef though: one unopened bottle of water per person should be permitted when entering the park. No different than an outdoor venue like the Pavilion. Remember, this is Arizona… it’s the desert. Yes, even in late winter one can dehydrate if they’re not careful. I know, that’s a shocking revelation. But I digress.
It was interesting to hear how many fans appreciated the artificial “grass” that was all over the Home Plate area. To that point, I imagine some fans were also thinking if it would be feasible to install some of that grass at the Right Field stage as well. Which, unfortunately, it likely isn’t due to the fact there are more “hills” on that part of Tempe Beach Park.
Speaking of Home Plate, it was honestly surprising how well-received the New York based Goo Goo Dolls were. Even though they emerged in the late 80s, they’re understandably more linked to the 90s. In fact, they didn’t play any songs earlier than 1995, when the band released its “breakthrough” album A Boy Named Goo.
Songs like “Naked”, “Big Machine”, “Home”, and of course, “Name” and “Iris” were performed to a packed crowd by the time they took the stage at 6:35 p.m. One thing I can say, without fail, is that all the bands did start on time for their scheduled slot.
In fact, I even saw a clock on stage during the “Dolls” set. They finished their 75-minute set in 74:30— in case you were wondering good readers. Now that’s what I call efficient! By the way, for a minute I thought they recruited syndicated (and Sirius XM) radio personality Eddie Trunk on drums. From my vantage point, it certainly looked like him on the video screens. Then I remembered, he has never played an instrument in his life. Pretty funny though.
It’s pretty hard to believe that Mumford & Sons are already over the 15-year mark as a recording act. In fact, the timing of Innings Fest couldn’t have been better for the band. On Friday February 20th they released their sixth studio album Prizefighter. Lead vocalist Marcus Mumford said they were “happy to have Tempe be the place for our album release party”.
The band did a cross section of songs from five of their six albums to date. Songs like “Little Lion Man”, “Awake My Soul”, and “White Blank Page” were certainly well-received. But just as importantly, new songs such as “Prizefighter”, “Rubber Band Man” and “The Banjo Song” also went over surprisingly well. The musicianship is stellar, with a solid brass section as well. However, it’s the songs that really matter most with Mumford & Sons. To their credit I should say.
It seemed like Saturday February 21st was the most crowded, even earlier in the day. At Left Field, you had MLB players Shawon Dunstan, Torii Hunter, and Mark Grace. All of the baseball activities like the Speed Pitch and the Batting Cage were busy most of the day. They were definitely more attended this year than in previous years. Y ou could hear all the participants shouting and “competing” like they were playing in a spring training game themselves. At times, their cheers would drown out the guests during the “Off The Mound” interviews.
Going back and forth from Home Plate to Right Field stage is still irritating because you’re likely going to miss either the last song or the first song of any given act on the bill. That said, there isn’t any way to avoid that, given the five-minute only break in between bands.
As I overheard many conversations around me throughout the day, the ones that stood out toward night’s end centered on how surprised fans were with Cage The Elephant. I can understand why. Many felt they nailed the hybrid of 90s “alternative rock” and “classic rock” perfectly. You add pyro and showmanship to the mix, and you get a band that knows how to draw from influences yet deliver a sound that’s ultimately…Cage The Elephant.
Adding a third night of Innings Fest for the first time since its inception in 2018 was, frankly, unnecessary. In fact, it can be argued that it’s just plain overkill. Sure, you had headliner Blink-182 to conclude the night, but they could’ve easily played on Friday or Saturday night. Mostly because they finished their scheduled 90-minute set in roughly 75 minutes. Sublime wasn’t bad, but I can’t say its music is anything special either.
Public Enemy overall deserved to close the Right Field stage. The 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee did its best to cram in as much music as possible within the hour-long time slot. Funny thing is, they actually went over by five minutes. But hey, that’s rock and roll for you, I guess!
The New York-based band’s influence is undeniable. It’s also no secret that their music is the *soundtrack* to their *message*. With plenty of scathing social commentary to go around, Public Enemy certainly played classics like “Welcome To The Terrordome”, “Bring The Noise” and “911 Is A Joke”. There were also a couple of songs from their new album, 2025’s Black Sky Over The Projects: Apartment 2025 in the set.
It wasn’t long before Chuck D gave the audience his take on how things really are in America. He referred to Donald Trump as “45 and 47” which went down a storm for the most part. He also took a well-deserved shot at KISS’ Gene Simmons for him saying over the years that rap/hip hop “doesn’t belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”. Chuck D added “Gene, you may rock, but we f\*\*kin’ roll”.
There was a part in the set that was, shall I say, a *shameful* facepalm moment by Flavor Flav. As Chuck D called out the Trump administration about failing to release the entire Epstein files, Flav made a ridiculous comment stating “I’ve never been to an Epstein party or a gay party”.
In short order, conflating the two was just a flat-out cheap shot against the LGBTQ+ community. It was equally disturbing hearing people roar in approval in the audience soon after. For the record, even Chuck D had an incredulous look on his face after Flav’s stupid remark.
Yes, facial expressions can and do speak volumes. Hopefully, Flav will do better next time. That’s all that needs to be said about that.
By the way, there isn’t a better way to end a Public Enemy set than with “Fight The Power”, one of the most significant protest songs of the 1980s.
The Final Verdict? As a whole, Innings Festival gets 3.5 out of five stars.
