Review and photos by Katrina Gelety

The Maine’s I Love You, But I Chose The Maine Tour came to Stage AE in Pittsburgh, PA on April 14, 2026. It was a jam packed, energetic night with three openers: Friday Pilots Club, Nightly, and Grayscale. Each band put on a phenomenal performance and got everyone in the audience ready for The Maine.

When it was time for The Maine to take the stage, I was curious as to what their opening song would be. They had changed it multiple times while on tour, and it was fun to be kept on my toes. They chose to open with “Thoughts I Have While Lying in Bed,” and I was stoked to see a song that I hadn’t seen two nights prior at their show in Columbus, Ohio — where they opened with “Another Night on Mars.”

The band snuck in some tunes from their most recent album release, Joy Next Door. I loved getting to hear “Die to Fall,” “Palms,” and “Quiet Part Loud.” It was amazing seeing the energy the audience gave to the new songs as well. Everyone was singing along to those songs as loud as they were for songs from The Maine’s earlier discography, like “Right Girl” and “We All Roll Along.” For a band that has been around as long as The Maine has, it has to be extremely validating and rewarding to see the audience continue to enjoy the new music you put out.

One of my favorite moments was when singer John O’Callaghan went into the audience and chose a crowd-goer to sing the last chorus of “We All Roll Along,” saying, “This is Chris from Cleveland!” The audience proceeded to boo since there’s small Pittsburgh/Cleveland beef, so O’Callaghan then said, “This is Chris from Pittsburgh!” to appease the crowd. Then, when Chris took over singing, O’Callaghan had the audience crowd surf him back to the stage.

John O’Callaghan’s antics are some of my favorite moments of every The Maine show. He’s constantly cracking jokes and making sure the audience is engaged, often coming into the crowd to join in on the dancing. I took a friend of mine to her first The Maine show back in 2021, and after one of O’Callaghan’s comedic moments, she leaned to me and said while giggling, “Is he like this at every show?” And yes, I can promise you, he is.

A heartwarming moment was when the band played their song “Take Me Dancing” and invited the opening bands to join them on stage. Singers Caleb Hiltunen from Friday Pilots Club, Jonathan Capeci from Nightly, and Collin Walsh from Grayscale joined O’Callaghan in singing the choruses. Some band members were toward the back of the stage shaking random foods like they were percussion shakers keeping beat with the song. The moment this song created in the set felt like pure magic and lead to my friends and I to put our arms around each other and dance in a circle which O’Callaghan spotted and approved of.

This show was my 35th time seeing The Maine, and it truly never gets old. They make sure to provide a safe and inviting place to spend your evening, and they even stay after each show to talk to as many fans as they possibly can. I’ve met so many of my friends through this band, and I will forever be grateful. Here’s to another 35 (and more) shows in the future!

The Maine just announced and released tickets for their last headlining shows of 2026, The Tour Next Door. I highly encourage everyone reading to check and see if there’s a show near you so that you can go and experience how incredible they are — or you can even find a new place to travel to! I’ve seen The Maine in nine different states and will be crossing off my 10th in the fall! 

If you want to see more fun from the show, you can check out photos I took below!