Muse – Toyota Amphitheatre, Wheatland, CA – August 26, 2026
Why would anyone drive 400 miles from Los Angeles to a field in the middle of Northern California in the midst of the hottest summer on record? I was wondering the same thing as I navigated the final 30 miles north of Sacramento, exited the freeway, and drove towards a barren landscape, where besides the line of cars I was stuck in, there was nothing to indicate a destination of any sort. Several miles down the single lane road, a shape gradually emerged out of the green fields, though to the uninitiated it would have been impossible to tell what it was. As traffic inched forward, it slowly revealed itself to be the 18,500-seat Toyota Amphitheatre, and the reason so many cars were making the same commute into the fields was Muse, on night 23 of their The Wow! Signal Tour, with Portugal. The Man opening.
Muse
There is simply no other band like Muse – sonically, visually – even their custom instruments look and sound different than every other band…they are completely unique, and that became even more evident seeing them live. I chose to attend this show instead of the one closer to home in Los Angeles for selfish reasons – there would be less photographers applying for a press pass to a show in the middle of nowhere, and my odds of shooting would be improved – Muse wasn’t a band I wanted to miss, regardless of the 800-mile roundtrip. From the moment the lights dimmed, announcing that the band was about to come out, a roar erupted from the audience and didn’t let up. People knew what they were in for, and Muse only exceeded expectations!
Sonically, there isn’t a better or more interesting touring band. The sound blasting out of the PA system was huge, and as clean as anything I’ve ever heard – almost like listening through headphones. Matt Bellamy’s voice was incredible and at times otherworldly. When coupled with the strange and wonderful sounds coming out of his custom “Mattocaster” guitar, Chris Wolstenholme’s MIDI touchscreen bass, and Dominic Howard’s precise in-the-pocket drums, it was hard to believe that three men (along with touring keyboardist Dan Lancaster) alone were creating the tsunami of sound washing over the audience.
Visually, there was a little bit of everything. First off, the band itself was worth watching. Matt spent the night in constant motion – leaping into the air, rockstar posing, and pacing the entire stage while spending a good deal of time out on the thrust (catwalk). I don’t know how he was able to sing the notes he was hitting without being out of breath, but somehow, he managed. Chris was slightly more subdued, but spent plenty of time on both sides of the stage. The lighting was extraordinary, with lasers and moving lights on stage, confetti canons, smoke columns and pyro, as well as the most interactive camera work I’ve ever seen. In addition to the usual long lens cameras set up to showcase the band on screens for those seated in the back, there was a camera mounted on a small jib arm in the photo pit that moved all around Matt when he was on the catwalk. There were also two gimbal operators that moved freely around the stage, circling the band members, and bringing truly dynamic footage to the big screens.
The day started with temperatures over 100 degrees, but by the time Muse hit the stage, it had turned into a beautiful evening, with cool temperatures and a slight breeze, made even more memorable by the near-full moon rising slowly above the stage rigging as the night wore on. I wanted to see things from various angles, so I left my seat near the front to walk around and see what others were experiencing. In the upper lawn section, there were families with small children, and many people were dancing. I was standing on the lawn when Matt did a call and response with his guitar, playing a note, and asking the audience to sing back the note en masse. I’ve heard this before at concerts with singing (ala Freddie Mercury of Queen), but never with guitar notes – it was amazing hearing that many people roaring back their imitation of his guitar.
Muse is a band that needs to be seen and heard live – there’s nothing else like them, and that was evident on this night. The setlist was built to perfection, and even if you were only a casual fan, their biggest songs were sprinkled evenly throughout, building and eventually culminating in the final three songs “Undisclosed Desires”, “Starlight”, and “Take a Bow” – what a way to wrap up a magical evening of live music!
Muse is:
- Matt Bellamy – Guitar/Vocals
- Dominic Howard – Drums
- Chris Wolstenholme – Bass
Setlist:
1) Interlude
2) Hysteria
3) Cryogen
4) Supermassive Black Hole
5) Hexagons
6) Unravelling
7) Stockholm Syndrome
8) Kill or Be Killed
9) Be With You
10) Psycho
11) Madness
12) Plug In Baby
13) Hanging in Victory Square
14) Time Is Running Out
15) Uprising
16) Knights of Cydonia
17) The 2nd Law: Isolated System
18) Nightshift Superstar
19) Algorithm
20) Undisclosed Desires
21) Prelude
22) Starlight
Encore:
23) Take a Bow
Portugal. The Man
My car thermometer read 105 when I stepped out into the dirt parking lot to begin the dusty walk to the main gate at the Toyota Amphitheatre. It was hot, but there were tons of people already walking in the same direction and I fell in line with my cameras. I didn’t know a lot about Portugal. The Man besides the iconically catchy song “Feel it Still”, which I heard for the first time in a Vitaminwater commercial with actor Aaron Paul running on a treadmill. Portugal. The Man came out of the gates hot with “Feel it Still” and the audience responded by losing their minds.
Despite the heat, band leader John Gourley emerged wearing all black, including a full-length mask, a jacket, and a Suicidal hat, and let his songs do the talking for him. The rest of the band energized the already frenzied crowd, with vocalist/hype-man David Marion going out of his way to make sure everyone was up and dancing. Liv Slingerland on guitar made a huge splash with her incredible soloing, while bassist Tilley Komorny tore it up and danced around using every possible inch of the stage. Vincent Lirocci on drums provided the perfect groove to keep the party going as one song slipped into another, and the sun slowly set behind the last of the audience members in the distant lawn section of the amphitheatre.
Portugal. The Man are:
- John Gourley – Vocals/Guitar
- Tilley Anne Komorny – Bass
- David Michael Marion
- Liv Slingerland – Guitar
- Vincent Lirocchi – Drums
Setlist:
1) Feel It Still
2) Creep in a T-Shirt
3) Purple Yellow Red and Blue
4) Dummy
5) Modern Jesus
6) Glide
7) Phoenix
8) What, Me Worry?
9) Knik
10) Live in the Moment
Brooks Robinson is an LA-based concert photographer, and 30+ year freelance camera operator for film, television, and music videos. He has photographed some of the largest film/TV projects in history, and hundreds of music videos in MTV's heyday.
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