Arkells could have started the Between Us Tour anywhere, but after being at Town Ballroom last night, it was easy to understand why they chose Buffalo. Friday, April 17, 2026, was Night 1 of 2 sold-out shows at Town Ballroom for the Between Us Album Release Weekend, with the album dropping that same day, the whole night felt like more than just another stop on the schedule. It felt like a band choosing the exact right room to introduce a new record.
Max Kerman made that clear during the show. He told the crowd that, in his opinion, Town Ballroom is the best rock club in the world, and honestly, it was hard to argue with him in that moment. He also talked about why the band wanted to open the tour and do the album release there. Playing a brand-new album all the way through on day one is not always an easy thing to do, so they wanted to do it in a place where they have always been well received. That came through all night. There was already a level of trust in the room, and the Arkells played like they knew it.
They ran through Between Us front to back, and it never felt like the crowd was just waiting around for the older songs. That is what made the night feel special. This was not one of those shows where the new material feels like an obligation before the real party starts. The album was the event, and the crowd was with them the whole way.
One of the best moments from the full-album set came during “Ride,” when Max came out into the crowd and brought the performance right onto the floor. That instantly made the room feel even smaller and more connected. It was the kind of move that reminded you why Town Ballroom was such a perfect place to start this run. Even with a packed sold-out crowd, it still felt personal.
After the Between Us performance, the second set felt like a celebration. Arkells shifted into hits and fan favorites. The crowd was aware of how special this night was, and when the familiar songs started the roof just about blew off the place. Then came one of the coolest moments of the night, when the whole band, along with the Northern Soul Horns section, came out into the middle of the crowd and played surrounded by the audience. Max said they wanted to come out and do a campfire performance with the crowd, and it felt like a perfect extension of what the whole night already was: one big shared experience between the band and the audience. They played “Quitting You” in the middle of the Town Ballroom floor before heading back to the stage for a huge fan favorite “Book Club.”
That balance is what made the show work so well. Arkells gave Buffalo the full new album exactly as they wanted it to be heard, but they also made sure the night still had that release and celebration longtime fans wanted. It felt thoughtful without ever feeling stiff, and it felt loose and fun without losing the importance of the occasion.
Another great touch was how late they kept it going. Max said they were trying to play until 11:11, a nod to one of the band’s fan-favorite songs, and they basically played right up until 11:11 p.m. It was one of those little details that made the night even better because it showed how much thought they put into the whole experience.
For Night 1 of the Between Us Tour, Arkells really could not have asked for a better start. A sold-out Town Ballroom, a crowd ready to go wherever the band wanted to take them, a brand-new album played front to back, and the kind of intimate floor moments that make a show stick with you after it is over. This felt like the crowd and the band got something special. By the end of the night, Town Ballroom in Buffalo felt less like a venue choice and more like the only place this could have happened.
Read our full track-by-track album review of Between Us.
Between Us Album Review #29: Why Arkells’ Ninth Album Feels So Complete
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See Arkells Tour Dates & Tickets
Setlist
Between Us played in full
- Next Summer
- What Good?
- Ride
- Money
- Imagine Barcelona
- Desire’s Got Some Questions
- Universe Talking
- Two Hearts
- What’s On Your Mind
- Rumour
- Escape Door
Hits & Fan Favorites
- You Can Get It
- Past Life
- Leather Jacket
- Reckoning
- Skin
- Quitting You
- Book Club
- American Screams
- Life During Wartime (Talking Heads cover)
- Systematic
- Whistleblower
- Relentless
- My Heart’s Always Yours
- Knocking at the Door
Encore
- And Then Some
- 11:11
- Years in the Making
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