The rays of a fresh summer sun poke through white fluff, clouds floating through a sea of light cerulean. The clear sky above beckons you to take a drive. You roll your windows down and let the warmth of the day kiss your skin as a breeze sweeps through your hair and pulls you into the horizon. You may not know it yet, but you’re going to make mistakes when you reach your destination — doing so is intrinsic to the metamorphic nature of your early to mid 20’s. You’ll learn a lot, and hurt some people in the process, but most importantly, you’ll carry your experiences with you forever. Don’t forget the songs that help make sense of it all along the way. Crank up the volume and step on the gas — the only suitable soundtrack for your journey is Welcome to My Blue Sky, the brand new record from indie rock band Momma. 

Through catchy, sun-soaked anthems and a grungy flare reminiscent of the 90’s, Welcome to My Blue Sky tells the story of a two month long tour the Brooklyn-based quartet embarked on in 2022, detailing the thrills of a mistake-filled summer and the consequential aftermath of making decisions you can’t take back. The beauty of the record is its unfiltered depiction of the countless miles that urged the band to explore what the world away from home had to offer — including a budding, and unfaithful, romance or two. This transparency is an open invitation for listeners to join the four on their simultaneous quest for personal understanding and accountability. Cue “The Welcome to My Blue Sky Tour.”

Ruby lights doused the heart charm and chain-adorned stage at Philadelphia’s Union Transfer last weekend. Fans of the band recognized the iconography instantly, elements of the new record’s cover displayed as a sign of its approaching live debut. Then emerged Momma, vocalist and guitarist Etta Friedman, vocalist and guitarist Allegra Weingarten, bassist Aron Kobayashi Ritch, and drummer Preston Fulks readying themselves to share their confessions with the crowd. “Welcome to Philadelphia,” an eager attendee shouted, extending a metaphorical your-secret’s-safe-with-me pinky. Leaning on their encouragement from and trust for the crowd, the band ventured into the honesty of their experiences laid out for all to see on Welcome to My Blue Sky.

The night opened where the story of the new record begins. Ironically, that’s with a goodbye. Equipped with her acoustic guitar, Allegra let the softness of “Sincerely” build alongside Etta as they shared an irreversible declaration. “Anyone that calls should know I don’t look back anymore. No return address, I love you to death but I’m outside the door,” they sang as they recounted shifting their priorities to embark on that notable summer tour and the exhilarating road of spontaneity-fused self-discovery. 

The fuzzy guitars of “I Want You (Fever)” swirled around Etta and Allegra’s dreamy vocals as they tried to make sense of their feelings brought on by the hazy adventures of a controversial love. Their voices continued to float around the stage, capturing the whimsy of their youth-driven escapades with “Ohio All The Time.” The band dove further into the resulting moral chaos with “Stay All Summer,” and “New Friend,” reflecting on the moments they followed their impulses and deepened their connections with others no matter the cost.

As if called upon by the last song, Indianapolis-based indie rock band Wishy entered the stage with a handful of drinks for the members of Momma, returning the favor from just an hour before when Momma did the same for them. This moment peaked at the theme of the record through a different lens, revealing its purpose as multifaceted — it was created not just as a diary of romantic fling-fueled entries, but as an homage to all of the special characters the band connected with along the way.

The record was the focal point of the night, but this didn’t stop the band from revisiting their past releases. “Go fast,” Etta commanded as they raised a pointed finger to the air and spun it in a circle to indicate the arrival of “Derby” from 2020’s Two of Me. Guitar-induced earworms crawled into the vocalist’s ears and urged them to shake their head, repeating the two-worded phrase through a cyclone of flying hair. Flame-colored lights danced across the crowd and delivered the alluring sensuality of “Bang Bang.” With the 2023 single, the band pulled the room into a spell of infectious head nods and leg taps as everyone followed the edgy rev of the rhythm. When it was time for “Tall Home” from 2022’s Household Name, the crowd cheered with an extra dose of enthusiasm. Through furrowed brows and breathy declarations, Etta uttered “I could be your everything” with a don’t-disrespect-me attitude. If there’s one thing these tracks conveyed, it’s that Etta, Allegra, Aron, and Preston have never been afraid to channel their fierceness.

As the band returned to the new record, blue lights aptly painted the stage for its title track. The breezy opening of “Welcome to My Blue Sky” called upon everyone to let the freeing feeling of seeing endless possibility in the open air above whisk them away. In complete unison, the crowd erupted as it sang “God is so good,” a lyric given to the band by someone they encountered on the road now ejected into a room filled with hundreds of people that made it theirs in a unique, but equally special way.

Etta geared up to end the evening with a simple, but powerful expression of their gratitude. “Thanks for coming out, this was very cool,” they stated before letting the wistful nostalgia of “My Old Street” wash over the room. As the band peered out into the adoration of an engaged fanbase, they embodied an encouraging message — you may not always be able to return to the places you’ve resided or people’s lives you’ve been a part of, but that doesn’t mean you can’t put one foot in front of the other and continue to create a life worth living. Sunset colored lights swept this piece of motivation across the crowd, serving as one last reminder to make the most of the great big adventure we call life. One by one, the band exited the stage — first Etta, then Allegra, Aron, and Preston, leaving the soft hues of orange and blue to finish filling the room, and every heart in it, with the magic of Momma.

“You can’t get rid of us that fast, Etta joked as the band returned for an encore. “Speeding 72” was a song the crowd had been begging for, and its turn on the setlist gave everyone the chance to revel in the excitement of a windows-down, let’s-see-where-the-wind-takes-us kind of ride once more. Each and every attendee sang along to the beloved fan-favorite, driving into the night of the purple lights as they digested the trek they had just taken, from embracing the highs of being young to facing the pains of growing older, learning from the heartache of your wrongdoings, and forging a future worth being proud of. Above all, everyone that night was on that ride together thanks to Momma, back seats packed with the support of others trying to grow from their mistakes, make peace with the past, and celebrate the magnificence of their blue skies.

Hop in — your blue sky is waiting for you too.