I had informally met lead singer Mike Brandon in the summer of 2024 whilst doing some bookings for Doors at Seven—a local, DIY booking agency based out of the Hudson Valley. We had a hold at Purgatory in Brooklyn for one of our in-house bands, Sir Echo, but needed a bigger, local band to beef up the bill.

Funnily enough, The Mystery Lights were releasing their third studio album, Purgatory, around the same time as our proposed date.

Usually, my booking requests got lost in the void—but I knew I had a good angle this time. I reached out to Brandon’s personal Instagram, and he was immediately intrigued by the idea.

That specific show never ended up working out (nor did we ever actually book the Mystery Lights), but I created a professional relationship with Brandon, which ultimately gave me backstage access at the Bowery Ballroom last April.

The following is what was created from my very first Almost Famous experience.