Soccer Mommy at Central Park SummerStage, NY, NY, September 16, 2025
On a late summer evening in New York City, Soccer Mommy brought her intimate, emotionally charged songs to Central Park’s SummerStage, offering a performance that felt both grounding and dreamlike. As the world seemed to spin with unease, Sophie Allison’s voice rose through the trees like a reminder of the quiet, personal truths that still matter most.
SummerStage itself is a venue that feels uniquely New York, set in the heart of the city but still wrapped by Central Park’s canopy. The stage, framed by tall trees, creates the illusion of a retreat, a temporary refuge away from the city’s constant roar. The open-air design lent itself perfectly to Soccer Mommy’s music, which thrives on space for guitar tones to linger, for Allison’s voice to stretch, allowing the audience to feel suspended between the city and the park. The weather itself seemed to conspire in favor of this show. It was one of those mid September nights where the chill of fall was just making itself known. It felt like nature mirrored the mood, calm and reflective, the way the end of summer always is.
Soccer Mommy’s setlist highlighted her evolution as a songwriter. The set opened with “Circle the Drain,” its shimmering guitars and deceptively upbeat tempo, had the crowd swaying and mouthing the words. The song’s theme was all the more relevant in today’s current state of events. The band segued into “Driver,” the first of seven cuts off of the latest release Evergreen. Her band brought muscle to the songs. Guitars chimed and rang out, sometimes fuzzed and distorted, other times crisp and delicate. “Abigail,” “Dreaming of Falling,” and “Thinking of You” were other memorable selections from the most recent release. Other standouts included “Shotgun” being kicked off by its powerful bass line which pulled the crowd into the groove. Allison’s voice floated out into the park during the slow burning “Scorpio Rising” a reminder of the value of small moments of clarity and calm. The visceral defiance of “Raw Dog” was a perfect epilogue of the night.
There was a striking peacefulness to the evening. People seemed to lean into the calm, grateful to be in a shared space. The communal act of listening to live music offered a small reprieve from life outside of the park. Leaving SummerStage, the contrast was stark, the city’s noise, traffic, and energy rushed back in as soon as you crossed the gates. But for ninety minutes, Soccer Mommy created a bubble of peace, a fragile but powerful reminder that even when the world feels overwhelming, there are still songs that can make it feel bearable, or even beautiful.
https://soccermommyband.com/
