📍 Moody Center — July 13, 2025
Written by: Krysta Ayers
Photos by: Drew Doggett
Silhouetted against a misty blue light, María Zardoya stands in profile with her mic raised as the first notes for “Hamptons” cut through the air and the crowd erupts into cheers. This is the first arena tour for The Marias and it’s an extension of last year’s Submarine Tour, stopping in cities that were missed the first go-around and leaning into the demand from fans.
When the lights bathe her, and María stands in front of her band, she is a dreamy Morticia Addams, pero con sazón. Her black floor-length, long-sleeved lace dress, with skin and black underwear to show underneath, is juxtaposed with the vulnerable and honest lyrics from the Submarine album, lying bare the raw emotions between her and Josh Conway (drummer/producer/co-founder of The Marías) after their breakup—and in many ways she’s dressed for the funeral of “what once was” while looking towards a new beginning.
With the moon as her backdrop, María melodically sings about white lies and goodbyes (“Real Life”) as her band turns the Moody Center into a dark, intimate, lounge bar with groovy drums and whimpering guitars (I don’t know how else to describe them). The music turns more dancey and up-tempo with “Run Your Mouth” but the lyrics recount a conflict to be avoided: “When we talk about / everything that happened / I don’t wanna listen / rather sit around.” It’s a good time to remember that María and Josh wrote this album together, and he sits behind his drum kit on stage with her.
The band plays a sweet cover The Cardigans’ “Lovefool” that delicately blends pop-alt as the band pivots into their 2020 single, “Care for You,” which is laden with the shoulder-moving grooves of Spanish-inspired percussion, topped with María’s honey-dripped voice.
After see-sawing between albums and emotions, Maria tells an enraptured crowd, “I give you permission to call your ex” and begins “Back to Me,” a single released earlier this year in April. All around me I see people scream-singing the lyrics, some holding onto the person they came with. And for the sake of Mercury going retrograde this week, I hope no one actually called their ex. Such would be the power of María and a well-executed song. (This is perfectly followed by the heartbreaking “Sienna.”)
She dedicates “Lejos de Ti” to her family in Puerto Rico, and later gives a shoutout to her gente latino. She keeps the energy moody, electric, and dreamy. The band plays “Hush” with a practiced flourish, and María even joins the crowd for “Otra atardecer,” the band’s collaboration with Bad Bunny—while wearing a Mexican flag as a cape. The encore includes “No One Noticed,” an abridged version of “Ojos tristes,” and “Cariño.” It is epic.
The first time I watched The Marías, I was freezing in a random parking lot in El Paso in 2022, watching from afar as the band braved the biting cold of the desert. Now, in a short three years, they are ready for a world takeover in arenas across the nation—playing their hearts out and taking us along for the ride. You’ll want to be there for the next one.