Where the Desert Listens Back: Dreamy Draw 2025 in Full Bloom
By Stella Speridon-Violet
Image Credit: @dreamydrawfest via Instagram
Last weekend, Gut Instinct Media attended Dreamy Draw 2025 and explored all the music festival had to offer. With a promising lineup, lots of activations, activities, and local vendors, our hopes were high.
And, we were not disappointed.
Under the sharp November sun, the Sonoran Desert glowed gold, which made for a perfect canvas for Dreamy Draw’s annual return. With headliners The Lumineers and Vampire Weekend, fans across all genres were promised a good time.
The festival, tucked near the heart of Old Town Scottsdale, has become something of a pilgrimage for folk fans and desert dreamers alike: a weekend of sound, soul, and stillness.
But this year, something about Dreamy Draw felt different. Maybe it was Father John Misty’s electric final number that had the crowd swaying shoulder to shoulder, or maybe it was the way Sophia Rankin’s voice caught in the late afternoon wind.
Whatever it was, the festival reminded everyone that folk music, in all its raw, human simplicity, still hits deeper when the air smells like dust and the sun won’t quit.
Crowds drifted between the three stages with drinks in hand, woven blankets draped across shoulders as the desert wind picked up in rhythm with the music.
Local vendors lined the perimeter, slinging everything from handmade jewelry and vintage Western hats to Sonoran hot dogs that hit just right after a long day in the sun.
The festival also offered outside venue deals for those with tickets, such as $5 mimosas, bellinis, and well bloody marys at Glenrosa or 15% off your order at a nearby Jimmy John’s, which was an amazing deal on top of the live music presented both days.
Image Credit: @beccag_photography via Instagram
Katie Mae and the Lubrication - Friday Night
One of the weekend’s standout sets came from Katie Mae and the Lubrication, whose gritty-meets-tender energy felt like a love letter to the desert itself.
“One of the things that I love most about Phoenix,” Katie Mae told Gut Instinct Media, “is that even though it seems like everyone here is from somewhere else, after awhile the sounds of the desert just start appealing to them. I'm not sure if it's what brings people here or a developed taste, but whenever we play for our hometown crowd, everyone just seems to get it.”
That “get it” energy was all over their set with part heartbreak, part highway, and part redemption. Katie Mae said curating that emotional ride was intentional: “My favorite bands have always written a wide range of songs, and one of my favorite parts of going to their shows is how they weave those different emotions together into an experience that feels as diverse and cohesive as their catalogue. Some nights I want to leave people thinking, and other nights I want to set up the after-party. Dreamy Draw was an opportunity to do both.”
That philosophy, equal parts introspection and ignition, fits perfectly within the Alt-Western sound the band is carving out.
“Alt-Western is actually a term that I made up,” Katie Mae said, “so that's a really interesting take. To me, it's all about honesty and integrity in whatever form that takes in a given song.”
The set itself mirrored that honesty.
“I was really impressed with the scheduling and design of the festival,” she said. “All of the stages sounded amazing and there was enough space where everyone could easily catch all of the different acts and have time to truly sit with them instead of just hustling for a decent seat. It was really special to have new and old fans alike get to comfortably catch our full set.”
And even after the amps cooled and the lights dimmed, Katie Mae was still thinking about the crowd.
“I was truly taken aback by how many people I noticed during the set singing along with our songs,” she said. “The festival seemed like such a great opportunity to get all of our fans out, it unified our local following, because that type of lineup gives everyone more than one reason to get off the couch and enjoy the experience of live music together.”
Image Credit: EYELIE.MXF
Sophia Rankin and The Sound - Friday Night
Friday also found its surge with Sophia Rankin & The Sound, who drove up from Tucson and delivered one of the festival’s most infectious sunset sets. “We weren’t sure what to expect,” Sophia admitted, “but we were met with nothing but love and incredible energy.”
The crowd danced and sang, swelling larger as the sun sank behind the hills. “The best part about playing live is connecting with people who know you, and also the new fans discovering you for the first time. We made so many new friends and connections at Dreamy Draw.”
Their setlist draws on years of original work, blending high-energy folk rock, pop-forward crowd-pleasers, and slower confessional moments. “We wanted to be more than a crowd-pleaser,” she said. “We wanted to show the audience who we are and what we’ve been through.”
Live, the band reshaped familiar tracks into something bigger and more intimate, like the explosive reimagining of their most-streamed song “Mourning Song,” or the crowd shouting “YOU MAKE ME SICK” on their single “Sick in the Head.” “You can listen anywhere,” Sophia said, “but you can only truly experience our songs if you hear them live.”
Being part of Dreamy Draw carried weight. “Seeing our name alongside The Lumineers, Marcus King Band, Ashe, Thee Sacred Souls, Vampire Weekend, Local Natives… it means the hard work is paying off.”
One moment stuck with her: “As the sun was going down, more and more people filled in the lawn in front of our stage… strangers choosing to spend their time with us was so heartwarming.” And seeing young girls ask for photos after their set? “That hit me. When youth see people like themselves represented on stage, they take those moments with them.”
She remembered being that girl once, watching Brandi Carlile command a crowd. “Dreamy Draw helped me feel like I was fulfilling that goal.”
As for what’s next: “We’re finishing a new album and headlining a holiday show at Tucson’s newest venue, La Rosa, on December 13th. And 2026 show dates are on the way.”
Image Credit: @danfaughnder via Instagram
Deloyd Elze - Saturday Afternoon
If Katie Mae and the Lubrications brought the fire, Deloyd Elze brought the quiet that makes it burn brighter.
His Dreamy Draw set carried a kind of soul and stillness, the type that makes you stop mid-sentence and listen. When asked how the desert’s energy shaped his performance, Elze said, “Sleeping on the Motel 6 floor will do that to you.”
There’s a wry humor and hard truth in his music, the kind that sneaks up on you mid-song. “I try to be as honest as I can be and hopefully people are receptive to that,” he said. “It’s everyone’s vacation.”
Trying to pin down Elze’s sound is a fool’s errand, and he’s the first to admit it. “I think at this point I’ve gone so far down this road that I am fully lost on what to call this thing,” he said. “The best thing I can come up with is digital twang.”
That blend of sincerity and experimentation hit a raw nerve with the crowd, but the moment that stuck most for him came after the set: “One of the security staff told me that he liked the music and asked if he could give me a hug.”
For Elze, the desert isn’t just a backdrop; it’s a collaborator. “The desert is one of the truest places of solitude,” he said. “I find that musically it can pull some things out of you that have been dormant for a long time.”
Image Credit: Axel Tamayo
Set Highlight - Father John Misty
On Saturday night, Father John Misty opened up with I Guess Time Just Makes Fools of Us All and electrified the stage, decorated with a full band and intentional moodlighting.
This was my second time seeing the “father,” and I equate the feeling of seeing him live to what I would expect a church service to feel like to a devoted Catholic.
The crowd went wild from the start, particularly the group of men standing next to us during the entire set. They were screaming to each song at the top of their lungs, no matter if the song was sultry and slow or more upbeat, and I loved it.
There was a particular moment during Nancy From Now On, a song that has been out for well over 20 years, where Josh (Father John Misty) felt raw, real, and connected to the art he has made.
From a live-music lover, that is exactly what you want to see in a performer: a true and honest connection to not just your audience, but to your hard work and the art that came from it, no matter how long ago a specific song has been out for.
He put on quite the show at the Bronco stage with a healthy mix of his latest album, Mahashmashana, and his classics like “Hollywood Forever Cemetery." And, if you haven’t seen him live yet or heard his music at all, I highly recommend tuning in.
Image Credit: @dreamydrawfest via Instagram
Across three stages, dozens of artists, and thousands of footsteps in the dust, Dreamy Draw once again proved that Arizona’s music scene isn’t just alive, it’s evolving, stretching, sharpening. It’s honest. It’s imperfect in the most perfect way.
And this year?
It felt like the desert itself was singing back.
