Train brought the hits and rocked the high rollers at Pechanga Casino
On Thursday March 26th, pop-rock band Train brought their unique brand of California soul to Pechanga Casino in Temecula, California. Formed in 1993 the San Francisco band is known for their melodic pop hooks, classic rock influences, and for crafting insanely catchy modern tunes out of familiar melodies. Train is a really fun live act and a talented band, they have play so many famous songs and great covers, it’s easy to easy for them to fill out a long set of memorable music. Singer Pat Monahan has a wonderful range, with his unique and catchy voice, and works a large crowd with ease. He is currently the only remaining original member of the group, but has assembled a killer ensemble around him these days. One of the band’s most famous albums “Drops of Jupiter” from 2001, is now celebrating it’s 25th year, and a unique concert at SDSU was held the next day after this show to celebrate that album with more coverage is coming soon. This show at Pechanga’s beautiful 3,000 seat Summit venue, was very well produced with top notch sound and lighting and beautiful giant screens flanking the stage making every seat in the house a great one.
Legendary music producer and guitarist Butch Walker, who has previously produced and written songs for the band, was a welcome sight at this show, recently joining the live group in 2025, his solos and playing were fantastic and fun to watch, and he brings incredible energy to the stage. Pat Monahan for his part was the consummate frontman, singing beautifully, playing to the crowd, and even catching tons of cell phones thrown up to him from the audience for selfies. The veteran artist had clearly leaned into social media and viral moments and is one of those artists constantly evolving and somehow remaining relevant in a wildly changing musical landscape. An early cover of Steve Miller’s “Joker” preceded by “Meet Virginia” was fantastic, as was a rendition of the hit “Angel in Blue Jeans” which the band seamlessly morphed into Hozier’s “Too Sweet.” According to his stage banter Pechanga Casino is one of the first places Pat Monahan dated his wife, which was a really fun and personal story. Another highlight was a call out to all the fans in the large audience seeing Train for the first time, when the house lights went up it was surprising to see a vast majority of the crowd with hands raised, getting to see these songs performed live for the first time.
Train’s setlist included songs from albums released throughout their long career. Highlight’s included many singalong hits like “Calling All Angels” “Play That Song” “50 Ways to Say Goodbye” “Hey Soul Sister” and “Drive By.” A newly released song called “The Weekend” was a fun new twist on Train’s sound, clearly with a bit of country influence and seemed to be well received by the large crowd. “Bruises” was another song in a similar style featuring some lovely harmony vocals by Walker, while all the other members of the band took turns singing the woman’s parts in the song. The band weaved a ton of great covers through the set as well, with an acoustic version of “Going to California” by Led Zeppelin showing off Monahan’s impressive vocal skills, and a great rendition of“Under Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie led into the band’s closing song “Drops of Jupiter.”
Seeing Train live at Pechanga Casino was a wonderful concert experience. The band puts up a a fantastic set of enjoyable songs and is clearly loving playing these hits live for such an eager audience. Despite having many newer members in the group, the songs sound authentic, and the vibes of the current lineup are great. Thirty-Three years into his career Pat Monahan is still singing his heart out at these shows, and keeping the whole audience entertained, everyone in the crowd dancing and belting out the words along with him. If you like any of Train’s radio hits, or just the chance to see a great live band, be sure to catch Train when they roll through San Diego again.
