On Thursday, October 28, Elizabeth Moen unveiled some of her new music at the Maintenance Shop that will be released sometime next year. 

Showcasing two Iowa natives, the concert had Lily DeTaeye opening up for Moen. DeTaeye showed her talent through singing while playing guitar and harmonica. The roughly two hours the concert spanned, attendees enjoyed what the musicians had to offer.

Coming in after DeTaeye, Moen took to the stage for a performance to remember at Iowa State.

A more intimate concert, the roughly 60 attendees sat through the impassioned performance as Moen played a mix of old and new music. Capitalizing on the setting, Moen heavily interacted with the crowd keeping the audience engaged throughout the whole performance.

With lighting that illuminated the performers, the lighting fit the mood as Moen worked started with more folky music before moving onto her more indie pop styled music. Starting with a more purple hue, the lighting shifted to warmer colors to accentuate the performance.

Getting a better picture of Moen as an artist, she had no shortage of things to say about how she expresses herself and how she worked her way up to being the artist she is today.

Defined by no specific genre, Moen prides herself on creating music that “depends on the mood,” allowing her creativity to shine during the musical process. 

Beginning playing guitar in middle school, Moen moved towards songwriting towards the end of college career at the University of Iowa

“I never started writing lyrics because I was afraid of being cheesy. I was afraid I would be bad at it, but then I started doing it,” Moen said, “I was like wait, [songwriting] is like one of the few things I actually feel like I am good at.” 

Since her debut, Moen’s ultimate goal is to find long-term stability in music.

“I’d like to have a career that isn’t short or like a flash in the pan,” Moen said. “To me, if I’m in my 40s and I’m still doing this, and I’m at a point where maybe I have a tour bus, because that makes touring much more sustainable, or if I decide to have a family and be able to sustain them off of making music, that would be amazing.”

After performing in both local and international settings,  she has found massive success in her performances– almost selling out at Lincoln Hall in Chicago. 

Mentioning big things in the works for her in the coming year, including the release of her new album, Moen wants to capitalize on the longevity of her music career. Seeking to sign with a label or continuing on with her independent career. 

Contributing her success to all of her friends that perform with her and support her in her musical endeavors, this was best shown through the bass player, Nick Lavine who helps Moen perform in between work with his own band Jodi, and drummer Abby Black who does the same thing with her band LALA LALA.