Tag: DMBQ

Top 25 concerts of 2025: #’s 25 – 21

I saw almost fifty bands last year, so it’s time to list who made my top shows of 2025. Let’s get to it!

#25: Kumo 99 – September 25, 2025 – Levitation Austin – Austin, TX 

This electro duo (synths + Japanese lyrics) opened the 2025 Levitation Music Festival to a great start with their slightly darkwave dance music. They were one of many bands who made you want to seek them out as soon as you got back home or to your hotel room.

#24: Hooveriii – September 27, 2025 – Levitation Austin – Austin, TX 

You’re going to see a lot of bands from Levitation Austin (and France) on the list this year (as usual), and Hooveriii (pronounced “Hoover Three”) are no exception. They had a great, solid set on day three of the festival for their hometown crowd who gave them a lot of energy to use and feed back to us.

#23: The Raveonettes – September 27, 2025 – Levitation Austin – Austin, TX 

It’s always good to see The Raveonettes, and they enjoy playing in Austin. They played at the first Austin Psych Fest I attended in 2013 and haven’t lost any of their power. They played a nice mix of old and new tracks to a happy crowd that was enjoying the cooler evening weather.

#22: Population II – September 28, 2025 – Levitation Austin – Austin, TX 

A French-Canadian power trio in the afternoon sun? Yes, please! Not many people knew who they were, but they were paying full attention by the end of their heavy set.

#21: DMBQ – Old National Center – October 22, 2025 – Indianapolis, IN 

Speaking of bands that barely anyone knew, or knew what to make of, Japanese noise-punk legends DMBQ played a wild, weird set in front of an Indianapolis crowd who barely knew anything about them and were left stunned by the shredding, frenetic drumming, and groovy bass that almost overwhelmed the small venue multiple times. It was a great surprise to see and hear them, and I hope more people in the crowd appreciated it.

Who’s in the top twenty of live shows? Come back tomorrow for more!

Keep your mind open.

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Live: Osees and DMBQ – Old National Centre – Indianapolis, IN – October 22, 2025

I hadn’t been to Indianapolis’ Old National Centre since it was called the Murat Temple Theatre…and that was sometime in the 1990s. Entry was quick, and the woman checking IDs and handing out “21+” wristbands told us, “Straight ahead and down the stairs.” I figured Osees were playing in the large performance space in the building. I figured wrong. They were playing two floors below street level in a room the size of an average wedding reception hall.

Stone pillars on the mosh pit’s four corners.

Low ceilings, no windows, two entrances / exits, and a lot of people. My first thought was, “It’s going to be loud as hell in here.” I also saw many people who weren’t well dressed for an Osees show, possibly because they’d never seen them live before now. There were women in high heels, men in hooded sweatshirts and stocking caps, and a majority of the crowd without earplugs.

My prediction about the volume immediately was proven correct when, all the way from Japan, DMBQ took the stage to open the show and unloaded a crazy set of noise / kraut / punk / acid jazz / chaos. Lead guitarist and singer (and journalist) Shinji Masuko) was a wild man, drooling, slapping and punching himself, kicking the air, and creating a collapsing wall of sound while drummer Shinji Wada played stuff that would make many prog-rock drummers jealous and bassist Maki was a cool anchor the entire time. Again, you could tell that most of the crowd had no idea how to react to so much sound in such a small space. They had a lot of new fans by the end of their set.

Dynamite Masters Blues Quartet

Osees came out almost immediately after DMBQ finished crushing us, set up their gear, and started their wild, sweaty set at 9:01pm. Any place is a good place to see Osees, but a small space like the one we were in is perfect. The band and their fierce, energy is right there and it almost overpowers you.

A rare calm moment.

They tore through favorites like “Carrion Crawler,” “The Dream” (during which I started the crowd surfing, you’re welcome Indianapolis), and a fun, somehow even more raucous version of “Contraption” (with bassist Tim Hellman being an absolute beast with his groove).

It was a set of many classic cuts from them, with noting newer than material released in 2018 (“C” from Smote Reverser, which closed the show). This might have been because they hadn’t played an Indianapolis show in a long time. Lead singer / guitarist John Dwyer apologized at the start for them not playing there in many years: “Hey, Indianapolis. I’m sorry we never come here but (drummer) Dan (Rincon) hates it…No, I’m only kidding. He hates that fucking joke.”

A much louder moment.

“I Come from the Mountain” (again, with a killer bass line from Hellman), “Tidal Wave,” and “Ticklish Warrior” were big hits with the crowd, and I was happy to hear old cuts like “I Was Denied” (from 2010’s Warm Slime, the first Osees record I bought) and “Meat Step Lively” (from 2009’s Help).

The pit, as you might imagine, was a sweatbox being in such a small space. I had to back out after “Tidal Wave” (almost halfway through the show) to avoid overheating and burning the rest of the few calories I had in me. I slugged down a big cup of tonic water and then spent the rest of the show out of the pit but within view of the stage. I overheard a woman, seeing them for the first time, say, “They’re playing all my favorites.”

Mission accomplished, gentlemen.

Want to hear the whole set? Well, here you go.

Keep your mind open.

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