Concert Review- Dehd

I first heard Dehd on local public radio in 2024 (from their most recent release- last year’s Poetry album) and was immediately interested. When they came in town for a tour, I immediately put it down as a possible date. Dehd are somewhat hard to describe. Allmusic uses a combination of Jesus and Mary Chain, the Gun Club and the B-52s. While they don’t particularly sound exactly like those bands, the description is otherwise strangely accurate. Reviewers also tend to find a surf influence or a similarly to the Flying Nun bands. I can’t put my finger on it, but I hear these too and I am sure that is why I like them better than some of their peers. I generally don’t go to shows alone, so there is an aspect of selling other people to going to see a band. I am probably overthinking this but I know the reason I like Dehd is that they remind me of bands like Yo La Tengo or Superchunk, to name a couple, from the glory days of indie rock. In those days, there was a clear line between college radio and mainstream radio. These bands made a catchy pop rock sound that existed in a parallel universe to what was on Top 40. Fifteen years later, (roughly the age difference of me and my friend) Pop was no longer a dirty word. Artists like Carly Rae Jepson, Robyn and Taylor Swift became critical favorites. Gatekeeping never went away, it just changed, but “indie” became a more of a description of the music than a label designation. I am simplifying (my friend, like my old college roommate is an expert in multiple genres) but Dehd feel like they would easily fit in the Lollapalooza/120 Minutes landscape of my young adulthood but also are going to appeal to The Needle Drop/Pitchfork/Tiny Desk crowd that exists now. The band is even better live. I saw good Internet buzz but it’s accurate. They are a top tier live band. On record, the band splits vocals between bassist Emily Kempf and guitarist Jason Balla. In concert, they seem to be a couple like few others.

I can’t help but think of the band X. Yes, Exene is probably the lead singer but it’s impossible to separate the duty she shares with John Doe. Likewise, calling Emily or Jason lead singer and the other secondary in the way you might differentiate Tanya Donnelly in Throwing Muses, Lou Barlow in Dinosaur Jr. or even say Mick Jones in the Clash. The interplay is one reason that they are so good. They don’t sound like X but I can only imagine if Exene and John had formed their first band in this decade, they would sound like this. One may even catch on a song like “Lucky” that Dehd would be a great alt country band if they chose to ditch the noise. There is no doubt either front person could lead a band, but they are better together. Kempf could be (and let’s just state as a fact- is) as an elite level front person. Her voice is incredibly strong. Her presence more magnetic than the bands promotional materials imply. Balla is incredibly energetic as counterpoint. He’s Townshend level committed to rocking the stage. Closer to Blink 182 and Green Day energy than probably most of their peers, without ever feeling like rock n roll cliche. Eric McCreedy is the third member of the trio and compliments them with Velvet Underground/White Stripes minimalist percussion Dehd has definitely hit the mark with some singles - “Dog Days”, “Bad Love” and the kind of sound that can go viral, but they also put on one of those shows that might convince you they can save rock n roll.

Opening act was Chicago band Starcharm. This all female trio are just starting out. This is their first tour and they really only have one song on streaming platforms, Bandcamp and YouTube.

I see a lot of potential in this band and a lot of the words I used to describe Dehd fit here too. Strong frontwoman. Minimal percussion. A mix of 90s indie rock and 80s/90s dream pop but also a good mix of modern day confessional indie pop a la Mitski or Clairo. There’s not a ton out there on Starcharm but I would not be surprised if they took off. Also the benefit of seeing these bands in a town that is a bit off the main route is seeing them in a small venue and even getting to briefly talk to Dehd’s Balla and Starcharm singer Elena Buenrosto. Although a bad experience wouldn’t affect what I think of the music, I found both of them charming and accessible. Good luck to both bands, though with their talent, I don’t think they will need it.