SEVENDUST & THEORY OF A DEADMAN : THE DEAD / SEVEN TOUR with SPECIAL GUEST RETURN TO DUST
Updated: 16 hours ago
SEVENDUST and THEORY OF A DEADMAN along with special guest RETURN TO DUST brought the The Dead/ Seven Tour to the beautiful Durango Casino in Las Vegas on a perfect 80 degree end of summer evening - and an outdoor pool show at Bel-Aire Backyard for a special night under the desert sunset.
RETURN TO DUST from Los Angeles is a high energy alt grunge band getting lots of notice, with Matty Bielawski and Graham Stanush sharing lead vocals, and guitar and bass respectively; Sebastian Gonzalez on guitar and London Hudson (last name ring a bell?) on drums. The band has a heavy rock tone and can hear the Alice in Chains and 90's grunge icons influences, and they really look the part on stage.
RTD released recent EP Speak Like The Dead in 2025, and are touting new 2026 singles “Sweet Escape” and “Hey Ya” out on Republic Records in their set. A def band to watch - take a listen and more HERE.
For the Vegas stop of this co-headlining tour Theory of a Deadman was up first, and the band arrived on stage with fantastic lighting and a half dozen smoke machines across the front of the stage sending columns skyward throughout the show. TOAD started strong with "Barricade" from their brand new EP Part 1:Funeral Songs and then "Ambulance" from prior Dinosaur, with rock-rap vocals from Tyler Connolly, who then really shined on song “Santa Monica”. The set had a real mix of thier anthems and hits and new music, and a cover of AIC's "Nutshell" tied in well with the opening band's setup. The fans sang along and loved the show, TOAD have a real connection to the fans and the room was one. They closed with their biggest hit “Bad Girlfriend”, to roars from the crowd. Keep up with TOAD, tour and the new record HERE.
Finally it was time for the mighty SEVENDUST, one of my personal all time favorite bands. The lights dimmed, and the band came out one by one on each side of the stage, and launched into the song “One”, from their brand new 2026 album release of the same name (Napalm Records). Lajon was smiling ear to ear, loving the cheering crowd he was seeing, and walking to the edge of the stage and tossing guitar pics to those in the front row. One of their signature songs, “Denial” was next, and had the fans singing, and after “Is This the Real You”, we hit the meat of what I consider Sevendust songs with “Praise”, that just kicks ass and had the crowd jumping to the heavy beat.
Lajon likes to talk to the crowd and tell anecdotes, and got emotional telling a story of how the next song came together - one about the tragic death of Lynn Strait (lead singer of the band Snot who died in a car accident). With members of Snot in the audience, Lajon got teary eyed and told them when they wrote the song all they had was the music but no words, how it took a time for the words to come. Sevendust broke into the song "Angel's Son" and the fans errupted into loud cheers, in support for him and the members of Snot near the front of the stage. It was a highly charged moment and just one of the many connections Lajon had with the fans.
Lajon told the crowd that he and the band love coming to Las Vegas, and look forward to every show, as the band got back into the upbeat with “Black”. The band closed out their show with “Face To Face” and thanked Durango Station and the Vegas crowd for having them. Even after 32 years as a band, Sevendust still rocks hard and delivers. The co-headlining tour is in the final stretch, but keep up with the tour and more on Sevendust HERE.
-- Review Harold Mountain / Jo Anna Jackson
Sevendust Photo Slideshow from Harold Mountain / JustAFanPhotos
Theory of a Deadman Photo Slideshow from Harold Mountain / JustAFanPhotos
Return To Dust Photo Slideshow from Harold Mountain / JustAFanPhotos
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