There is something inherently special about the shows that bands book in-between massive festival appearances. When a group steps away from the giant, highly structured main stages to play an off-day headline slot in a smaller club, the entire vibe shifts. The production feels a bit less scripted, the energy is significantly more spontaneous, and the performance leans heavily into pure, unfiltered fun. This week, that exact magic formula proved true once again.
In the midst of their hectic European summer festival run, Bedford’s finest alternative rockers Don Broco treated Dutch fans to two intimate, exclusive club shows: one at Poppodium 013 in Tilburg and a highly anticipated stop at Amsterdam’s iconic Melkweg. We were lucky enough to find ourselves inside the packed Amsterdam room to witness the absolute glorious madness firsthand.
The band treated the crowd to a dynamic, career-spanning setlist heavily drawing from their last three records, but the real highlight was seeing the live debut rotation of tracks from their stellar fifth studio album, Nightmare Tripping. The group absolutely spoiled us by treating the room to the devastatingly heavy title track “Nightmare Tripping,” the frenetic live addition “Somersaults,” and our absolute personal standout of the night, the rager “Euphoria.”
Musically, Don Broco were nothing short of magnificent. They tore through their set at a rapid-fire, neck-breaking pace, only pausing to deliver their signature, playful banter with the crowd. Beyond his pristine vocal execution, frontman Rob Damiani was a spectacle all on his own, commanding the stage with eccentric dance moves that added an undeniable fun factor to the performance.
Equally deserving of a major shoutout is drummer Matt Donnelly. Delivering an absolute S-tier vocal performance while simultaneously anchoring a complex, high-energy drum mix is an extraordinary feat that never fails to elevate Don Broco’s live dynamic to a completely different level.
From the very first note to the final sweat-drenched breakdown, the pit was a swirling vortex of energy, with fans jumping and screaming along to every single word. Our long-standing theory about festival off-day club shows remains completely undefeated: it felt casual, laid-back, and absolutely epic.
Check out exactly what the beautiful chaos looked like in the gallery captured by Eva van den Bosch right below!
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