Review: Dogstar at the 9:30 Club on Aug. 11

This past Tuesday, I spent the evening likely the closest I’ll ever be to an A-List actor watching alternative rock band Dogstar perform at the 9:30 Club. This reunited trio consisting of drummer Robert Mailhouse, guitarist/vocalist Bret Domrose, and bassist Keanu Reeves (yes, that Keanu Reeves) treated audience members to a night of hazy grunge grooves, largely performing tracks off of their newest album, All In Now, as well as a few unreleased tracks or hits from their 2023 album Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees. 

The setlist took audience members through varied emotional arcs, reflecting the differing messages of their two post-reunion albums. The show opened on emotionally unstable ground, with “Siren” and “Lust,” setting an initial tone of temptation and obsession. From there, the set quickly slid into heartbreak territory with “How the Story Ends,” a song so plainly about a relationship’s slow motion collapse and the crumbling promises that come when your life separates from a loved one’s.

This bittersweet sentiment of lost or troubled love continued throughout the set with pieces like “Wing” and “The Whisper.” However, there were some rays of hope shining through: “Exalted” treated us to a soft, glowing scene: a moment when the shining bustle of the world around you fades to focus on the joy of your partner. Overall, Dogstar continued to prove the tenuous balance between heartbreak and hope, twenty-plus years after they originally formed. Reeves, for what it’s worth, spent the night in one of his best roles to date– a dedicated bassist, jamming out in steady accompaniment to the other musicians.

In addition to Dogstar’s performance, we would be remiss if we didn’t mention the amazing openers of the show: The Backfires. An alternative rock piece from both sides of the Atlantic, this young group definitely merits a listen. Showcasing their newly released album, Stardust, this riff-heavy group found a new fan in me with their incredible performance opening the night.