may 29, 2025 - toronto, canada

Dance Gavin Dance took over Toronto’s History late Thursday night with a sold out show on their Return of the Robot Tour. With a hard hitting lineup, including The Home Team, Belmont, and Dwellings, the place was packed early in the night, brimming with excited energy for the show to come.

Originally formed in 2005, it’s clear how Dance Gavin Dance has maintained their fanbase for so long as they’ve continued to grow and evolve through their music. With multiple lineup changes since their conception, they are currently comprised of vocalist/guitarist Andrew Wells, vocalist Jon Mess, lead guitarist Will Swan, and drummer Matthew Mingus. Early in the show, Wells laughs into the mic and asks the audience “How many people here have been listening to Dance Gavin Dance since high school?!”, which is answered by a chorus of cheers from fans of all ages, united by their love for the music and the band.

The setlist is comprised of a mix of new and old songs, with each new track met by resounding excitement from the audience. Early in the set, the band plays “Midnight at McGuffy’s”, the leading single off of their upcoming album, Pantheon, set to release on September 12. The excitement for the new record is palpable as fans already know all of the words to the song and scream them back to the band. Going to be their 11th studio album, Wells said in a press release, “I think Pantheon is a testament to perseverance and the gratitude we feel today. Being able to overcome everything that life hits you with, find your people - the people you trust, people you love, people that love you - and create art with them, whatever chaos the world has in store for you.”

As the set continues, tracks like “Need Money” have the crowd jumping around as a wave of crowd surfers are pushed towards the stage. Blue lights lower over the crowd for “Blue Dream”, as the crowd sways, jumps, and sings along as Wells and Mess trade vocals back and forth. The intensity continues late into the night as Dance Gavin Dance is unrelenting on stage, keeping the energy in the sold out crowd high throughout the show as they move through the setlist.

On their Return of the Robot tour, it is clear how Dance Gavin Dance has remained such an iconic band in the scene over the last 2 decades. Catch them on tour across North America from now until the end of June and keep an eye out for the release of Pantheon on September 12.