PAM WHISENHUNT | Go Venue Magazine
It was a subfreezing night in Lincoln, Nebraska, but that didn’t stop diehard fans from lining up outside and around the corner to see Palaye Royale and Johnnie Guilbert. Local radio station, 104.1 The Blaze brought the “Death or Glory North America 2025” tour to the Bourbon Theatre February 15th, 2025.
Johnnie Guilbert started off the night with a chill Emo rock set. I was impressed with the number of fans in the crowd, some screaming and others holding up Johnnie Guilbert banners. A couple of people on the rail gave him items like a stuffed animal and a black rose. Guilbert graciously accepted the gifts and interacted with the crowd throughout the set. I discovered through conversations; Guilbert normally wears all black. Although he came out in a black leather jacket, he was also wearing light denim jeans and white t-shirt, playing most of the set without the jacket. It seemed to create quite the frenzy. Although the crowd was thrilled with the set, it didn’t prepare us for the energy Palaye Royale was about to send our way.
Palaye Royale, a punk/alternative rock trio and brothers from Las Vegas, had the crowd eating out of the palm of their hands. Palaye Royale’s backdrop had graffiti, retro posters and cutouts on a black brick wall giving punk rock vibes. Remington Leith (lead vocals) came out in a red plaid pants and a “Never Mind the Sex Pistols” t-shirt. Palaye Royale only played for about 75 minutes, but the set was packed with 15 songs and off-the-charts energy. The bands’ interactions with the crowd had fans jumping around, waving hands back and forth, and bouncing inflatable balls around the venue.
The last song before the encore, “Fever Dream” was dedicated to their “beautiful mother”. The first of two nods to their mother, whom they lost to cancer last year. Once they left the stage, the lights dimmed, but the crowd was not ready to let them go. They started chanting, “PALAYE! PALAYE! PALAYE!”. The lights flickered and the crowd screamed. When the band came back for the encore, I noticed Emerson Barrett (drums) moved from behind the drum kit, took stage left and played bass for “Dead to Me”. The second encore song “Lonely” had Leith on the keyboard, Sabastian Danzig playing guitar next to him and Barrett back on drums. The crowd knew the song, filling in the gaps when Leith gave them the mic. Laith made his way through the crowd to the sound booth, jumping off it. He then climbed onto the guard rail in the middle of the floor, jumped off it, and proceeded to crowd-surf his way back to the stage. Performing the final song of the night “Mr. Doctor Man”, Leith jumped off the speaker stacks, then did a stage dive into the crowd, ending the show in an incendiary way. As the band departed the stage, Danzig told the crowd to be safe and “call your mother”, a second nod to their mother and a reminder life is short.
Palaye Royale
Johnnie Guilbert
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