Planet Desert Rock VI Weekend: 21 Bands in 4 Nights!
Live at The Usual Place in Las Vegas, Nevada USA
*January 29th – February 1st 2026*
As I reflect back on the Planet Desert Rock Weekend extravaganza, which took place from January 29th through February 1st 2026, I can’t help but wonder how this was even possible. Twenty one bands total, including acts from all over the world like Sweden, Norway, Italy, Spain, Finland, Germany, Canada, Poland, and the United States. It was an epic experience and weekend that was curated by John Gist, from the Vegas Rock Revolution. Being my first multiple day (night) festival, I was completely blown away about how awesome this event truly was! Not only did each and every band deliver such stellar performances, but the mix of styles worked exceptionally well each night. Night one included three international acts with two American bands, night two was the Ripple Music showcase, which also included three international and two US bands. The third night had all six bands coming out of the United States, and the final night included two overseas bands mixed with three domestic. The order to each night was carefully grouped together by John Gist, who really put a lot of time and effort into making this the most memorable experience that I have ever attended. His ability to fill in spots immediately that were left vacant, due to bands dropping off, was remarkable. His dedication and hard work should not be overlooked because he really cares deeply about this amazing heavy underground music scene, igniting his passion onto us fans.
I went to this event with my longtime childhood friend Sam Barrett, for whom I’ve been friends with since grade school, and his sixteen year old son Isaac. Sam and I have been in bands together and have always shared similar musical tastes, from the early years of heavy metal, thrash, death metal, hardcore, proto-metal, stoner rock, etc. His old band, Birch Hill Dam had the pleasure of supporting The Quill back in 2012, on what would be their first and only west coast tour. He became great friends with The Quill, which provided us the opportunity to meet up with the band at their hotel room, prior to the show. They invited us to the sound check, which was unbelievable! The nicest guys that you could ever meet, The Quill are a talented and amazing band that was one of the many high points of the four days, for me. I got to finally meet JJ Koczan from The Obelisk, who is a huge inspiration for me starting the Jam Yeti Music Blog. He was very cool and I enjoyed chatting with him and shaking his hand each day that I saw him. John Gist was also super cool and I was able to hang out with him as the sound check was going on.
Like any good story, the weekend was met with some challenging situations that needed to be overcome. Unfortunately, Sam’s son Isaac was unable to attend the festival, due to a very strict state law of night clubs being twenty one plus, where alcohol is being served. It was a real bummer having him miss out and I felt terrible. After the word spread about this ordeal, people were very supportive and felt bad about what happened. The heavy underground music scene is truly a family of like minded individuals that love this type of music. Every single person that I met and engaged in conversation with, over the four day long event, was super cool and friendly. We are all bonded by this music and I have never witnessed a more welcoming and supportive community of friends and family, from all the different musical scenes that I have been a part of. This really makes this event that much more special and meaningful. Even the bands themselves are fans and hanging out with them was so awesome. I will never forget this weekend and the memories that I will cherish forever. Meeting the people in person that I have been corresponding with on social media is a head trip. Let’s get this party started!
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Night 1:
PHANTOM HOUND
Oakland, California’s Phantom Hound opened up the festival with a great blend of desert rock, grunge, and some heavy psych too. Guitarist and vocalist Jake Navarra had been battling some health issues a while back but you would never know it, based on the tight performance they delivered on the opening night. I am most familiar with their 2024 release, From Boom Town To Ghost Town (review here). The band was just wrapping up a tour with Saturna and then immediately joining Isaak (from Italy), for an eight show excursion. The three-piece really got things started on the up and up, and as the crowd was filling in, showcased an excellent display of heavy rock fury to please everyone that was in attendance.
SATURNA
Saturna (from Spain) was the biggest surprise for me on Thursday night. I just recently started listening to their music and was really digging their excellent sound of heavy rock, backed by dual guitar harmonies and exceptional vocals. Once they started playing, I was completely taken aback by how awesome they sounded. I recognized the songs from their latest full length, 2023”s The Reset. “Your Whimsical Selfishness” and a John Gist favorite “Into The Sun”, were highlights for me. They even played a stellar cover of Black Sabbath’s, “Never Say Die”. I believe this was the quartet’s second stint in the US and they sounded like total professionals, doing what they do. The decade plus existence as a band was evident from the beginning and they really knew how to dazzle the crowd with their amazing songwriting skills and delivery.
THE WELL
The Well is a three-piece from Austin, Texas and they sounded terrific! They released three albums thus far including, 2014’s Samsara, 2016’s Pagan Science, and 2019’s Death And Consolation. I believe they are gearing up to release a new full length, later in the year. Guitarist Ian Graham and bassist Lisa Alley share the vocals together and it really stands out with their Sabbath sounding riffs. The energy was felt with their music and the band was embarking on a tour, with this show being their second one thus far. I was really vibing with their performance and they were also a fairly new discovery for me. I felt that they had the best t-shirt designs from all of the bands that weekend, and I had a difficult time deciding on which one to get. They utilized samples into their set and have a dark essence to their music that is really appealing to me.
ISAAK
I was very excited to hear that Italy’s Isaak was going to be at Planet Desert Rock this year. I have been a fan since 2024, when they did a split release with Geezer (review here). I dove into all of their recordings after that and really dig all of their music. They have a hard driving sound that borders post hardcore aggression and metal with heavy riffalicious grooves. Some of the highlight tracks for me was the opener “Hey” from their third full length, 2023’s HEY (review here), and “Taste”, from the same album. I also enjoyed hearing “Flat Earth” from the Geezer split. It was a highly amplified set that cured any jet lag that might of still been lingering from the day before. The band closed out their performances with the mesmerizing fifteen plus minute song “The Choice”. The beautiful thing about attending a Planet Desert Rock festival is the ability to see bands like Isaak live, where the opportunity otherwise might not present itself.
THE QUILL
The first “legendary” band to play this year’s festival was Sweden’s The Quill. I have been a fan of their music since the early 2000’s and was ecstatic when John Gist announced that they would be playing this year. This would be the only second time that the band would make its US appearance, and the first time with the classic lineup. The band did a west coast stint back in 2012 with a different singer and bassist. The Quill is very underrated! The band did not disappoint! They delivered a varied set of classic songs like “Freedom Mountain” and a couple off of Voodoo Caravan, including the title track and “Hole In My Head”, with the extended jam-based ending. The whole set was magical! Other notable mentions were “Keep On Moving”, which started things off, to “Hallucinate”, and the title track “Earthrise” from that excellent 2021 release. The band played “Elephant Head” and “Wheel Of Illusion” from 2024’s Wheel Of Illusion (review here). They even closed out their set with “Stone Believer” from the 2017 comeback album, Born From Fire. The blend of hard rock and heavy metal, oozing with Black Sabbath riffage, was met with Magnus Ekwall’s soaring vocals. It was a truly amazing performance and one of the highlight bands for me to see live at Planet Desert Rock. They made the trek for this one and only show and did not tour around it. The t-shirts were even Las Vegas themed and printed specifically for this event. One of the best bands in the heavy rock universe today.
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On Friday morning, after we ate breakfast, we decided to get a bus pass and go down to the Vegas strip and walk around some of the fancy hotels in the area. The elaborate architecture and design to some of these buildings are massive and quite impressive. After a few hours there, we headed back to our room and arranged to meet up with Dan Sierras from The Heavy Desert Podcast, as he was set to arrive that day. This would be my first time meeting Dan in person after being on his show several times throughout the year- for our quarterly and year-end album reviews. Chris McGowan, who does a segment on the podcast called “Concerts with Chris”, who I briefly met the night before, was also going to be there too. We were all gonna go out to eat before the show that night with the fine gents from The Quill also. We had quite the elevator scare when we were going down to the lobby. The elevator jerked and shook abruptly and then stopped momentarily as the floor lights all lit up. Sam pushed the emergency alarm and then finally the elevator went up a few floors and the doors opened. We were all freaked out and I thought we were either going to fall straight down or be trapped in there for hours. Luckily, neither happened and we made our way to the lobby but still quite rattled. We all went to the food court, and made our way to the club for night 2 of the event. It was the Ripple Music Showcase and I briefly met the owner Todd Severin. I met and chatted with Bucky Brown from The Ripple Effect and The Doomed and Stoned Show and he was very cool. Outside the venue, I met Sean Patrick Brooks from The Heavy Underground Farm Report and his wife Andrea. They were with Zeph, the drummer of Luna Sol, and all of them were just wonderful people. Every single person that I met and conversed with was awesome.
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Night 2:
KAISER
The three-piece from Finland, Kaiser opened up the show and nearly blew the roof off! They played an amazing set of high energy riffs and grooves that left my head spinning. Guitarist and vocalist Otu was raging, dumping and chugging back beers in between songs, and really getting the crowd going. Being a Ripple Music showcase, Kaiser was on a split with Captain Caravan on Ripple’s, Turned To Stone: Chapter 6, which came out in 2022. The band are primarily on Sweden’s Majestic Mountain Records, in which they released last year’s amazing 2nd Sound (review here) recording. They performed tracks like “Brotha”, “1.5 Dozen”, and “A Clockwork Green”, among others. It was fantastic and sounded incredible throughout! I was hoping to chat with Otu after the show but I never saw him after they played. I did manage to talk with drummer Riq, who got married the next day in a Vegas style wedding and bassist Pex, who were both very nice. I thanked them for playing and shared my love for their band. I was bummed that they didn’t have t-shirts for sale.
WOLFTOOTH
Wolftooth, from Indiana played next and cranked out a great set of The Sword style clobbering mixed with some old school heavy metal. Armed with dual guitar harmonies and galloping rhythms, the four-piece are a fairly new discovery for me but a lot of the people in the crowd, knew exactly what they were all about. Recently signed with Ripple Music, Wizard’s Light (review here) is the album that I am most familiar with. I was happy to hear the title track but the band has a decent catalog, dating back to 2018. They too, sounded great and kept the crowd hungry for more. We met the guys in the band at the Denny’s next to our hotel that morning. They seemed like cool guys and I wish that I was more familiar with their music.
FREEDOM HAWK
Freedom Hawk are another “legendary” band in this scene, dating back to 2008. They have been a band that I never fully connected with… before this performance. They were absolutely incredible! I am sold on this band now and will be chewing into their catalog like a rabid dog. They were super tight and delivered a classic metal/ rock sound better than I could have ever hoped for. It’s embarrassing that it has taken me this long to fully appreciate their sound and quality of musicianship but better late than never. I mentioned to John Gist the day before that I never quite fully connected with them and he gave me such a dumbfounded look. I can totally understand why, they were absolutely killer! I remember really vibing to “Blood Red Sky” and “Indian Summer”, and pretty much all of it! Like Saturna the night before, Freedom Hawk stopped me in my tracks. I am glad that I have finally seen the light with this exceptional band.
THE DEVIL AND THE ALMIGHTY BLUES
Set to be the headliners for the night, The Devil and the Almighty Blues are a rare treat to this heavy underground music scene. My friend Sam was most excited to see them live out of everyone else playing this weekend. The Norwegian five-piece had me mesmerized throughout their whole set. It was truly a religious experience and an absolute pleasure soaking up all of their sonic brilliance. The highlight for me is when they ended their set with “The Ghosts Of Charlie Barracuda” from their debut album. I had the chills throughout my whole body and it was cool when Sam was singing along at the beginning of the song. The whole performance was hypnotic and the only drink I had the whole weekend came right after they were done playing. To be able to witness this band play in the United States is truly a blessing and honor.
PARALYZED
The German four-piece was originally supposed to be the opening band of the night but with some cancelled and delayed flights later, Gist had them play last instead. I believe they arrived about an hour before they went on and what a hell of a great set it was! They totally rocked it! They used some keyboards on a few tracks and played some bangers from their latest Rumble & Roar (review here) record. The Jim Morrison style vocals locked in nicely with their brand of blues driven hard rock. The energy was electric and it ended up being the perfect closing statement for an incredible night two performance. Big kudos to Gist for being able to navigate and manage this predicament and in the end, it worked out perfectly. When we were leaving the show, we saw the singer/ guitarist and drummer outside and praised and thanked them for coming. It was such an amazing show and I believe the only one that Paralyzed was doing in the states, so thankfully it all worked out.
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On Saturday morning, we decided to rent a car and head over to the Hoover Dam. We saw Craig Riggs and Darryl Shepard from our Boston homeboy’s Kind and chatted with them for a bit. Bassist Tom Corino showed up and I met him for the first time. Kind was opening up Saturday nights all American lineup of killer bands. The Hoover Dam was very cool to see and was only about a 30 minute drive from Vegas. When we got back, we met up with Dan and Chris at a local pizza joint called Evel Pie. It was a very cool place on the way to the club and we saw many people that were going to the show, including the guys from Throttlerod and Ryan Garney from High Desert Queen. I said hello to Ryan and gave him a white Jam Yeti t-shirt, and thanked him for getting Greenleaf to come to the US and play at this year’s Ripplefest Texas.
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Night 3:
KIND
Kind have become one of my favorite current bands in the scene. This being the fourth time now that I’ve seen them play live, they never disappoint. Saturday night was the most hard rocking night of the event and Kind was the perfect band to start things off. Playing two songs from each record, along with two brand new ones, it was a killer set! “Broken Tweaker” was a great opener and I loved hearing “Massive” from their latest, 2023’s Close Encounters (review here). The band came prepared to tear the walls down and represent the east coast grit of dirty rawk n’ roll with a heavy slice of doom. The closing track, from their debut record was called “Hordeolum” and it was viscous! The bass and drum break towards the end of the song always leaves a trail of casualties. They were so good! I can’t say enough great things about them.
DIRTY STREETS
The Memphis based blues rocking Dirty Streets played next and it was awesome! The energy was still there but the aggressiveness was toned down. The band has soul and they played an amazing cover of “Stayin’ Alive” and made it their own. The vocals are great and the music is a-grooving. The drummer had the biggest smile on his face throughout their whole set and you can tell the band loves playing together. I could definitely picture this band being on the radio, if there was such a thing nowadays. In either case, they were tight and I really enjoyed their set.
THE HEAVY EYES
The Heavy Eyes blew me away! I have been vibing to this band for several months in preparation to seeing them play live. Also based in Memphis, Tennessee, with the exception of Tripp (the guitarist/vocalist) who now lives in California, they are phenomenal performers and musicians. The heavy blues rock is there but the band has a cool swagger to the delivery of their songs. I think they drew the biggest crowd of the night and for good reason. They played some classics like “Maggie”, “These Men Are Wolves”, and “One Hand On The Buffalo”. I was enthralled with their whole set, quite frankly. They were better than I expected and I was ready to buy some merch after they got done. Unfortunately, I waited too long and they were sold out of my sizes for the t-shirts. I wouldn’t want to have to follow them, if I was playing in a band that night. They really impressed me and it stands out as one of the top performances of the weekend, for me.
THROTTLEROD
Throttlerod was a big reason why I purchased the tickets to Planert Desert Rock. I have been a fan since the mid 2000’s and I always felt like they were snubbed and overlooked in their heyday. Most recently, the band is basically dormant with the exception of a couple of rare live appearances every blue moon or so. Both guitarists Matt Whitehead and Bo Leslie are currently in Shun and Bo left Throttlerod after the classic, 2003’s Hell And High Water album. I did a post about them here. I saw them on two occasions way back, both times as a three-piece. Nail was the first record I heard followed by Hell And High Water back in 2006. I have been a huge fan ever since and was ecstatic about the notion of them playing together again. This show was unbelievable! They cranked out a viscous set of songs from both of the albums mentioned along with 2009’s Pig Charmer and 2016’s Turncoat. I was absolutely beside myself! They were on point and ready to show the world that they are still relevant and kicking ass with the best of them. They rocked so hard and matched the energy that The Heavy Eyes had set off. Matt’s voice sounded great and it reminded me on why I love this band so much. Some highlights for me included: “Tomorrow With A Loaded Gun”, “Marigold”, “Snake Into Angel”, “Prizefighter”, “Baitshop”, “Buffalo”, and “Mariana”. There was not one song that I didn’t know or get into. I was totally locked in and immersed completely into their amazing performance! It felt so great to be alive in that moment. I love Throttlerod and hope this marks a new start for the band. This performance alone was worth the price of admission for this event. Brilliant and mind blowing! I expressed my gratitude to the band afterwards and felt inclined to give Matt Whitehead a black Jam Yeti Music Blog t-shirt. I did my best not to fanboy out but when a band’s music moves me on such a deep and profound level as theirs, it’s hard to contain myself.
BLACK WATER RISING
Black Water Rising is a four-piece from Brooklyn, New York. They are no strangers to Planet Desert Rock and have played this festival a several years back. They released their latest album The Edge (review here) last year and delivered an uncompromising set at this year’s event. Riff rock doused in metal, they kept the energy going throughout their varied set and it sounded great. I wish I was more familiar with their recordings besides the latest but I was still digging it. They fit great in the lineup and the crowd was vibing to what they were dishing out.
THE ATOMIC BITCHWAX
The Atomic Bitchwax is another “legendary”band in the scene that has been playing together now for over thirty years. I have been a fan since I discovered them back in 2005. I have probably seen them live over a half dozen times now and they are always bringing the heat. The high energy riffs and grooves are infectious! They were on fire as always and crushed through a solid set of songs dating back to the early nineties. The “Frankenstein” intro and outro, “Hope You Die”, “Forty Five”, “So Come On”, “Liv A Little”, “Birth To The Earth”, and “Shitkicker”, among many others. The band are super tight and fast and the music left my head spinning. I felt both wiped out and exhilarated when they were finished playing, if that even makes any sense. I could tell that the crowd was stunned with what they just witnessed and everyone either had a big smile on their faces or the look of amazement. That is the power of The Atomic Bitchwax and I loved every second of it!
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The next morning, we got up fairly early and headed out to the Grand Canyon. It was about a two hour drive through Arizona and the view was spectacular. On each side of the road you could see mountains and fields of Joshua trees and a lot of ranches. At one point we had to stop and let a bull cross the highway. The Grand Canyon itself was unbelievable! I can’t really describe how it looks, but I was taking it all in and realized just how much I needed this. It was the perfect reset for a highly stimulating time in Las Vegas. The big lights, noise, people, and commotion is a lot to take in so the Grand Canyon was perfect. It brought us back to nature and it centered me in a way that I never imagined. I guess I didn’t realize just how badly that I needed this. It is definitely one of the most spectacular wonders of the world and a must needed reprisal. We spent most of the day there and just took it all in and I even got a little emotional at times. The tranquility was soothing to my soul and I felt at such ease by the time we left.
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Night 4:
WESTING
Westing played first on the final night and they were the only band that brought their own drum set with them. They sounded awesome and got things going right from the start. They used to be called Slow Season and the classic Led Zeppelin-esc sound was on full display. Ironically, we were listening to their Future record on our ride back from the Grand Canyon and they played the first two tracks, “Back In The Twenties” and “Nothing New” at the show. It was so good! The vocals and music has that seventies vibe without sounding dated. I am really a big fan of this band now. They mentioned that this show kind of got them out of retirement and they had a brand new lead guitarist playing with them too. It was one of my favorite sets of the night, for sure.
FAMILIARS
Out of all of the twenty one bands playing this weekend, the Familiars are the group that I was least familiar with. The Canadian trio has an almost country rock sound going on matched with the singer/ guitarist wearing a black cowboy hat. It was a very cool set and the music was heavy, yet mellow too. The smooth vibe was welcomed with the deep vocals drawing you in. The music has a nice flow and builds up to some very interesting segments. Their last album called Easy Does It came out in 2024 but the band has been active since 2014. They were the most unconventional of the roster but it really worked nicely into the mix too.
HIGH DESERT QUEEN
After the lull and more mellow atmosphere of the first two bands, High Desert Queen was the ultimate “pick me up” of the night. They erupted out of the gate with some of the most riff-tastic stoner grooves displayed all weekend. Absolutely magnificent! The four-piece from Austin, Texas electrified the whole room with an energy so powerful that my body was tuned up. The band hits hard and heavy and they are one of the best modern day riff rocking bands out on the scene. Musically, they are super tight and Ryan Garney is probably the most dynamic front man in the heavy underground today. His energy and positivity are contagious and his giving hugs to the audience persona is real. The genuine vibes I feel for his unfiltered passion for his work is incredible! High Desert Queen has all the right ingredients for being a top tier band in this genre, and their live performances are a testament to their craft. Amazing and full on from the first note! Ryan has the stage presence dialed in with his calisthenic conniptions and aerial assaults. His stare downs and crowd interactions has everyone smiling. The scene needs more people like Garney because he is one of the coolest and most sincere humans that I have had the pleasure of meeting. I was very flattered when he was wearing the Jam Yeti t-shirt that I gave him after their incredible performance. I was very pleased when they played “Death Perception” and “Tuesday Night Blues” from 2024’s Palm Reader (review here). High Desert Queen is the quintessential live music act that needs to be experienced! My friend Sam commented that this performance was one of the highlights from the whole weekend, this being the first time that he had even heard them. I definitely agree with that statement! My friend Dan Sierras from The Heavy Desert Podcast was up front with me and almost lost his shit when they broke into “The Mountain Vs The Quake”, after “Solar Rain”. Nobody expected that and hot damn, it totally ruled!
BASK
Bask are a very interesting band that has a lot of different sounds happening in each song. Head tripping and atmospheric music backed with a lap steel guitar player. The vocals are cool and the music can be quite progressive and esoteric at times. I was in a trance through most of their set. I was familiar when they played “The Traveler” and “Dig My Heals” from their latest The Turning (review here) album. Everything sounded great and the music took the night into yet another level with its diversity. The brilliance of John Gist at its best! His curated lineup was incredible and made so much sense as everything played out from one band to the next, especially on this final evening.
SPACESLUG
These guys were the heavyweights of the festival. The Poland power trio completely annihilated the stage as the closing colossal of cosmic doom. Spaceslug was a force of infinite capacity! Each of the band members share the vocals, which are all unique and distinctive. Collectively, they totally crushed and made me a much greater fan for their music. Performing the debut, Lemanis in its entirety is a rare gift that will probably never present itself again in my lifetime, so I was honored to be a part of that. Simply amazing and awe-inspiring! I couldn’t think of a better way to cap off such an amazing Planet Desert Rock Weekend extravaganza.
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As I reflect on an incredible four day immersion into some of the best talents in the heavy underground, I am so eternally grateful to be alive. Each and every band was amazing and at the top of their game. I connected with new ones and my love for the others elevated exponentially. Every single person that I met and talked to was friendly and awesome! I can’t thank John Gist enough for everything that he has accomplished! My first experience at Planet Desert Rock is unbelievable and surreal and I am already looking forward to next year. I love this community for the people that are involved to the many talented artists that move me. This heavy underground music scene is a huge part of me now and a lifeblood in some ways. My deep passion and obsession for this music is a spiritual driving force that gets me through each and every day. I love you all, thank you for reading and being a part of my heavy sonic therapy session.
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*** DISCLAIMER! ***
I most certainly repeated a lot of statements in this post but I feel so strongly about them that I decided not to edit them out.
