Theory of a Deadman Proves Some Songs Never Really Leave You
The Dead/Seven Tour with Sevendust and Return to Dust makes its way to Rochester, MN • August 8, 2026
A welcome road trip to Rochester
It’s been a minute since I had to travel for a gig. While I’m thankful for the local work that continues to come my way, there’s something oddly calming about a multi hour drive to unwind, clear my head, and get to see some of the countryside along the way. At least during the summer, when I don’t have to spend the entire drive praying for no snow.
This particular assignment took me to Rochester, Minnesota, and the Mayo Civic Center for the second stop of the Dead/Seven Tour. Not only was this my first time visiting the venue, but it was also the first time I had even heard of the Mayo Civic Center. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for me to realize that this is a venue I would happily return to. It was a great setting for a show of this size, and the overall experience ended up being a memorable one.
That doesn’t mean everything went perfectly, though.
A little media access snafu
Getting my media pass and ticket was easy enough. Figuring out where I was supposed to put my gear during the portion of the night when I was restricted from having it was another story.
To put it lightly, it was a mess.
Thankfully, the Mayo Civic Center staff came in clutch. Levi and Bill were especially helpful, figuring things out on the fly and making some executive decisions about where my gear could go. They were incredibly kind throughout the entire process, even while trying to navigate a situation that clearly wasn’t as straightforward as it should have been.
Then there was the pit.
Usually, when I’m told pit access has been granted, that means I’ll be standing in front of the barricade with the other photographers, getting those unobstructed shots from directly in front of the stage. At this venue, however, “pit” meant the actual pit, right in the middle of the crowd.
And honestly, I loved it.
Sure, standing in front of the barricade is fantastic for photography. You can get clean shots of the musicians without having to worry about heads, phones, or the occasional person who decides they need to hold their arm directly in front of your lens. But there is something completely different about standing amongst the crowd and feeling the energy firsthand.
A good through-the-crowd shot is also hard to beat and one of my favorites to get.
Another staff member who saved the night was Emma. When I first arrived, I was given a ticket for an actual seat. That meant once I finished my time in the pit taking photos, I would have to make my way back to my seat to watch the rest of the show.
Emma noticed the in and out nature of my stay and made another executive decision, whether she technically had the authority to do so or not. She gave me a wristband that allowed me to return to the pit after my allotted photography time.
That small decision made the rest of the night much more enjoyable for me personally.
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Return to Dust starts the night
Eventually, the lights faded.
The crowd immediately erupted, because everyone knew what that meant. The show was finally starting.
First to grace the stage was Return to Dust, a band I initially didn’t think I knew. As their set progressed, however, I quickly realized that I was much more familiar with them than I thought.
Return to Dust is made up of four guys from Los Angeles who came together in 2022. Despite only being around for a few years, they have already started making a significant splash in the industry, and after watching them live, it isn’t hard to understand why.
Their sound has a nostalgic 90s grunge feel while still sounding fresh enough to fit comfortably into today’s rock scene. It feels familiar without simply being a copy of what came before it.
And their live show really helps sell that sound.
One of the biggest moments early in the set came when the band launched into Outkast’s iconic hit “Hey Ya!” The cover was a fantastic way to get the crowd moving and showed that the band wasn’t afraid to have a little fun with its set.
During the performance, the band also talked about their relatively young status in the industry, reminiscing about Sevendust bringing them along on their first ever tour in 2024.
Think about that for a second.
A band that formed only a few years ago was already out on tour with an established rock act like Sevendust just two years later.
That’s a pretty impressive start.
Octane introduced me to Return to Dust
The final two songs of their set were when everything clicked for me as I immediately recognized them. Why you ask? Because one of my favorite SiriusXM stations, Octane, plays both “Bored” and “Belly Up” regularly.
Octane has been responsible for introducing me to several bands that I still listen to today, and Return to Dust may very well be the next band to join that list.
There’s something really cool about hearing a song on the radio, recognizing it in a live setting, and suddenly realizing that the band you’ve been hearing is standing right in front of you.
If this performance is any indication of what Return to Dust is capable of, I can absolutely see myself keeping an eye on where these guys go next.
They are young, hungry, energetic, and clearly having fun doing what they’re doing. That’s a dangerous combination for a band trying to make its mark.
Sevendust turns the energy up to eleven
Having covered Sevendust just four months earlier when they played a solo show at Grand Falls Casino, I was excited to see how this performance would compare.
Would the setlist be different? Would I be able to get photos as good as the ones I captured in April?
I’ll let you be the judge of the second question.
Unfortunately, the lighting made the first three songs significantly more stressful to photograph than the previous show. The stage was much darker, which meant those first three songs became an anxiety filled game of chasing whatever light I could find.
For a concert photographer, darkness during a three song limit is not exactly ideal. But outside of my lighting frustrations, Sevendust did what Sevendust does.
They absolutely destroyed the stage.
After Return to Dust got the crowd jumping, Sevendust took that energy and cranked it up to eleven. The energy became more aggressive, and much heavier. At one point, the crowd even erupted into a circle pit at the command of front man Lajon.
That’s the kind of thing you want to see at a rock show.
A different Sevendust set
The setlist was considerably different from the band’s solo show in April, but that was to be expected.
When you have an hour and a half to perform, you have a lot more room to work with. When that gets cut down to an hour, difficult decisions have to be made.
What songs do you play for the longtime fans? What songs does the band enjoy performing? What songs need to be included because they’re fan favorites or to promote a new album?
You only have so much time to make everyone happy.
On this night, Sevendust decided to throw a bone to some of their old-school fans with “Terminator,” a deep cut from their debut self titled album.
And as someone who appreciates bands digging into their back catalog, I was happy to see it.
The stage antics were also different from their April performance.
One of the funniest moments came during a song transition when Morgan Rose, the band’s iconic drummer, somehow managed to sprawl out horizontally across his drum kit to, relax I guess? It was one of those completely random moments that made the crowd laugh and reminded everyone that these guys aren’t afraid to have fun on stage.
Then came the end of the set.
As Sevendust left the stage, Clint Lowery grabbed a setlist, folded it into a paper airplane, and tossed it into the crowd.
And somehow, that thing actually flew.
It traveled far enough that someone farther back in the pit was able to snag the souvenir. That’s a pretty creative way to get a setlist into the hands of a fan.
Overall, Sevendust was a powerhouse as always. My only real complaint was the lighting. And that’s a complaint that mostly exists because I wanted to take more pictures.
A long-awaited reunion
Then came the headliners. Theory of a Deadman. A band I hadn’t seen live in 15 years.
That’s right.
The last time I saw Theory of a Deadman in person was on my birthday in 2011. So to say I was excited to see them again would be an understatement.
The set opened with “Barricade,” one of the songs from their upcoming EP scheduled to release September 4.
And my immediate thought was, “The lighting is night and day from just minutes before.” Pun absolutely intended.
The difference was uncanny.
Theory brought significantly more lighting into the production and used smoke machines liberally throughout the set. And yes, that included the first three songs during which I was restricted to photographing.
It may sound selfish, but whenever a band uses special effects during those first three songs, a little part of me assumes they’re doing it specifically to give the photographers something fun to work with.
And I love it every single time.
The lighting during “Ambulance” was particularly wild.
The stage was filled with flashing blue and red lights designed to resemble the emergency lights of the vehicle the song is named after.
I wish I could have captured it behind the lens as it would have been amazing to show. But from the perspective of my eyes, it was almost like watching a 3D movie without wearing the required glasses.
It was trippy. But in the best possible way.
The production throughout the Theory set made a huge difference, especially after struggling through Sevendust’s darker lighting. Suddenly there was light everywhere, smoke filling the stage, and plenty of visual elements to chase with my camera.
It was exactly what I wanted.
Polaroids, nostalgia, and a trip back in time
One of the coolest moments of the entire night came when front man Tyler Connolly started taking actual Polaroid photos of the crowd while singing.
Then he threw them into the audience. What an incredibly unique souvenir to those lucky enough to snag one. Usually, when you think about concert souvenirs, you think of guitar picks, drumsticks, setlists, or maybe a towel thrown from the stage.
A Polaroid taken by the lead singer while you’re actually in the audience?
That’s different.
And that’s the kind of little production element that makes a concert memorable. But the biggest moments of the night for me were the ones that transported me backward in time.
I grew up listening to Theory of a Deadman.
Their albums Gasoline and Scars & Souvenirs were huge parts of my musical upbringing during high school. Those albums are tied to a specific time in my life, and music has this incredible ability to unlock memories that you didn’t even realize were still sitting there.
So when Theory played “Santa Monica” and “Not Meant to Be” back to back, I was transported. Suddenly I wasn’t standing in the Mayo Civic Center anymore.
I was back in my room in high school, sitting on my bed with my five disc stereo loaded up with those albums.
That’s the magic of live music. It isn’t simply hearing songs performed in front of you. Sometimes it’s getting to experience a piece of your own history all over again.
And then, it was over
And then, almost as quickly as it started, the night was over.
The 90-minute set had come to an end. The house lights came on. And that was it.
No encore. No fake walk-off followed by the band returning to the stage.
Just straight to the end.
While I appreciate the efficiency, I have to admit that this was one part of the night I wasn’t a huge fan of.
I wanted more.
Maybe that’s because it had been 15 years since I had last seen Theory live. Maybe it’s because the set was so much fun. Or maybe it’s simply because when you’re having a great time, 90 minutes never feels like enough.
Whatever the reason, I walked away wanting another opportunity to see them. And honestly, that’s probably a pretty good sign.
Back to the hotel, behind the computer
Eventually, it was time to leave the venue.
I tracked down as many of the staff members who had helped me earlier in the night as I could and thanked them for making everything work as smoothly as it could.
Then I huffed it back to my hotel, which was a mere seven minute walk from the venue.
Once I got there, I started uploading my photos.
There’s something about getting back to your computer after a show and seeing the images you captured that brings you right back into the moment.
You remember the lights.
You remember the movement.
You remember the sound.
You remember standing in that pit with a crowd of people around you while trying to freeze a single moment in time.
And suddenly, the exhaustion doesn’t matter quite as much.
I wouldn’t trade this job for the world.
There are certainly difficult parts. The long drives. The late nights. The gear. The media logistics. The three song anxiety. The editing afterward when your body is screaming at you to go to sleep.
But then you look at the photos.
And you remember why you do it.
I’m incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to photograph these shows and experience these artists up close. Getting to share those moments with people who weren’t there is an even bigger privilege.
Hopefully, you enjoy not only seeing the photos, but also reading about the experiences behind them.
Because every photo has a story.
Afterglow
With this show being one of the first of the Dead/Seven Tour, and after experiencing it firsthand, I highly encourage anyone who has the opportunity to see this tour to do so.
Return to Dust brings the youthful energy and grunge inspired sound.
Sevendust brings the heaviness and decades of experience.
Theory of a Deadman brings the nostalgia, production, and songs that have been part of the soundtrack for many people’s lives.
That’s a pretty solid combination.
So if the Dead/Seven Tour is coming through your neck of the woods, don’t hesitate.
Go see these bands live.
Trust me.
You won’t be sorry.
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