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DANCE WITH ME FESTIVAL 2025
A Sweat-Soaked Punk Paradise
August 4th, 2025 Review by Ian Pase
Imagine being trapped in a sauna with 1,400 of your closest punk rock friends, all screaming along and moshing to hours of great punk music. That’s exactly what the TSOL Dance With Me Festival delivered in Riverside – a hot, sweaty, absolutely perfect day of pure punk chaos.
The festival was set up with a two-stage system – the main stage upstairs and the basement stage downstairs. This meant the music literally never stopped, and you had just enough time to make your way from one stage to the other and catch everything. A nice change from some festivals that overlap bands forcing impossible choices. The basement shows had this intimate, underground club vibe, while the main stage had that classic theater energy.
The day kicked off with Informal Society on the main stage, followed by The Gimps, adorned in black latex bondage masks, in the basement. Knuckleheadz brought classic punk aggression to the main stage, while The Voidz delivered their signature chaotic energy.
Spaghetti Cumbia brought the Latin vibes downstairs for something completely different that somehow still fit perfectly with the punk ethos. They were a standout for sure!
But River Ratts completely stole the show for me. I went into their basement set not knowing what to expect, and they absolutely destroyed every expectation I had. These guys have created something special: a sound that blends hardcore, beatdown, punk, ska, reggae, and Latin rhythms in a way that shouldn’t work but absolutely does.
Watching them live was like getting hit by a musical hurricane. One minute they’re throwing down hardcore breakdowns that had the basement going absolutely mental, the next they’re flowing into ska upstrokes that had everyone skanking, then suddenly there’s this reggae groove with Latin percussion that just makes you move in ways you didn’t know you could.
River Ratts proved that the best music happens when bands stop worrying about genres and just create something that feels real. These guys need to be on every punk festival lineup from now on – they’re that good.
Corona’s own Narcoleptic Youth absolutely killed it on the main stage with one of the most entertaining sets of the day. These guys have been tearing up the SoCal punk scene for years, and they proved why they’re local legends.
But here’s what made their set absolutely incredible – members of the Knuckleheadz flooded the stage with inflatable bananas that got tossed to the crowd, creating this amazing chaos of flying fruit.
Then frontman Joey Bondage came out dressed in a full gorilla costume, and the place went absolutely nuts. The visual was perfect punk rock absurdity – a guy in a gorilla suit delivering killer punk vocals while inflatable bananas flew through the air. It was pure entertainment that had everyone smiling despite the intense heat. Throughout the set Bondage tossed everything from band swag, t-shirts, toilet paper, and an open box of Cheerios into the crowd.
Narcoleptic Youth reminded everyone that punk rock should be fun, mocking rules and standards, and kept the energy high while putting on a show that nobody will forget.
Union 13 in the basement brought that classic SoCal punk-ska fusion that had everyone sweating and smiling.
Youth Brigade hit the main stage with the kind of veteran presence that only comes from decades of playing punk rock.
Their set was tight, powerful, and reminded everyone why they’re considered legends.
Decry closed out the basement stage, and by this point, that lower level was like a sauna filled with the most dedicated punk fans you’ve ever seen. The heat was almost unbearable, but nobody was leaving.
And then came the moment everyone had been waiting for – TSOL took the main stage, and the entire auditorium lost its collective mind.
Jack Grisham is still one of the best frontmen in punk rock, period. The dude commands a stage like he was born to do it, pacing back and forth with that huge smile that somehow manages to be both welcoming and slightly threatening. He’s got this presence that fills every corner of the venue.
Their 19-song setlist was absolutely perfect – a journey through TSOL’s entire catalog that had something for every era of their fans. “Sound of Laughter” opened things up with that classic TSOL energy, while “Code Blue” closed out the night with intensity that left everyone completely drained and cheering for more.
“Dance With Me” – the song that gave the festival its name – was obviously a highlight, with the entire crowd singing along despite being completely exhausted. “Abolish Government” and “Property Is Theft” had the political punks going mental, while “Terrible People” and “Superficial Love” showcased the band’s incredible songwriting.
“Fuck You Tough Guy” was pure catharsis in the sweltering heat, and “World War III” felt especially relevant in these weird times. Every song hit perfectly, and TSOL was feeding off the crowd’s energy just as much as we were feeding off theirs.
The TSOL Dance With Me Festival proved that punk rock is alive and thriving in So Cal. From the surprise brilliance of River Ratts to the theatrical fun of Narcoleptic Youth to the veteran mastery of TSOL, this was a day that reminded everyone why we love this music so much.
TSOL showed why they’re still one of the most important bands in punk rock, but the real beauty of this festival was how it celebrated the entire scene – from the newest bands grinding it out in basement venues to the legends who’ve been carrying the torch for decades.
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by Shane Pase Photography
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