Concert Review
Artist: The Bolshoi Brothers
Date: April 5 2026
Venue: The Star Theater
City: Portland, Oregon
Supporting: Theater of Hate
If any band ever dragged one long, twisted chapter of my life full circle and slammed the door with a distorted guitar chord, it was finally crossing off the sacred concert bucket list item: The Bolshoi Brothers.
If you don’t know The Bolshoi — those madmen who stormed into the darkwave underworld in ’86-’87 — then you’ve been hiding under a very large, very boring rock. They hit us with a strange, beautiful hybrid: folk-laced darkwave soaked in melodic, moody keyboard strings and Trevor Tanner’s razor-sharp guitar. Albums like Friends, the absolute masterpiece Lindy’s Party, and the long-lost Country Life (finally exhumed in 2015) left generations of us starving for more.
Last year, Trevor Tanner and Paul Clark rose again under the banner of “The Bolshoi Brothers”— injecting a fresh prog-rock edge into their classic English dark-folk DNA. I had them on the show and it was pure electricity. Then, after 36 goddamn years (I fell hard for them in ’88), I finally nailed it: April 5th at Portland’s Star Theater.
The second I stumbled into the smoking area, there they were — sitting on a bench like darkwave royalty. I blurted “Hi Paul” and he hit me with, “Now there’s a voice I recognize.” Handshakes with both of them. I told them how long I’d been waiting for this night. Paul immediately brought up our interview chat about their gloriously unconventional songwriting — those off-meter poetic shifts mid-verse that I fucking “adore”. He actually appreciated that I got it. Beautiful.
They signed my Lindy’s Party LP. That moment alone was worth the decades.
I asked about the opening act, Theater of Hate, after watching their sax player wander off. They pointed out that drummer Chris Bell had also just stepped away. “Is that the Chris Bell from Gene Loves Jezebel?” I asked. Hell yes it was. When he came back we dialed my old high school friend — whose favorite band on earth is Gene Loves Jezebel — and let wish her happy birthday on her voice mail. Chris Bell is an absolute champ.
Then Trevor leaned in and mentioned something at the merch table: a single about David Bowie. Minutes later, some guy walked straight up to me in the hall and said, “Hey Jeremy, I got a present for ya from Trevor.” I asked how the hell he knew who I was. “Trevor described you — guy with a camera and a New Model Army t-shirt.” He handed me Trevor Tanner’s limited 10” single “Goodbye Ziggy Stardust” (a.k.a. “The Day That Bowie Died”). It’s a gut-punch tribute that hits like a velvet hammer. Go buy it. Seriously. I also grabbed the double LP of Trevor’s Bolshoi Jazz versions — and yeah, it’s got extra tracks the streaming services don’t. Buy the vinyl, you won’t regret it.
Theater of Hate came out swinging like a post-punk wrecking ball.
These legends — the same band that gave Billy Duffy his first TV appearance on Top of the Pops with “Westworld” — opened for ChameleonsVox back in 2019 and nearly blew the roof off. Stand them next to early U2 in 1980 and you’d swear they were twins, except Theater of Hate had a sax ripping through the guitar lines like a switchblade. Kirk Brandon on vocals and guitar, Stan Stammers on bass, Clive Osbourne on sax, and Chris Bell on drums — a four-piece this night, but they still hit like a goddamn freight train.
They opened with “Judgement Hymn,” tore through “Nero” and “Original Sin,” and closed with the immortal “Do You Believe In The Westworld.” Kirk’s voice cut through like a broken cathedral bell — intense, aggressive, melodramatic, operatic. If you’ve never seen them, fix that immediately. If you’ve never heard them, fire up YouTube right now. You’re welcome.
Then the lights dropped low. The Bolshoi Brothers took the stage in near darkness, exactly as they should — obscure, shadowy, ready to drag you through sonic wastelands.
They opened with “Beautiful Creature,” pulling us deep into the new darkwave-prog-rock beast. Classic Bolshoi guitar and lyrics riding on a sci-fi undercurrent that made you wonder if Trevor had a cute little space alien chained up somewhere. “Built in Obsolescence” came next with a nasty Killing Joke snarl, minor-key piano, and Paul Clark’s signature unsettling synths straight out of the old days.
Trevor grinned and said the next song was written for its time, but if they wrote it today it’d be called “iPhone Man.” Then they launched into the *Lindy’s Party* classic “T.V. Man,” with the whole room counting off “1, 2, 3 — Hail TV!” while grinning like idiots. For a few glorious minutes I was 13 again, sitting in my buddy’s basement, imagining this exact moment.
From there they took us on a full journey — new material that sits somewhere between The Bolshoi, King Crimson, Emerson Lake & Palmer, and a Pink Floyd fever dream. Paul’s synths and Trevor’s guitar wove pure magic. “Mr Ridiculous” felt like a dark, twisted Beatles b-side from a haunted Sgt. Pepper universe. “A Way” rang out and carried us next door without missing a step. “Cowboy Chords” paid strange, beautiful tribute to country & western.
Then the bleak, glorious piano of “Sunday Morning” hit — that “I’m going to scare the hell out of you” intro still sends chills. “This Town” rolled in with its Baba O’Riley chords and Twin Peaks strings (Paul lives in Seattle, so maybe it soaked in). We got “Country Life,” and finally the beloved “Please,” with everyone dancing to that infectious bass groove that still kicks after nearly 40 years.
They closed with “Suburbs” from the new album — slow, haunting, and quietly menacing, unpacking the quiet terror of ordinary life.
I walked out of the Star Theater completely blown away. The new material is strong as hell, Trevor’s lyrics are still razor-sharp, and live… Christ, they’re magical. After 36 years, the circle closed in Portland smoke and pulsing synths.
If you’ve loved these guys as long as I have, the Bolshoi Brothers project is absolutely worth your time — and seeing them live is mandatory.
GOD I LOVE THESE GUYS.
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