“I am so omniscient, if there were to be two omnisciences, I would be both” — Ziltoid the Omniscient.
Devin Townsend has hit the road, again. And if you’ve seen his social media posts, this could be the last time for quite a while. So a packed house at The Fillmore Silver Spring may have recently gotten their last Devin fix for some time. But what a fix! Devin played a career-spanning set that included music from almost every iteration of his long, storied career so far.
But before Devin sauntered to the stage on May 10, TesseracT opened with a set that belied their opening act status on this tour. They tore through an extended opening set that definitely won over anyone who wasn’t already familiar with the band. Singer Daniel Tompkins showcased an amazing vocal range that meshed perfectly with the prog metal sound of the band. Their set lasted an hour with Daniel and bassist Amos Williams patrolling the stage like they were guarding it.
After a short break, Devin emerged onstage with almost no fanfare. It almost took us all by surprise. He walked out with his guitar, took to the mic, and thanked everyone for coming out. He reiterated that this would be the last tour for a while because he has some projects to complete and touring was making that difficult.
Devin Townsend is one of the most independent, unpredictable artists creating music today. His sound and focus can change dramatically from one album to the next. He might release an extreme metal album, followed by an ambient release, which may then be followed up by a rock opera about an omniscient alien who comes to Earth to find our greatest cup of coffee. Of course, he’s disappointed and hatches a plan to destroy all human life.
Devin also has a new album out, aptly titled PowerNerd. Check out the video for the title track right here.
Watch the official music video for “PowerNerd” by Devin Townsend on YouTube:
So what, exactly, was he going to play with the news that he’ll be off the road for an extended time? Turns out, he plays whatever the hell he wants to play. Go figure.
Devin has always surrounded himself with top-tier musicians, both on the road and in the studio. This tour is no different. The legendary Mike Keneally is playing keyboards, guitar, and backing vocals. He’s played with everyone from Frank Zappa and Steve Vai to Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and Robert Fripp. On bass is James Leach from Gold Key while drums are manned by Darby Todd from the Martin Barre Band.
The show opened with “PowerNerd.” It’s a pretty good way to kick off a show. Devin was all smiles, pointing and interacting with the audience. From there, he went backward. “Kingdom,” from both his Epicloud and Physicist albums was up next. It’s a personal favorite. I’m pretty sure everyone in the crowd thought the same. It’s a catchy, heavy song that is insanely energetic. And somehow, he went even heavier with the next song. Dev reached back into his catalog and pulled out “Love?” by Strapping Young Lad.
It’s amazing to see how Devin has taken the seething anger from his early days and changed that energy to something happier, not losing one bit of the power.
The theme of the night was “Gratitude,” which is also the title of one of the few songs he played from PowerNerd. And yes, “Ziltoid the Omniscient” made an appearance. In fact, someone brought a Ziltoid puppet to the show and Devin asked for it and someone’s bucket hat. He donned both and ran around the stage like a lunatic. It was glorious.
Another highlight was the appearance of Devin’s theremin for the song “Dimensions” from his Lightwork album (2022). He only used it for that song but made a comedy routing of it with Mike Keneally. There was a call and response going between the two with Dev feigning frustration as Mike was winning “the battle.”
After the set was over, Devin said they’d be doing the encore but we had to go through the paces of them exiting the stage, we cheer, and then they come back on. They played a two-song encore of “Deadhead” and “Bad Devil,” or as Dev called it, “Last Song Dance Party,” where he challenged the crowd to a ridiculous dance-off.
This tour is as much of a retrospective as it is supporting his new album. I’m grateful for that because if he really does stay off the road for an extended time, it was wonderful to hear him play music from just about his entire career. Go see this show, if you can.
Setlist
- PowerNerd
- Kingdom
- Love? (Strapping Young Lad)
- Lightworker
- Dimensions
- Aftermath (Strapping Young Lad)
- Deep Peace
- By Your Command
- Bastard
- Why?
- Gratitude
- Truth
Encore
- Deadhead
- Bad Devil (AKA Last Song Dance Party)
Here are some photos of Devin Townsend performing live at The Fillmore Silver Spring on May 10, 2025. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Marc Shea.
