Pelican is a behemoth. The amount of sound that emanates from these four musicians is staggering. And I have been a fan since 2005 and the release of their sophomore album, The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Thaw. It was an amazing introduction to instrumental post rock. When Pelican recently came to DC9, it was to support their latest album, Flickering Resonance.
Watch an official visualizer for Indelible by Pelican on YouTube:
Joining Pelican for the show at DC9 on July 18 was Porcelain, a post-hardcore band from Austin, Texas. They play loud rock (with vocals) that sets the tone for the evening. They played a great, noisy set that made me want to get to know the music more.
After a short break, Pelican walked on stage and proceeded to melt my brain. The stage at DC9 is slightly elevated, just enough to give some separation to the band. But the beauty of the venue is that bands and the crowd are right next to each other. Bands have the ability to interact with their fans on a very intimate level. And there was a lot of interaction between Pelican and the crowd — much more than I expected from the instrumental quartet.
The band is comprised of guitarist Trevor de Brauw (who was also the spokesman for the band), guitarist Laurent Schroeder-Lebec, bassist Bryan Herweg, and drummer Larry Herweg.
A primary reason I love going to concerts is to hear how bands arrange music for a live show. With music like Pelican’s, I was even more intrigued because the music is dense. Is it something they can pull off, live? The first chords of the opening song, “Gulch,” answered that question, definitively.
The show sold out and the club was packed! A few songs into the show, Trevor told about coming to a small club in DC to see drummer Larry Herweg’s band, at the time. He remembered the amazing and supportive music scene back then. He mentioned how much he loves that there are places like DC9 where bands can play an intimate show to their dedicated fans.
That’s one of the cool things about Pelican’s music. It’s instrumental. Fans can interpret the songs in any way they choose. And Friday night in DC, at DC9, the fans chose joy. There wasn’t a whole lot of room to move around, but there was plenty of headbanging, cheering, and air guitar.
The set mostly consisted of songs from the new album, Flickering Resonance, but they didn’t dismiss the back catalog. They played several songs from their What We All Come To Need album, as well as one track from Forever Becoming. The entire affair ended with my favorite song from the new album, “Wandering Mind.” There was no encore.
The entire set was only 10 songs. But the epic nature of the songs, combined with the freedom of a live environment, meant the songs stretched out a bit more than many rock concerts. I spoke with Laurent for a little bit after the show. He said he and the band were so happy with the response they received from the crowd. It’s still early in the tour, and these shows can really set the tone for the rest of the time.
I have been able to cross another long-time desire off my concert list. Pelican was massive. They were loud, intense, and most of all, enjoyable. I will absolutely see them each and every time they come through the DC area. If you’re a fan of post rock, I recommend you do the same.
Setlist
- Gulch
- Indelible
- Pining For Ever
- Drought
- Cascading Crescent
- Strung Up From The Sky
- The Cliff
- Ephemeral
- The Creeper
- Wandering Mind
Here are some more photos of Pelican performing live at DC9 on July 18, 2025. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Marc Shea.
