A friend of mine, Virginia’s DJ Neidermeyer, received Nation of Language’s “Inept Apollo” from Promo Only not long ago. Gobsmacked, he listened to the single “30 times a row.”
“Again I say, listen to ‘Inept Apollo,’ because it’s incredible, and because it has parts that evoke ‘Nightmares’ by A Flock of Seagulls,” he declared on Facebook.
Neidermeyer and I share a love of crystalline ’80s synthpop, and “Inept Apollo” hails from Nation of Language’s fourth studio album, Dance Called Memory, released in September via Sub Pop. I was pleased that the song earned his stamp of approval as I’ve been loudly praising Nation of Language since I first saw them open The Wombats at 9:30 Club back in 2018.
To date, Nation of Language have released four studio albums with their first, Introduction, Presence, debuting in 2020. I was pleasantly surprised that Nation of Language placed Introduction, Presence in the spotlight at their Oct. 30 show at 9:30 Club, where they closed a tour in support of Dance Called Memory. While they performed five songs from Dance Called Memory, including “Inept Apollo” in the encore, they selected six from their debut record for the concert.
Watch the official music video for “Inept Apollo” by Nation of Language on YouTube:
Early in the show, Nation of Language played “I’m Not Ready for the Change” and closed their main set with “In Your Head” — both from the latest album. “I’m Not Ready for the Change” was another standout selection from Nation of Language, highlighting what the band does best with frontman Ian Richard Devaney’s dreamy vocals sounding like they came from a different time and place. His wife Aidan Noell was grace personified on the synthesizer and bassist Alex MacKay (who joined in 2022) was a delight as he filled the songs with charm and grit.
Nation of Language brought forward an ’80s aesthetic that seemed so natural, you immediately recognize its absence from the modern pop music scene when you watch them. Songwriting appears to come easy to them, as they continuously release gripping songs that effortlessly capture your attention and coax their way into your brain for weeks after you hear them.
While Dance Called Memory truly advances the band’s sonic signature, Ian and company’s deliberate love for Introduction, Presence at 9:30 Club reminded us that these Brooklynites have always had it. They’ve undoubtedly become better players over the past seven or eight years on the road, although they started out quite amazing from the beginning. And so, I feel there was a bit of giving these songs their due! Nation of Language began the show with “Tournament,” mesmerizing the sold-out house from the first notes.
The trio grooved with “Rush & Fever” early in the show but absolutely killed it with a grand-slam performance of “Friend Machine” in the middle of their set. “Friend Machine” was as always absolutely infectious. It was a standout moment in the concert in part because Ian and Aidan shared synthesizer duties together, and their mutual affection and magnetism took the song to the next level.
Watch Nation of Language perform “Friend Machine” live on KEXP via YouTube:
Nation of Language wrapped the show with an arresting performance of “The Wall & I.” Ian threw himself into the song, bouncing across the stage. He sang every word as it was the most important thing he had to say, but it seemed as if he were singing to fill a void. The song featured some brilliant synthesizer that sounded reminiscent of New Order to me. I wondered if the band’s Prophet 6 was channeling the Prophet 5 sounds of the Manchester legends.
There were other highlights too, particularly “Weak in Your Light” in the encore; it’s a song that reminds me a great deal of Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, a band that inspired the formation of Nation of Language. (At 9:30 Club, I heard Ian say for the first time that the band’s name was inspired by DC’s own punk legends Nation of Ulysses although you’ll hear no overlap in their sound.) For this show, “Weak in Your Light” was only one of two selections from Strange Disciple, the band’s 2023 third album. I feel like they toured those songs a lot in the past two years and wanted to shift to giving more love to earlier material. It was indeed wonderful to hear once again “Across That Fine Line” from 2021’s A Way Forward.
While Nation of Language have wrapped their most recent US tour, they are now bounding across Europe. And given their prolific nature, I am excited to imagine they will tour again soon. They truly are the most exciting band to from in the last decade, and to my awe, they continue getting better and better.
Nation of Language wisely recruited Chicago’s Deeper to open for them, and Deeper were also great! The quartet occasionally broke out beats that sounded like LCD Soundsystem while frontman Nic Gohl’s voice reminded me very much of Robert Smith of The Cure. I am now eager to see them headline their own gig, and I will keep my eyes open for their return to DC.
Here are some photos of Nation of Language performing live at 9:30 Club on Oct. 30, 2025. All pictures by Mickey McCarter.
Here are some photos of Deeper opening Nation of Language at 9:30 Club on Oct. 30, 2025. All pictures by Mickey McCarter.
