Transviolet "Softcore" Tour in Dallas

April 2nd, 2025

I am writing this with eyeliner from this show still staining the inner corners of my waterline. This show was planned for me pretty last minute, but I knew that I would go the moment it was announced. Transviolet were my favorite band of all time when I was 17. Their first few projects are filled with deep cuts about being young and figuring out how to navigate your femininity and sexuality, and those were both challenges that I wrestled with in mid/late high school. There were times where my sense of self felt compromised by the perceptions of those around me, and it stirred a complex array of emotional responses that I did not know how to manage. One of the greatest ways I learned to harness those emotions was to put them into writing. I did not grow comfortable straightforwardly writing about myself until much later in life, so I utilized fiction writing as one of my longest-running outlets for when my feelings overwhelmed me in otherwise undefinable ways. I always found the easiest way to get inspired by my own thoughts was to first relate them to music. I was intentional about choosing songs I felt connected to. Listening to other people's expressions of in and through music did not solve my problems, but it guided me toward a similar sense of release. I was able to identify a lot of my own thoughts and feelings through the work of other people long before I was ready to address them in writing.

People do not give teenagers enough credit for what they endure in high school. Middle school is its own battle of figuring yourself out, but I would argue that high school can be worse for a lot of kids. You are thrown in and already expected to know everything you want. And people will claim that it isn't true, that you still have time, but before senior year you are supposed to know where you want to spend the next four years of your life and precisely how much money your education will cost and what specific degree you want and what exactly you aim to do with it. People love to patronize you and act like you have no idea what you're talking about, but they will turn around and expect so much of you so quickly and it is hard to sort it all out. I know there are people out there who made one plan for themselves when they were 16 years old and genuinely stuck to it, but the average kid deals with more than they ever expected. There's school itself, working in classrooms, but there's also the matters of maintaining relationships and friendships, keeping up with hobbies or passions, and making time for all of the things that are important to you. And that's all just the pleasant, surface-level things--there are so many kids who face a whole separate world when they leave the school building. Jobs, family matters. Those personal things that you're trained to feel ashamed of talking about. High school is an age of being young and impressionable and you are just stuck there, with yourself, oftentimes feeling like you have to handle things alone.

I spent a lot of my own high school years thinking there was nowhere left for me to go. I was not equipped to meet the expectations of other people, and it was not until the summer after graduation that I began to realize that I was allowed to still be figuring things out. My parents had always been supportive of me working in unconventional ways to maintain my own pace, but it took me a long time to accept that as an okay approach to managing my own life. I still don't think kids are given enough time to really know what they want at that age, but there are opportunities to change your mind. I switched my major, quit my job, and had almost a complete refresh of friends I spent daily time with. It took me a while, but I eventually began to figure that I did not have to hold onto things that were not serving me, even if I had been convinced I was supposed to want them. That discovery was the gateway to one of the most pivotal, eye-opening transitions of my life.

I saw Transviolet for the first time when I was freshly 19. It was the start of my second semester of college, when I was still very far from knowing what I wanted or where things might go for me, but I was beginning to grow more confident in myself as I faced those changes. That concert was enough to impact me on its own. That was one of my first times being front row at a concert and meeting one of the first artists that I truly loved, so it was a special night for me on many levels. I posted on my Instagram after the show, claiming that it was "better than anything I could've ever hoped for". I still count that as one of my top 10 shows of all time out of the hundreds I've attended over the past 10 years. Ironically enough, amidst all this talk about change and 180 transitions, that was one of three shows I was able to attend in 2020 before the world shut down. I went to that show with my sister Bryna, who was 16 at the time, and we simply had no idea what was coming. 

I saw Transviolet on their tour following that one as well. I believe it was 2021, making that show one of my first concerts coming back from quarantine. That was definitely the peak of my self-expression through my style. I took full advantage of those months at home and dyed my hair forest green, and I remember I wore a snakeskin top with ripped tights and demonias to that show. I brought my friend Jordan with me to that show and we had an incredible time then, too. I fell back in love with the album they were touring and continued to be really invested in the band's music.

They came back one more time in between then and now for a show I had to miss. I believe it was because Bryna was graduating high school. I have sort of shifted around my favorite artists and cycled through genres to find them, but I was bummed to miss out on a chance to support live music for an artist that I deeply cared about. The gap between that tour and this one felt much longer to me--though now that I'm looking at timing, I don't think it really was--but I was very excited to see they were returning to Club Dada this year.

April 1st, 2025 - Club Dada

I once again attended this show with Jordan. If you know me, you know I love Club Dada. It is a 400-person capacity venue with an outdoor area that is open to all. Sometimes the garage door separating the indoor space from outside is open, letting air in and allowing room for more people, but most of the time it stays closed during shows. The venue itself is cool, it's small, the staff is all nice, and there are almost always opportunities to talk with the band/artist after the show in the venue. It's just a very pleasant little place to be!

Themes for each of the shows were posted on the band's Instagram, the Dallas theme being "Heaven and Hell". There were images attached to each theme title to help curate a vibe, but the dress code was left mostly up to the fans' own interpretation. There were a handful of people who went all out, making me wish I had upped my outfit just a bit more, but I was happy with my loosely "heaven" themed white outfit too. If nothing else, the show had a clear red/black/white color scheme going, and it was cute to see how everyone made the concept their own. I think more artists should incorporate/implement themes and dress codes for shows! It amps up the fun and made it more special to match with the rest of the crowd.

I went from a job that allowed me to listen to music all day every day to a job where I sit in mostly silence, so I will admit I was a bit behind on catching up with their newest album. The setlist was a cohesively curated mixture of old and new releases, and even with shifts in sound and concept through the band's different albums, everything went together like it was meant to be performed in that exact order. The show was incredible from beginning to end. The energy on stage from small artists in small venues tends to be unmatched, and this was a prime example of that for me. Transviolet always know how to put on an amazing performance.

Another downer to my 8-4 is my shift in preferences for weeknight activities. I used to be down for everything, always wanting every set to be as long and full as possible, but now I tend to want to stay inside on Tuesday nights. Seeing two openers on this lineup had me a bit worried about run time, but once the first act started, I decided I wouldn't have cared if the show lasted all night. Both openers were so unique in both their performing and their music. Mixie played first, shortly followed by Annabel Lee, and both artists really knew how to work the growing crowds. Though it can be appreciated at times, I typically prefer opening acts who do not cater to what they think the crowd expects of them, and I felt that both Mixie and Annabel Lee did not shy away from presenting themselves as strong, individual performers. Jordan and I really enjoyed both sets and we loved looking at all of their merch on display in between performances. It really is cool to see what small artists are capable of!

I got a setlist from the stage and met Sarah in the merch line after the show. This was my third time meeting her and she was as sweet as ever. She always makes a point to take her time to be personable with each fan she speaks with and I really noticed it on Tuesday. She signed my setlist with a personalized note and we took an updated photo to add to our small archive of pictures together, and then Jordan and I bought merch at the table. They got Transviolet sweatpants and I got a t-shirt, and I think we were both very satisfied with the prices and quality of our purchases!

Supporting small artists is a one of a kind experience. It is rewarding in a way that is incomparable to anything else you come across in the music/concert/fan world in so many ways. It can be special to follow artists online, but I think everybody should try to find small and independent artists to support in a crowd so you get the live experience. Not even just from the concert standpoint, but it is so important to show up for artists when the opportunities present themselves so there will be more chances for shows in the future. For independent artists who are supporting themselves through the industry, things like buying tickets to shows, purchasing merch, following their social media, streaming the music, and spreading the word about the artists and concerts add up to make the world of a difference.

I had so much fun at this show! Transviolet's music got me through so much and I love any opportunity to support them where I can. 

It looks like there are a lot of good upcoming shows on the calendar for Club Dada for the next month or so, and I see myself going back very soon. It may be a stressful time of year in regard to other things, but it is an exciting time for live music!

As always, thank you for reading and I suspect I will be back with more soon! ;)