Public Image, Ltd and Plague Vendor “This Is Not The Last Tour”.
John Lydon of PIL at St. Andrew’s Hall, Detroit MI 09/25/2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
It was my second night this week at St Andrew's Hall, and the second time that they put on a flawless event. Earlier in the week, I tried to park in the St Andrew's parking lot for the show. When I pulled in and said, "How much?" the attendant said $30, so I immediately started pulling away. I could hear him yelling at me (to negotiate), but I ended up going about two blocks to one of the parking structures recently built by/for Hollywood Casino (that charges $15 and no longer validates). That didn't work out great, as after the show I had a hard time finding my car again (I won't go into that). This time, I pulled into the parking structure right off of the I-75 Lafayette exit (it was cashless, and the card reader was broken, so they let me park for free - it's usually $20). It turned out to be an even shorter walk than the last time and took me through the newly renovated Monroe Street in Greektown (the entire corridor is granite pavers and blocked off to cars). A quick left past Nikki's Pizza, and I was at St Andrew's Hall.
Plague Vendor at St. Andrew’s Hall, Detroit MI 09/25/2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
Plague Vendor at St. Andrew’s Hall, Detroit MI 09/25/2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
I was there early, since there were only two bands and I didn't want to miss Plague Vendor. They are a Los Angeles-area punk/post-punk band formed in 2008, and I'd heard good things about their show and that that their music is quite a bit different than PIL. It seems that a lot of other fans had the same idea, as the place was packed even before they came out (with no other opener). Singer Brandon Blaine's presence was reminiscent of Iggy Pop as they played a 12-song set filled with sweat and raw energy. I was mesmerized by the set, but their new song "Unc" (also their closer) stuck out (a faster hardcore song that was right up my alley). “What the fuck is a ROTH IRA? Taxes? Again? I just fucking did my taxes”. After the set, Brandon was hanging out by their merch booth down in The Shelter (where the line was 20 people deep through the entire break between sets), talking to each fan as they checked out. I asked him about the song "Unc," and he took a few minutes to explain it, a highlight of the night for sure, but I'll leave that research to you (check out the video on YouTube).
John Lydon of PIL at St. Andrew’s Hall, Detroit MI 09/25/2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
I'm unsure why, but PIL came through The Shelter, past the fans, to get to the stage. The bouncers had us all stand aside and away from the doors as they came through. In a way, it felt like royalty was in the house, and John Lydon is exactly that: punk rock royalty. I am rarely a fanboy at a show, but this was John Lydon (a.k.a. Johnny Rotten, the original lead singer for The Sex Pistols). When I was a teenager and most of my friends had AC/DC and Farrah Fawcett posters on their walls, mine were covered with Johnny Rotten and Sid Vicious. I did some research in advance of the show, so I knew that although they had played Sex Pistols covers in the past, that would not happen tonight. They opened with "Home", played my personal favourite, "This Is Not a Love Song", and did a couple of covers that I wasn't familiar with (Time Zone and Leftfield). Johnny spit, scowled, and made all sorts of crazy hand gestures throughout the set, while also working on a bottle of Martell VS cognac that started out unopened. It was a great show in Detroit, and there are plenty of stops left on the tour. Catch them if you can!
