Tied Down Detroit 2026 Day #2 w/Carry On, Bad Beat, Skinhead, Pig Pen and more.
Jimmy Lawson of Bad Beat at Tied Down Detroit 2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
I've been photographing punk rock bands for the past 40 years, mostly in Detroit, going back to The Graystone Hall and the original Blondies on 7 Mile. As I near 60 years old, I constantly wonder how much longer I'll be able to do this. Going into the fourth consecutive day of a beatdown hardcore festival, I was feeling the fatigue as much as ever. This wasn't going to be the year that I gave up, however, and I certainly wasn't going to miss Pig Pen, The Sissy Boys, Skinhead, or Bad Beat. The final day ended up being my favorite, and the weekend ended on a high note with Carry On.
We took notes from the previous day, and on Sunday, we still made our stop at Dunkin' Donuts but also made it to the festival in plenty of time to see all of the bands. It helped that everyone already had wristbands, so there was no line. We made our way to the Bad Beat merch booth, stocked up on shirts, hats, and oddly random video games (with Bad Beat stickers on them), took everything to the car, and were back to the stage even before Pluto's Kiss did their sound check. I'd seen Pluto's Kiss several times before (at Edgemen Printing and Nikki's Pizza), but we were in for a treat this time when Mike Moynihan from Bad Beat/WMD took the stage on guitar (I asked him about it later, and he was just filling in). Firestarter and Skourge followed, and both were excellent as well.
I'm a fan of the TV show "The Bear," and I'll admit that my original draw to Pig Pen was the fact that Matty Matheson (who, in addition to acting on "The Bear," is also a celebrity chef and restaurateur) is at the helm. After watching a few of their videos and reviewing their "Mental Madness" CD for In-Spite Magazine, I realized that this is a serious band. Seriously good, seriously hardcore. Before Pig Pen's set, I was about to take a candid photo of Matty hanging out backstage with friends and fans when he turned and offered to pose for the photo with the woman he was talking to (she turned out to be Taylor Nicole, Bo Lueder's significant other before his passing). It was an amazing moment, especially seeing both of them later truly participating in and enjoying the festival. The set was even better than I had hoped, and the band stuck around after to support the rest of the line-up.
Luckily, I'd seen Anhedonia a few times previously, so I was able to skip their set and grab some much-needed food outside in the food truck court. They had a "The Long Drink" putt-putt golf course set up, fresh ground coffee in "Tied Down Detroit" branded packaging, and vegan choices. Monster Energy Drink was a sponsor, so they had a booth set up, giving away free cans of various beverages that you could take to their "Green Room" to enjoy. There was also a full bar (alcohol), multiple taco stands, and a massive smoker preparing all sorts of BBQ for the meat eaters. I went with a double order of fries and then made my way back to the stage to prepare for the insane upcoming set from The Sissy Boys.
The Sissy Boys at Tied Down Detroit 2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
Warthog at Tied Down Detroit 2026. All photos by Paul Holstein.
We have an amazing hardcore scene in Detroit, undeniably, but the local bands really did steal the show. I was looking forward to The Sissy Boys but had no idea what I was in for. I'd seen them live several times before, but this was the first since they released their "Let's Party" LP (giving me a whole batch of new songs to look forward to). They played my favorite, "Pay Your Disrespect," along with "Nerve," bringing out Jimmy from Bad Beat to help with vocals, but their set was complete mayhem. Singer Dom was a presence all weekend, at every show and right in front of or in the pit for every band, and came out wearing his trademark ski goggles and yellow-tinted sunglasses. Along with him came what looked like 100 rolls of toilet paper (to be launched into the crowd), streamers, and bottles of Champagne (or sparkling water) being sprayed on the audience. The front row quickly took over the stage to help with the mayhem, and the whole set was over as soon as it started. D-BLOC, also local, followed with a short, fast set of pure hardcore.
I'd heard good things about Warthog, so even though I really needed a break, I decided to stay for the Warthog set and miss Final Resting Place. I'm glad that I did, because they ended up being another of my favorite sets of the weekend, completely chaotic and high energy. I was hoping for an appearance from Lawrence W. Arthög (whom I assume is their mascot); we didn't get that, but the crazy look in singer Chris Hansell's eyes throughout the set was disturbing enough.
After grabbing some food from one of the food trucks, I was talking to a bunch of friends when I heard the soundcheck start for Skinhead. This was another of my can-not-miss bands, so I immediately broke ranks and headed to the stage. Their music is punk/Oi! mixed with hardcore, and their name is not meant to be an indication that they are into extremist politics... It's just their band name. They jumped right into two of their best songs, "Kill Yourself" and "Dead Skinhead" (which they played without the usual chorus), and then continued on with a 10-song set that also included favorites "Sick Cunts" and "1%er Skinead." This was one of my most highly anticipated bands of the weekend, and I wasn't disappointed. The crowd knew all of the words, and the area in front of the stage was the most packed that I'd seen all weekend. I didn't want their set to end; however, knowing that Bad Beat was up next definitely softened the blow.
Before Bad Beat started, fans all around the stage started holding up signs. I saw Taylor Nicole holding up maybe the best one with "Bad Beat Eats Corn The Long Way." Others said, "I'm pregnant + Bad Beat is the father!," "Bad Beat #1 hardcore band," "Come to Brazil," and "I named my firstborn daughter Bad Beat." They jumped right into a cover of Thin Lizzy's "The Boys Are Back", followed by another dozen or more of their classics (including my favorite "My Revenge"). As always, the set was filled with members of other bands grabbing the mic and taking over for parts of the songs, and Jimmy antagonizing the crowd. If you don't already know Bad Beat, you most definitely will, as they are the single best hardcore band to come out of the Detroit scene in years. As soon as they finished, I hopped off of the stage into the crowd to find a place for a short break, as when I came back it would be the home stretch of bands to finish off the weekend.
I wasn't previously familiar with Bane or Straight Ahead, but they both put on great shows. Straight Ahead did an amazing cover of Minor Threat's "Straight Edge." I'd seen Angel Du$t once before at Punk Rock Bowling, and I remembered their cover of "Stepping Stone," which they did again at Tied Down Detroit. I knew Carry On was going to be crazy for a lot of reasons. One was that when I showed up before the day even started, the line for the Carry On merch was out the door and all the way to the back of the food truck court. Apparently, they were selling a limited edition vinyl of "A Life Less Plagued," on green vinyl, hand-numbered and limited to 150, made (with the date on the cover) just for this show. But more than that, I'd been listening to them all week, and they are crazy good. They were the second band of the day to play with the lights down low (making photos and video difficult), but the crowd was ready, and everything exploded as soon as they played the first chord. It would be a weekend to remember for a long time, likely the rest of my life.
