U.S. Tour 2025 - Truckfighters w/ Restless Spirit and Bad Guru Live at The Masquerade
Last September, my girlfriend and I traveled to New York City for the 2024 edition of Desertfest New York, and we had the time of our lives during our first time attending Desertfest New York. In addition to the main headliners such as Russian Circles, High on Fire, Amenra, Green Lung, and Acid King, the lineup included bands from across the globe. One of those bands was the legendary, fuzzy Swedish riff masters, Truckfighters. In 2020, Truckfighters’ last performance in Atlanta was also at The Masquerade (Purgatory) while touring on their Gravity X World Tour (see below for a link). And yes, a concert or two did take place in 2020, right before the time we now refer to as ‘The Year the World Shut Down’. Fast forward to 2025, one of my favorite D.I.Y. festivals, Muddy Roots Music Festival (Cookeville, Tennessee), started to gradually announce this year’s lineup, and it included a ton of bangers: Eagles of Death Metal, Pokey LaFarge, Voodoo Glow Skulls, T.S.O.L., Amigo the Devil, Frank Turner, and Truckfighters, to name a select few.
Now I knew I could not attend this year’s Muddy Roots Music Festival, but I knew there was a chance that Truckfighters would book an East Coast tour that could include an Atlanta date. I rolled the dice and waited and waited. A few months later, Truckfighters announced on June 20 their US Tour 2025 with select dates on the East Coast, starting August 20th in Cambridge, MA, at Sonia, and concluding at the Muddy Roots Music Festival on August 31st. The night before their scheduled Muddy Roots performance, Truckfighters booked a tour stop at The Masquerade (Purgatory) in downtown Atlanta, GA. As a bonus, the homies in Restless Spirit were called upon to be tour mates on select dates with Truckfighters as they made their way to Cookeville, Tennessee, for the Muddy Roots Music Festival. As a bonus, local Atlanta rockers Bad Guru were added to the bill as opening support for this evening.
Bad Guru is a southern rock/alternative rock/psychedelic rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, that formed in 2019. Bad Guru consists of Sierra Crowe (vocals), Quinn Brophy (drums), Ethan Bilkert (guitar), Joey Hurley (guitar), and Blake Powell (bass). Bad Guru has released two (2) LPs since forming as a band. Their latest release, Love and Fear Me, was released on June 28, 2024, and is available to stream/purchase on their Bandcamp account. According to reports, Bad Guru is working on their third (3) studio album. Stay tuned to their social media accounts for more information. According to an interview with Bad Guru compiled by The Georgia Sun, Crowe stated that they “tap into something you would never want to be like or the grossest part of yourself that you hide from everybody and write songs about it.”
Bad Guru kicked off the night with an exuberant and lively crowd ready to rock. This would be my first time seeing Bad Guru live, but I could tell that I was in the minority because the crowd was familiar with Bad Guru’s music and what they brought to the table. One good thing about arriving at a show early is that you get a chance to hear a band that you might not be acquainted with at all. For their opening set, Bad Guru proceeded to brilliantly perform a few songs from their studio album, Love and Fear Me, which included starting off the set with the title track. The energy from Bad Guru was extremely high as they gracefully performed their set with excitement. Bad Guru was a superb choice to open this evening’s festivities, and they were very vocal about how much this night really meant to them as a band.
You can see Bad Guru’s set list from their opening set at The Masquerade on 8/30/2025 below:
• “Love and Fear Me”
• “As Above, so Below”
• “Needle Eyes”
• “Hearts in Twine”
Show Bad Guru some love and support and follow them on their official Bandcamp account today!
Restless Spirit is a three-piece stoner/doom metal band from Long Island, N.Y. that has been active since 2018. Restless Spirit consists of Marc Morello (bass), Paul Aloisio (guitar/vocals), and Jon Gusman (drums). Restless Spirit has released three (3) LPs, four (4) EPs, one (1) live album, and one (1) single. Restless Spirit’s last full-length LP, Afterimage, is an eight-song metal classic that was released on October 6, 2023, on Magnetic Eye Records. Restless Spirit’s latest release,
The Doomed and the Dead… Live is a fantastic live album from their 2023 RPM Fest performance in Montague, MA, that was released October 24th, 2024, through their label, Magnetic Eye Records.
This is Restless Spirit’s second time making my column in just a little over a year, and I am thrilled to see them tear up the stage again so soon! Last time I saw Restless Spirit, they were on tour with Weedeater, Telekinetic Yeti, and Possum Rot (see below) when they performed at Grantski Records in downtown Augusta, GA. Restless Spirit opened the night with one of my favorite tracks from their second studio album, Blood of the Old Gods (2021),“Judgement and Exile.”
I was thrilled to hear some songs from Restless Spirit’s last studio album, Afterimage (2023), make the set list for this tour. Tracks like “Marrow,” “Shadow Command,” and finally closing out their career-spanning set with “All Furies.” If you have not listened to Restless Spirit before today, I suggest that you listen/stream The Doomed And The Dead… Live (2024), which was recorded during their blistering performance at the RPM Fest and later released by Magnetic Eye Records. This live album perfectly encapsulates the raw power that Restless Spirit demonstrates while they perform on stage. Needless to say, I cannot wait for Restless Spirit to make their way back to Atlanta while on tour. Fun little fact: Restless Spirit announced recently on Bandcamp that they are recording their fourth (4) studio album. Let the excitement commence.
Check out Restless Spirit’s head-banging set list from their performance at The Masquerade on 08/30/2025:
• “Judgement and Exile”
• “Marrow”
• “Miserable Existence”
• “Shadow Command”
• “Cascade Immolator”
• “Lord of the New Depression”
• “From the Dust Returned”
• “All Furies”
Follow this link to Restless Spirit’s Official Bandcamp page and support and stream their music today! You can also order directly from their Bandcamp page: Records, CDs, and clothing are ready to ship. You can also read (or re-read) my previous review exclusively at www.concerthopper.com featuring Restless Spirit by following this link: Weedeater w/ Telekinetic Yeti, Restless Spirit, & Possum Rot Live at Grantski Records!
Truckfighters is a three-piece desert rock/stoner rock/stoner metal band from Örebro, Sweden that formed in 2001. Truckfighters consists of Oskar “Ozo” Cedermalm (vocals/bass), Niklas “Dango” Kallgren (guitar), and Joel “Jolo” Alex (drums). Truckfighters have released five (5) LPs, one (1) live album, three (3) compilation albums, one (1) split with Firestone, and three (3) EPs since the release of their acclaimed debut album, Gravity X, in 2005. I remember the first time I listened to Gravity X around the time it came out, and I thought what a perfect album from start to finish. Here we are 20 years later, and I still regularly spin this record plus other assorted gems from the Truckfighters' music catalog. Might I also suggest Truckfighters’ second (2) studio album, entitled Phi, and a live album, Live in London. I think for those listening to Truckfighters for the first time, Gravity X, Phi, and their live recording Live in London is a proper introduction to this band.
Truckfighters came out on the stage in Purgatory at The Masquerade with their natural, energetic, lively attitude, ready to rock the crowd that came to hear their fuzzy tunes. I finally got to hear one of my favorite songs from Mania (2009), “Last Curfew”, performed live, and it was all I hoped it would be. Truckfighters followed up with the next track off Mania, “Monte gargano,” which was also wonderful to see Truckfighters ripping through this classic song off their third studio album.
The last song (before the encore) was “Mastodont” from their fourth studio album, Universe. Ozo spoke to the crowd and said that they were dedicating this song to the memory of the late Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds (R.I.P. Dirty B). I know the crowd appreciated the kindness and respect shown towards the tragic loss of Brent Hinds. Usually, after Truckfighters lay waste to the stage with their blistering performance, they come back to do an encore, which is everyone’s favorite Truckfighters’ song, “Desert Cruiser.” But this night was not like the other times seeing Truckfighters perform. Not only did we get “Desert Cruiser,” but prior to that song, we also got “In Search of (The)” and “Gweedo-Weedo” thrown in the mix. What an encore!
Check out Truckfighters’ mind-blowing set list from their exuberant performance at The Masquerade on 08/30/2025 below. What an encore!
• “Mind Control”
• “Atomic”
• “Last Curfew”
• “Monte garganto”
• “The 1”
• “Gain Speed”
• “Manhattan Project”
• “Mastodont”
Encore:
• “In Search of (The)”
• “Gweedo-Weedo”
• “Desert Cruiser”
Check out Truckfighters at their Official Fuzzorama Records Bandcamp page, where you can listen to not only Truckfighters, but some other great fuzzy psychedelic bands on Fuzzorama Records like We Hunt Buffalo, Witchrider, and Asteroid. We Hunt Buffalo is one of my personal favorite bands currently signed to Fuzzorama Records. We Hunt Buffalo’s bluesy, fuzz-laden hard rock/metal sound is phenomenal and one-of-a-kind. Give them a listen and tell me what you think. But I digress, you can also read (or re-read) my previous review exclusively at www.concerthopper.com featuring Truckfighters in 2020: Gravity X World Tour: Truckfighters w/ Valley of the Sun & Buzzard Cult (Masquerade).
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