Aftershock 2025 featured an onslaught of breakdowns and high-gain riffage from over 115 talented bands and artists from around the world. Fans of all rock and metal genres gazed upon each of the festival’s four stages, as headliners Blink-182, Deftones, Korn and Bring Me The Horizon stepped into the sound-soaked spotlight Oct. 2-5.
The headliners, however, weren’t necessarily all the craze. Smaller acts, of genres ranging from hardcore punk to emo, stirred a cathartic fit of rage and excitement in every passing listener.
This year’s list of headliners kept the cauldron of frenzied moshers boiling, but feeding its embers were the many up-and-coming bands who kept the heat on high. Here are several bands deserving of a hot seat in your next concert itinerary.
RELATED: ARE YOU READY? Here’s your official guide to Aftershock 2025
Violent Vira
For once, violence is an option
As listeners approached the DWPresents Stage on Friday, a voice sharing striking similarities to Lacey Sturm of Flyleaf barreled through the crowd. Curious listeners waltzed their way into the large mass of fans, before singing in unison. As the crowd shifted and parted, a girl dressed like Wednesday Addams took the stage.
The band, named eponymously after the costumed girl and lead singer Violent Vira, is a self-proclaimed “Dad-ime” band from Dallas, Texas. Vira said the genre is a fusion of dad rock and anime, creating a unique blend of sounds that bear the light graininess of J-rock anime openings yet breathe heavier vocal melodies reminiscent of early 2000s nu-metal.
Vira said she isn’t afraid to dip her hands into influences from other genres, citing Michael Jackson as her main inspiration – second to Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance. The rest of the band shared their own inspirations. Blank, the band’s bassist, said he is influenced by pop-punk acts, while one of the guitarists, Anthony, called out heavier names in rock like Incubus and A Perfect Circle.
Before the band became the modern mix of genres it is today, it started as a solo act in 2021. After promoting on social media and meeting new members after her first tour, Vira finalized her band.
“I started off being a solo artist, and once I felt I was ready to tour, I posted on my Instagram story,” Vira said. “Matt swiped up and was like, ‘Hey I’m a guitar player, but I also book shows.’ He helped book our entire first and second tour.”
Violent Vira was initially known by most fans through TikTok and Instagram promotions of her band, where she posted an engaging variety of music videos and song teasers. The band’s debut single, “I Don’t Care,” started trending shortly after its release in 2021.
Recalling the novelty behind promoting the band via flyers on lightposts throughout a local town, Vira said she felt unenthusiastic about using social media as a way to market her music. As much as the marketing platform brought success, Vira felt that modern means of promotion didn’t share the same sense of sincerity as previous methods.
“Social media is basically the modern flyer; it’s just able to reach so many more people,” Vira said. “I really hate that artists have to promote this way. I wish it was flyers, but I guess we just have to keep up with the times.”
Nevertheless, the band feels appreciative of their position in the rock and music world today. As of February 2025, the band signed with Mom+Pop, a New York City-based record label known for signing larger indie and alternative groups like Magdalena Bay and MGMT.
Vira said that the band’s performance at Aftershock in the same venue as artists who inspired them was a surreal realization.
“It is so nice to be able to share the same spaces with artists that we’ve grown up with and admired,” Vira said. “Hopefully, one day they share the same stage as us – and the same tour.”
Violent Vira’s Aftershock performance kicked off the group’s North American tour on Oct. 3. The band’s debut album, “Lover of a Ghost,” is expected to release on Nov. 14.
“I can’t wait for you guys to hear it,” Vira said.
Rev Theory
Rev up your speakers for these hard rock superstars
WWE wouldn’t have been the same without the likes of the raspy-voiced, guitar-slamming walkout songs that accompany its wrestlers before each piledriving punchfest. Fans of wrestler Randy Orton will be excited to hear about Rev Theory, who performed at the festival on Sunday, Oct. 5.
Rev Theory formed in Long Island, New York in 2002. The band is formed with Matty McCloskey on bass, Julien Jorgensen on rhythm guitar, Rich Luzzi on lead vocals and Dave Agoglia on drums. The band’s exclusive performance in Aftershock was one of Rev Theory’s first shows since 2014, celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut album “Truth Is Currency.”
McCloskey said that the band takes inspiration from a multitude of genres and artists, particularly post-grunge acts like Pearl Jam and Soundgarden.
“It is kind of an amalgamation, but I’ve heard some people say post-grunge, which I kind of like because we grew up in that era, and we pull a lot from that,” McCloskey said.
After the band performed their first-ever Aftershock show on Sunday, McCloskey expressed his appreciation for being able to perform at the same stages as some of the festival’s headliners.
“To be able to play shows and check off bands like Turnstile, Deftones and Bring Me The Horizon…to even be able to have your name near the bottom of a bill like that is cool,” McCloskey said.
McCloskey added that Rev Theory’s songmaking process has always been experimental, oftentimes taking certain riffs and melodies from each of the band members to workshop from. Each song produced by the band shared its own mesh of ideas.
“I think every song has come to life differently,” Agoglia said. “Me and Matty were talking early on, ‘this verse is great, but this chorus wasn’t popping.’ So we took a chorus from another song and we threw it in, so it’s a mix-and-match. Every song has its own story.”
Since the band reunited in 2025, McCloskey and the other members have been experimenting with implementation of new technology, such as AI. Compared to the old-school production tools and analog studios they recorded older projects with, the rapid influx of new production methods has sparked awe and curiosity in each of the members.
“When we first started, we didn’t have the capability to even record stuff,” said McCloskey. “We just didn’t have the gear, so you were relying on producers, and you had to come up with big budgets to record stuff – and now it’s really expensive.”
The band proceeded to discuss their thoughts on AI-based production methods.Compared to early drafts recorded on cassette tapes that McCloskey said were harder to work with, McCloskey has recently experimented with AI drum beats to refine his ideas for rougher tracks.
“AI is just a whole other level,” said McCloskey.“We got computers kind of later on, and then we put a drum beat just to kind of get an idea. And then you can showcase that idea much better than a horrible-sounding cassette tape.”
Despite the band’s decade-long hiatus, each of the members’ relationships with each other and their love for music has never frayed.
“Nothing bad ever happened. Everyone loves each other. Everyone gets along. You just need to take a big step back,” McCloskey said. “When you’re in a band, relationships come second. Everything comes second. So we want to do some stuff for ourselves.”
Quannnic
The calm before the storm
Skies greyed while a young man in his early 20s stood silently before a growing crowd, as the soft tapping of rain hit the grass below Friday morning. Silence broke as the man hit one stroke of the guitar, sending vibrations that reverbed through the now-muddied ground. The crowd cheered, as the rest of the band joined him in an earth-shaking symphony.
Quannnic brought an explosive calmness to the Aftershock stage on Oct. 3. Lead singer and guitarist Nick Quan is the head of the operation, bringing a refreshingly abrasive new sound to the table.
Quan began releasing music in late 2020 as a solo act, with earlier projects falling under the “digicore” genre – a hyperpop-adjacent genre known for its heavily autotuned and electronic trap-like qualities. Since then, Quan continued to produce music in his bedroom, pivoting his style to reflect the shoegaze and nu-metal melodies he is inspired by today.
“When I’m writing music, I’ll listen to anything liked on Spotify,” Quan said. “I usually like building playlists of music I’m inspired by at the moment.”
Quan said Quannnic’s latest album “Warbrained” was inspired heavily by Deftones, Silversun Pickups and Autolux, imbuing these inspirations in a way Quan describes as “explosive but calm.” A cascading wall of sound rained upon the crowd during the artist’s set: harsh, droning, yet melodically frail enough to have audiences sway in a soft, silent dance.
Quan described his production process, noting the tonal differences between his live and studio sets. For his live sets, Quan said he doesn’t use backing tracks, instead using guitar pedals to create the band’s unique sound.
“I think our live sets sound entirely different from our studio. I record everything in my room, so it’s a lot more controlled,” Quan said. “I kind of just want it to be as loud as possible or leave a nice layer of textures.”
Playing at other festivals such as Louder Than Life and Riot Fest, Quannnic has had the opportunity to meet and perform with larger bands.
“Being able to be on the same bill and play with Deftones is insane,” Quan said. “At the end of the day, I just love music, and to be able to play these festivals is super sick and meaningful to me.”
Quan said that the band is ready to get back in the studio to start workshopping new ideas.
“I think it’s [time for] studio mode. I want to record another album,” Quan said. “I don’t know when it’ll be out, but hopefully soon.”
