Highly Suspect, James & The Cold Gun, Family Dinner

The Factory in Deep Ellum

January 18, 2025

Review and Gallery By: Grace Forrester

Starting off the year, and their tour, right, Massachusetts natives Highly Suspect brought the second show of their As Above So Below Tour last weekend to The Factory in Dallas, Texas. Joined by the supporting acts Family Dinner and James and The Cold Gun, the night was a non-stop party from start to finish.

First to the stage was Family Dinner based out of Long Beach, NY. Despite some audio issues at the beginning of their set, the band rocked the stage and brought a fun, carefree attitude. With a bottle of wine in hand, lead singer Natalie Okeeffe and the rest of the band got the crowd warmed up for what was next to come.

From the second James and The Cold Gun stepped onto the stage, the crowd seemed hooked. Embodying true rockstar spirit, the band wasted no time shredding through songs “Twist The Knife”, “Chewing Glass”, and “Fragile” just to name a few while fans jumped around, even starting a mosh pit towards the end of their set. It was clear to see the passion frontman James Joseph possessed throughout their performance, truly putting his all into each song. Before ending their set, James not only gassed up the crowd by telling them how good they were to them, but sharing that this was the best start to his birthday that he could imagine.

Starting off with “Bath Salts”, Highly Suspect caused the crowd to truly erupt from the floor to the balcony. Splashing everyone (including me) in alcohol on the front row during “Claudeland” felt like a bonafide rockstar moment. Halfway through the set, the band slowed things down while bassist Rich Meyer performed “Arizona”, picking right back up with “The Reset” and an incredible drum solo with the song “The Blue-Eyed Devil” Getting pulled into a mosh pit that took up most of the front of the venue, Highly Suspect closed the night with their encore of “Run for Your Death (More Pills)” and “Pink Lullabye”, with Johnny himself throwing a mic stand offstage.

The As Above So Below Tour continues on until February 15th and remaining tickets can be found on Highly Suspects’ official website. These shows are the last few before the band heads off to make new music, so you do not want to miss this tour!