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La Dispute Takes Madison by Storm

Published

5 months ago

April 22, 2026

By Byran McCabe

When there are tornado warnings in the Midwest, some people run straight to their basements, some people crack open a beer and watch the action from the front porch, and then there are the ones that brave the storm to see La Dispute play their first ever show in Madison, WI. This show was sold out almost the moment after it was announced, and quite literally come hell or high water, the legion of devoted fans was not going to miss what was surely going to be a life changing experience.

Majestic Theatre was the setting for La Dispute’s first U.S. show of 2026 in support of their newest album No One Was Driving the Car. Hailing from central California, From Indian Lakes got the night kicked off with their soaring brand of indie rock. The packed room was entranced by the atmospheric guitars and perfectly harmonized vocals. This was the perfect warmup for the chaotic emotional roller coaster that was awaiting Madison.

The room was washed in dark red light and La Dispute came out to a room buzzing with energy. Instantly from side to side, and front to back, the crowd surged as the opening lines of “I Shaved My Head” were shouted by vocalist Jordan Dreyer. From that moment on, the entire room was in the palm of the band’s hand. It may have taken their entire career to make it to Madison, but that meant they had an entire career’s worth of iconic music to pack into their hour and a half set. Everything from “Andria” to “View From Our Bedroom Window”, including much of their newest album.

Jordan didn’t only spill out his heart to the sea of people through the band’s songs, he also took time to be candid with the crowd about his struggles with coping with the realities that we face in the current world. The genuine passion and honesty that this band shares is what connects with so many people.

The peak of the energy that night was hearing every single person scream the final verse of “King Park” at the top of their lungs drowning out the band. Everywhere I looked, whether it was in the front row, or the upper reaches of the balcony, everyone was belting out every word. That moment was the loudest I have ever heard a crowd at the Majestic. It was the kind of moment that was guaranteed to give you goosebumps.

That was only the midway point of their set. From there La Dispute took the crowd through the journey of the rest of their discography. The sold out crowd shared all of their passion and energy with the band until the very last moment when they took their final bow. The weather warnings that night may have been for the storm outside, but the real storm was the cathartic release that took place inside the walls of Majestic Theatre.

Setlist