Concert Review: late night drive home w/ ALEXSUCKS, Babebee at Bowery Ballroom, Manhattan, NY

In the ever-evolving social media-centric field of indie rock, artists are put under a lot of pressure to stand out. The pressure of writing captivating songs, creating countless promotional materials to get in front of your audience, and crafting a compelling live performance can get daunting to the point of breaking a musical project. However, I’m delighted to report that Texas based rock band late night drive home (all lowercase) is an example of how to effortlessly play off all these tasks of the modern-day rock band without compromising on the ability to stay adventurous. 

late night drive home has already achieved incredible milestones in their six-year career, such as the massive viral success of their single “Stress Relief,” signing a record deal with Epitaph records, and acquiring a slot on 2024’s Coachella lineup. The group released a series of EPs spanning from 2019 through 2024, and they released their bold debut album as i watch my life online on June 27th, 2025. I was lucky enough to attend their headlining tour in support of the album at the legendary Bowery Ballroom almost a month after the record came out, and not only did I witness an audience that was having the time of their lives, I found a rock group that was ready to take on the music world with the wind at their back.

late night drive home took to the stage one member at a time, with frontman Andre Portillo kicking off the opening title track of as i watch my life online. As the track progressed, the rest of the band consisting of bassist Freddy Baca, drummer Brian Dolan, and touring guitarist Tofe sauntered on to build out the track as it went into lead single “terabyte.” Their stage setup was cleverly reminiscent of the album cover, with a window and a doorway set up behind the band members along with four backlights. It goes to show how much thought the group has with their live show, as they aren’t willing to simply put up a backdrop and call it a day. 

The specificity in design also made their way into the sound, not just the stage. Andre Castillo’s microphone had a touch of extra compression, giving a rawer quality to his lighter voice. The guitar tones throughout the show felt even more energetic than on the record which was incredibly helpful for the energetic moments when the crowd went wild, such as on the track “Awkward Conversations” and single “she came for a sweet time.” Of course, the moment where the crowd fully came alive was for their hit “Stress Relief” which had a sea of screaming voices and phones in the air. Thankfully, there were not a lot of people who left before the group's lengthy encore, something I have begun to fear more and more as artists blow up across short form content sites.

late night drive home is currently midway through their tour, with all remaining dates here. You can also listen to their great album as i watch my life online here.

late night drive home

Serving as direct support for late night drive home was ALEXSUCKS, a four piece alternative rock group from Los Angeles. From the moment the group took the stage, it was all gas, no brakes, as throttling guitars and pummeling drums filled up every inch of the room. Frontman Alex Alvarez embraced his inner rockstar, constantly striking poses while rocking a pair of sunglasses and a white jacket. There were moments towards the end of the set where the entire floor was shaking due to the movement of the crowd. It was a great energy boost for the crowd to get ready for the main headliner. You can check out ALEXSUCKS’ music here.

ALEXSUCKS

Kicking off the night was the solo project Babebee, named after a Kirby meme. Their live production was quite simplified, only making use of a guitar and a laptop, but their range of sonic palettes throughout their half hour set was quite varied, going from melancholic self-exploration to dance songs to get the crowd moving. Their sheer amount of bite-sized music helped Babebee make use of their set time, making their set a great way to kick off the night. You can check out Babebee’s music here.

Babebee