I rewrote the intro to this review multiple times but I’ll just dive straight in; The Vices hit the mark, overdelivered, and captivated from the beginning until the end of their only Dutch headline show of 2026 at Amsterdam’s Paradiso and I’m grateful I didn’t miss it.
Having previously worked at Paradiso, returning to this legendary music hub always feels like a homecoming. The stunning, historic venue and its wonderful staff consistently guarantee a smooth, lovely visit, but it was The Vices who turned this particular night into an unforgettable core memory.
The four-piece have well and truly grown into their guitar-driven Britrock sound, reclaiming it with a distinct flavour that no Dutch band before them has quite managed to replicate. Their setlist was a brilliantly paced rollercoaster. There was plenty of room for high-energy anthems like ‘Strange Again’ and ‘A Thousand Faces’, blistering solos, and just enough softer moments to let us catch our breath. When the rest of the band stepped off-stage, leaving frontman Floris to command the room alone, tears floated to the surface. Pulling hard on our heartstrings with a stunningly intimate acoustic rendition of ‘Tomorrow I’ll Be’, The Vices proudly showcased their multifaceted sound and undeniable ability to do it all. They even threw in massive, unexpected nods to their influences with roaring covers of Iggy and The Stooges’ ‘Search and Destroy’ and Black Sabbath’s ‘War Pigs’.
For me, the emotional pinnacle of the night arrived towards the end of the band’s encore with single ‘Boy’. The track holds a special place in my heart, as the band finished writing it while on their very first UK tour, a journey I was incredibly proud to be a big part of. Hearing it live again at a nearly sold out Paradiso after nearly seven years was an overwhelming, full-circle moment.
Please could you include a small paragraph on how special single ‘Boy’ is to me as the band finished writing this song when they were on their first UK tour of which I was a big part? I very much loved hearing the song live again after about seven years and it became quite an emotional moment to me, not to say that the entire evening wasn’t emotional, it was a stunning evening that well and truly made me reconnect with their music and their audience which consisted of a lot of familiar faces that helped me turn into the woman I am today.
The entire evening was a beautiful, emotional whirlwind that truly allowed me to reconnect with their music and the community around it. Looking out across the crowd, I was surrounded by many familiar faces of people who, alongside this band’s journey, helped shape me into the woman I am today. Closing out the night with the raw energy of ‘Trouble’ and ‘Wrong Ones’, The Vices proved that while they are destined for global stages, their roots will always run deep.
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