Written By Livia Wickliffe
If you grew up in the 90s, you might know them from their mainstream single “Cut Your Hair,” – though if you’re a bit younger, “Harness Your Hopes” could ring a louder bell.
September 26, 2025: Stockton, California’s most beloved comes together for their first Dallas show since 1999. Band members Mark Ibold, Bob Nastanovich, Steve West, “Spiral Stairs” Scott Kannberg, and “S.M.” (so mysterious) Stephen Malkmus stopped by Longhorn Ballroom on their way to Austin, re-igniting the Pavement flame that was put out 25 years ago. They started off with a local Austin band called “The Point,” to end their Dallas hiatus.
Crowds anywhere ranging from Gen Alpha to Boomers crammed into Longhorn Ballroom to attend “the most crowded show Longhorn Ballroom has ever seen since they reopened” in early 2023.
Pavement lit the old fire by starting off with “Grounded” from their third studio album, Wowee Zowee. Judging by the homemade Wowee Zowee headbands worn by the father and daughter in front of me, some fans were clearly enthralled by this choice.
They followed with “Stereo” and “Shady Lane” from Brighten the Corners and “Frontwards” from Slanted and Enchanted. Dallas fans were experiencing the epitome of a 90s indie/slacker rock band. Yes, Stephen Malkmus’ brilliantly flat and unique voice sounded even cooler in person. “Conduit for Sale” was electric, vocally seized by the band’s adored Bob Nastanovich. Even the most unfamiliar listener could tell that there was a favorite member in the
band. Red, Blue, and Golden lights were dispersing the room as fans were getting closer to the stage. The band decided to slow it down with “Here”, “Kennel District”, and “Father To a Sister of Thought.”
Didn’t know any of the songs I mentioned? Any unfamiliarity disappeared the moment “Harness Your Hopes” hit its first note. Every single fan in the building of Longhorn Ballroom was harnessing their hopes on just one person. In 2017, this single unexpectedly became their most played song on Spotify after previously having no major recognition. Today, “Harness Your Hopes” has over 236 million streams– almost 5x more than their second most-popular song, “Cut Your Hair”, which has 51 million. Shortly before starting this song, Malkmus brought out his daughter, Sunday Malkmus, to jam with the rest of the band on stage. Together, Nastanovich and Sunday played a tambourine while jumping around on stage; one of many antics Sunday would pull throughout the night.
This might’ve been a Pavement concert, but Sunday Malkmus briefly stole the show– fans were going crazy when miscellaneous items were being thrown into the crowd. Drumsticks? No. Guitar Picks? Signed merch? Almost. As I looked up, ping-pong balls from the stage flew past my face. I wasn’t lucky enough to grab one of the extra-special ping-pong balls that Sunday had blessed the crowd with– but in 25 years time when Pavement decides to come
back to Dallas, I’ll be ready.
Is that what I think I hear? The opening notes were unmistakable. “Texas Never Whispers” performed live for the first time since 1997– but that wasn’t the only shock of the night. Remember the multi-decade feud with The Smashing Pumpkins’ lead singer Billy Corgan? No? Me neither. Might I remind you, on “Range Life” the band takes a jab: “Out on tour with The Smashing Pumpkins / Nature kids, they don’t have no function / I don’t understand what they mean / And I could really give a f**k.” Some nerves were struck, but the grudge seemed to be put to rest when Malkmus altered “Range Life” to reference local Dallas band “Tripping Daisy” instead of “The Smashing Pumpkins.” Malkmus ended the night by letting bygones be bygones, but not without a special encore that included “Cut Your Hair,” “Summer Babe,” “Two States,” and the charmingly nostalgic “Gold Soundz.”