Under the Arizona Heat, PANCHIKO Delivered a Show Years in the Making

Panchiko drummer John Schofield performing at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, Arizona on June 12, 2025. Photographed by Justin de la Cruz.

Have you ever bought an album you know nothing about?

I’m talking about glancing at a cover, thinking to yourself: “This looks cool, I’ll buy it!” without trying to listen to it first or ever giving it a second thought?

Before the internet, I myself would base my decisions on if something is worth buying just based on how cool the cover looks (I still do that to this day, by the way). In a day and age where media accessibility has been easier than ever thanks to online streaming, social media, and smartphones, there is less risk involved when buying physical or digital media. You can see or hear if something is good or if it sucks before even finishing your purchase.

But what happens when you try to look up something about the CD in your hand, but can’t find any info about it on the internet? 

That would be the case for the EP “D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L” by Nottingham “weeb indietronica” band PANCHIKO, as a 4chan user discovered the demo CD with a Mint na Bokura image on the cover in a thrift store on July 21st, 2016 and shared the album to /mu/, which amassed a cult fanbase and led to a long search effort to discover who was behind the mysterious album.

By the year 2020, these efforts led to a fan reaching out to singer OWAIN DAVIES on Facebook and him discovering the band’s new fanbase, leading to the remastering “D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L” plus additional tracks and reuniting the band as well. The newly reformed PANCHIKO would go on to release their first and second albums, titled “Failed at Math(s)” and “Glinko,” respectively, and end up going on several tours throughout the United States, with this iteration including Arizona shoegaze acts ALISON’S HALO and FLYINGFISH for their Marquee Theatre date on June 12th.

FLYINGFISH represents a new wave of musicians fully utilizing the advantages of social media and algorithm discovery. Since 2023, frontman SAM FISHMAN has been creating music in his home and sharing his creations on TikTok and SoundCloud, amassing a large viral following, and have gone on a headlining tour on the west coast prior to opening for PANCHIKO, with another tour going through the southwest happening next month. 

A surreal background extending past the background wall of the stage, nearly touching the ends of the upstairs balcony was using several projectors held near the soundboard as FLYINGFISH started playing. Never before have I ever seen a visual setup this massive at Marquee Theatre. The visual intensity matched the walls of sound. Whether you were sad, angry, lonely, or some mish-mash of emotions, within their brief set of what felt less than thirty minutes, flyingfish had a song for you. By the end, a sea punk background was paired with mosh-worthy shoegaze, with the drummer going at it whipping his hair all around.

If current DOLLY PARTON got into ALVVAYS and the COCTEAU TWINS, it would sound like ALISON’S HALO.

ALISON’S HALO ended their summer tour in Tempe, Arizona, where the band first formed. Pivoting away from angst and loneliness, ALISON’S HALO possessed a more solemn warmth to their sound, like you’re feeling sunlight on your skin for the first time. Also unlike FLYINGFISH, the background for ALISON’S HALO resembled a Windows 97 screensaver rather than trippy, degraded VHS footage. Speaking of which, I saw someone bring an old camcorder to this show to capture footage of ALISON’S HALO near the barrier. Hopefully they use that for a visualizer or music video like they have done for their older songs like “DOZEN” or “SUNSHY.” Fans gathered around the front asking for the setlist and asking for it to be signed after the set ended.

Before PANCHIKO came on, audience members were experiencing heat exhaustion and repeatedly asked security for bottles of water. As far as I could tell, no one had to be brought out for an emergency. But I do feel like it is vital to remind people during this time of year here that you should prioritize being properly hydrated. The last thing you want to have happen when you’re at a show or festival is to leave early because the heat is actively killing you. 

Out of the darkness, each member of PANCHIKO came out to the stage and started the set with “STABILIZERS FOR BIG BOYS.” There was a sense of joy I felt witnessing childhood friends jam together years after they initially disbanded, only to find their way back to each other through the curiosity of the internet. Though they are no longer teenagers in high school, their youthful energy and jubilance still shined in their performance in songs like “MAC’S OMELETTE,” “GINKGO” and even in the songs made in their youth like “D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L” and “LAPUTA,” though they weren’t able to incorporate the sounds of disc rot into their performance.

The background visuals switched up again showing what looked to be Game Boy camera footage of OWAIN singing. OWAIN would shout out the guy in the hot dog outfit “from Evangelion, I think” near the barrier before playing “CHAPEL OF SALT.” When “D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L” came on, a giant backdrop with the SEGA logo with the E not visible (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander fans much?) came up and the distorted visuals got the crowd roaring. Audiences could barely contain their excitement as shouts from the audience ranging from “Chicken Jockey” to “SIGN MY BABY” were heard by even the band. The set would end with the song “KICKING CARS,” and after, OWAIN would take a video of the crowd as he was walking off stage.  

After the show ended, the merch line sustained a length stretching all the way back to the front of the stage. I saw a few people with “D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L” vinyl records in the audience, and it made me wonder: “Did they put the disc rot in there, too?”

Maybe we’ll find out in 20 or so years.