Joywave-Kansas City-4.26.25

Joywave at The Truman in Kansas City, Missouri on April 26, 2025.

Photos and Review by The Pit Magazine Contributor Kayla Hayden

Little Image and Joywave took over The Truman, coming back to Kansas City for the first time since 2017. Not just a concert, this show was an experience for fans of the alt/indie rock band from New York.

From the moment Joywave stepped on stage they radiated an infectious energy to the room. The crowd was excited to have the band back in town, and the band was obviously very excited to be here. Vocalist, Daniel Ambruster told us very early on that it had been a while since they had been in Kansas City, and this tour was created with the intention to come back to KC and the Truman. It gave a special feeling to this particular show.

Joywave Gallery

Joywave started their set with “Scared,” the second song from their latest album “Permanent Pleasure,” released last year. A noticeable feature of their stage design was a giant white cat, featured on the cover of the album, spinning as if on a record behind the band. The last few songs of the show had the crowd very involved- hits like “It’s A Trip!” and “Dangerous,” got everyone moving around, but the highlight of the show was their finale. Joywave played their #1 hit “Destruction” not once, but twice! It was a pleasant surprise that somehow got everyone even louder than before.

Little Image Gallery

Little Image kicked off the night with “THE PRESSURE,” a new release which came out on January 17 of this year. The Texas based band released their debut major label album, SELF TITLED, in May of 2023 and have been on the rise for the last few years with 230k listeners monthly on Spotify. The band played a 40 minute set which included hits like “OUT OF MY MIND,” “NOVACAINE,” and “RUN FOR FOREVER.” You can really tell they love what they are doing, giving an energetic and charismatic performance that definitely left me wanting to know more.