LIVE REVIEW: ELDER @ THE MASQUERADE (HEAVEN), ATLANTA, GA – SEPTEMBER 11, 2026

Elder brought the Through Zero Tour to Heaven at The Masquerade in Atlanta on September 11, delivering the kind of set where song count means almost nothing. Eight titles made up the night, but with Elder’s tendency to let songs stretch, shift and develop over long passages, there was plenty packed into the performance.

Asheville’s Bask opened the night, and they were a fitting match without sounding like a smaller version of the headliner. Their mix of psychedelic rock, Southern influence and heavier guitar work gave the room something different from the start. Pedal steel added another layer to songs like “Dig My Heels” and “The Turning,” while the band moved comfortably between melodic sections and heavier moments throughout the set.

Elder opened with “Sigil to Ruin,” one of two songs pulled from their 2026 album *Through Zero*. From there, the set reached across several eras of the band without ever feeling like a greatest-hits run.

That is largely because Elder songs don’t really work that way.

Instead of building around quick hooks and three or four-minute songs, the band gives its music room to move. Heavy riffs can dissolve into atmospheric passages before gradually building again, and keyboards often sit underneath everything, adding texture while the guitars take the lead.

“Blind” from *Reflections of a Floating World* came early, followed by “Coalescence” from 2022’s *Innate Passage*. The second *Through Zero* track of the night, “Capture/Release,” arrived next and showed how far Elder has pushed beyond the stoner and doom roots that originally defined the band. There is still plenty of weight in the guitars and low end, but the progressive and psychedelic sides of the music now have just as much room to breathe.

Guitarists Nick DiSalvo and Michael Risberg handled the layered guitar work while bassist Jack Donovan brought a noticeably physical presence to the middle of the stage. The musicianship was the real centerpiece of the show. Elder doesn’t need constant crowd interaction or oversized production to hold attention. Watching the four musicians navigate the changes inside these songs is part of the experience.

The back half of the set continued with “Liminality” and “Dream State Return,” followed by “Halcyon” from *Omens*. Elder then reached back to *Reflections of a Floating World* one more time to close the night with “Sanctuary.”

Eight songs may look short written on a setlist, but an Elder show isn’t measured particularly well by song count. Their music is built around the journey between the quiet sections, massive riffs, guitar leads and long instrumental passages.

At The Masquerade, Elder gave each of those moments the time it needed.

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Setlist

• Sigil to Ruin
• Blind
• Coalescence
• Capture/Release
• Liminality
• Dream State Return
• Halcyon
• Sanctuary

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Live photography by Chris Collett for No Flash Needed. © 2026 No Flash Needed. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without written permission.