{"id":65262,"date":"2026-03-25T10:29:31","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T15:29:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/?p=65262"},"modified":"2026-03-25T10:39:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T15:39:08","slug":"itlm-otrs-gogol-bordello-puzzled-panther-and-boris-and-the-joy-at-930-club-in-washington-dc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/?p=65262","title":{"rendered":"ITLM OTRS: Gogol Bordello, Puzzled Panther, and Boris And The Joy At 9:30 Club In Washington, DC\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By: Fleurette Estes and Raymond Burton Estes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Sunday, March 22, 2026, Gogol Bordello brought their \u201cgypsy punk\u201d party to a sold-out show at Washington, DC\u2019s legendary 9:30 Club, with Puzzled Panther and Boris and the Joy in tow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I first saw Gogol Bordello back on November 7, 2015 at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin, Texas. I\u2019ll never forget that first hit\u2014their high-energy, world-punk chaos spilling off the stage and straight into the crowd. You only get that first time once, and even from a distance, it stuck. So yeah, I was stoked to finally catch them up close in a smaller room with better sound. Even better, it was my wife Fleurette\u2019s first time seeing Eugene Hutz and crew\u2014and she had a blast. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boris and the Joy opened things up with an uplifting mix of indie-folk, electro-pop, and psych-rock. Frontman Boris Pelekh (Gogol guitarist from 2015\u20132024) was joined by current drummer Korey Kingston, pulling double duty. It felt right\u2014a full-circle moment that said a lot about the camaraderie around this band. The two had real chemistry, with Pelekh bouncing across the stage, ripping through frenetic guitar parts while keeping his vocals locked in. He joked about pushing merch, saying his Jewish father insisted he have a business\u2014though he admitted he\u2019s not exactly built for capitalism. He also spoke warmly about his Gogol days and what that family still means to him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Next up, NYC\u2019s self-described \u201cpost-punk renai-dance\u201d outfit Puzzled Panther kept the energy high. Led by Victoria Espinoza (lead vocals, guitar, viola) and Kay Bontempo (lead guitar and vocals), they delivered a tight, kinetic set that kept the room moving. Hutz even jumped into the photo pit during their first three songs to shoot alongside everyone else\u2014a cool show of support for a band he\u2019s worked with and signed to his Casa Gogol label. Even better, he was mindful, making space for others (including Fleurette) to get their shots. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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After that, Hutz stuck around\u2014this time on guitar\u2014for the rest of their set. They tore through \u201cDirty Boots\u201d by Sonic Youth, pulling the whole room in, even folks who didn\u2019t know the band. And despite being impossible to miss, Hutz didn\u2019t hijack the moment\u2014he just pushed the band to go bigger. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then Gogol Bordello hit the stage\u2014and didn\u2019t let up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Touring behind We Mean It, Man!, they came out swinging and made good on the title. There\u2019s a little Sex Pistols snarl in there, sure, but Gogol leans more toward the community-first spirit of The Clash. At one point, Hutz said he\u2019s a builder\u2014and looking around at a packed Sunday crowd of all ages and backgrounds, it\u2019s hard to argue. He\u2019s built something real. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The current lineup\u2014 Erica Mancini (accordian, backing vocals), Pedro Erazo (vocals, percussion, charango), Leo Mintek (guitar, backing vocals), Gill Alexandre (bass), Sergey Ryabtsev (violin, backing vocals), Korey Kingston (drums, percussion), and of course Hutz \u2014fired on all cylinders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Puzzled Panther came back out to join Gogol for \u201cFire on Ice Floe\u201d and \u201cFrom Boyarka to Boyaka.\u201d Hutz joked that Ryabtsev, acting as his \u201cexecutive producer,\u201d made the crowd sit through five new songs before earning the old favorites. Fair trade. During \u201cStart Wearing Purple,\u201d Hutz splashed wine into the crowd with reckless abandon\u2014suddenly the title felt less metaphorical. If memory serves me right, they teased \u201cGangsters\u201d by The Specials before launching into \u201cPala Tute,\u201d with Pelekh jumping in for a ripping guitar turn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For the encore, Hutz mentioned they\u2019d recorded \u201cCrayons\u201d for the Washington, DC-based children’s show Pancake Mountain. Before \u201cAlcohol,\u201d he doubled down on his \u201cbuilder\u201d mindset, stacking caj\u00f3ns to sit on and calling for one more like it was a personal challenge. It was a small, slightly chaotic moment\u2014but kind of perfect. Sitting there, looking out at a crowd fully locked in and singing along, you could feel it\u2014that shared moment that sticks with you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

They ripped through \u201cBoiling Point\u201d and closed with \u201cUndestructable,\u201d slipping in a bit of \u201cT.V. Eye\u201d by The Stooges for good measure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By the end of the night, it was clear Gogol Bordello is still carrying the torch lit by bands like The Clash and The Pogues\u2014blending styles, breaking boundaries, and pulling more people into the fold. Hutz shouted out the D.C. hardcore scene and Dischord Records, making it clear that history matters. Throughout the night, he also reminded the crowd that every member of the band, himself included, is a first-generation immigrant\u2014something that still drives both their music and their message. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more on Gogol Bordello, click here<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For photos from the show, click here<\/p>\n\n\n\n

====================================================================<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gogol Bordello\u2019s setlist at 9:30 Club, Washington, DC<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ignition <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I Would Never Wanna Be Young Again <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not a Crime <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immigrant Punk <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wonderlust King <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My Companjera <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fire on Ice Floe  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Boyarka to Boyaka (Puzzled Panther cover) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

State of Shock (The Ex and Tom Cora cover) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mystics <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immigraniada (We Comin\u2019 Rougher) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We Mean It, Man! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life Is Possible Again <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mishto <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start Wearing Purple <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pala Tute <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Encore: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crayons <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alcohol <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boiling Point <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Undestructable<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By: Fleurette Estes and Raymond Burton Estes On Sunday, March 22, 2026, Gogol Bordello brought their \u201cgypsy punk\u201d party to a sold-out show at Washington, DC\u2019s legendary 9:30 Club, with Puzzled Panther […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":65263,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,39,20],"tags":[1909,1512,285,2152,298,1240],"class_list":["post-65262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-music-news","category-reviews","tag-1909","tag-930-club","tag-concert-review","tag-gogol-bordello","tag-live","tag-washington-dc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=65262"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65262\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65272,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65262\/revisions\/65272"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/65263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=65262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=65262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=65262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}