What Is It Like to See The Pretty Reckless Live?
Taylor Momsen sings every note live and often barefoot, the band keeps sliding from radio hard-rock into extended blues jams, and the Soundgarden covers turn into a shared grief moment for anyone who knows the history.
What to Know Before You Go
- 1Two very different shows exist in 2026.
You are either at an intimate, full-length theater or club headline set, or a tight stadium warm-up slot opening for [AC/DC](/artists/acdc). Check which ticket you actually bought.
- 2She sings it all live.
If you only know Momsen from Gossip Girl, the deep, unassisted voice is the thing that flips first-timers.
- 3Watch the lead guitarist.
Ben Phillips is a real improviser, and the blues jams on "House on a Hill" and "Take Me Down" are where the band stops being a singles act and stretches out.
- 4The Soundgarden songs are the emotional peak.
"Only Love Can Save Me Now" and any Soundgarden cover carry the weight of Chris Cornell's death; the room feels it.
- 5Do not count on an encore.
Many nights there is none at all; some nights there is one. It is not the guaranteed ritual it is at bigger rock shows.
- 6Merch
tour-dated tees and color-variant vinyl are the pieces worth grabbing, but they restock online, so the queue is optional.
At a Glance
- Show Length
- 1h to 1h 15m
- Songs Per Show
- 12 to 14
- Costume Changes
- 0
- Setlist Variety
- Mostly fixed core; covers and 1-2 songs rotate
- Punctuality
- Starts on schedule
- Venue Type
- Theaters and clubs
- Career Shows
- 780+
- Touring Since
- 2009
Shorter than most artists
Leaner set than most artists
Highly road-tested
The plays more career shows but shorter shows and fewer songs per show than most artists we cover.
What It's Actually Like
She Actually Sings Every Note
The thing every first-timer walks out repeating is that the voice is real and unassisted. Momsen carries the lead across a dozen-plus songs a night with no backing track propping her up, and the growl-to-wail range on "Heaven Knows" and "Only Love Can Save Me Now" is the part the studio versions undersell. Reviewers clocked this from the club-tour days: a CleveRock write-up of the October 29, 2014 House of Blues show reached for Pat Benatar and Stevie Nicks comparisons and concluded "this girl can belt one out." Coming in braced for the ex-child-actor backstory and getting hit with that instead is the standard conversion moment.
It Becomes a Blues Band Mid-Song
People show up for the radio-single hard rock and get a band that keeps drifting into blues. Ben Phillips gets named by fans and reviewers as the second star of the show, and the guitar interplay pushes "House on a Hill" and "Take Me Down" well past their album lengths. At the 2014 Going to Hell shows this was the whole story, with the set opening up into extended jams that the singles never hinted at. The trade-off is a recurring club-show gripe: in a small room the guitar can sit too loud and harsh in the mix, and some nights the tone genuinely splits ears.
“The Pretty Reckless has transformed from a rock and roll band into a blues powerhouse, with Momsen capably taking the lead.”
Barefoot, Smeared Makeup, No Choreography
The look is fixed and it is not a pop look: long blonde hair over the face, heavy smeared black eye makeup, dark clothes, and Momsen frequently barefoot on stage (a habit consistent enough that it has its own following online). There are no costume changes and no dance breaks. She stalks the stage, leans into the mic stand, and lets songs about death, sex, and God do the theatrical work. It plays like a possessed blues front-person running a séance, which is the intended register.
Short Set, No Filler, Encore Optional
This is not a two-hour marathon and nobody pretends it is. The headline set is short and packed, and the most common fan note afterward is wishing it ran longer; one fan account of a headline night had the band on stage, done, and gone in about an hour before a two-song return. Do not build your night around an encore, though: across documented 2026 shows most nights had no encore and only a minority had one (setlist.fm). As AC/DC's opener the set is trimmed even further, which is its own separate experience.
Dear God Tour (2026)
Behind the band's fifth album Dear God (Fearless Records, June 26, 2026), billed by the label as their most raw. The North American headline leg opened July 10, 2026 in Raleigh and ran into late September, with a Europe and UK leg from early November through early December. Headline rooms are theaters and clubs: the Riviera Theatre, ACL Live at the Moody Theater, the Wiltern, and the Ryman Auditorium among them.
Two Tours at Once: Theater Rooms and AC/DC Stadiums
The wrinkle that defines 2026 is that the band is running two schedules in parallel. On their own dates they headline 1,500-to-3,000-capacity rooms with the full-length, jam-friendly set. In between, they are the sole opening act on AC/DC's Power Up stadium tour, playing NFL stadiums to tens of thousands as the warm-up. That stadium slot is a tight roughly 45-minute, roughly nine-song blast with no jamming. The U.S. Power Up run began July 11, 2026 and wraps in late September; Foo Fighters fill the opener slot for one night only, on September 8. Fans who have caught both agree the theater headline is the one to prioritize; the stadium set is a highlight reel.
The New Dear God Material Hits Hard
The 2026 set front-loads the new record. "For I Am Death" (a 2025 single) and "When I Wake Up" slot in early, and the album track "About You" has become a regular closer. Early word from the headline dates is that the Dear God songs translate live better than the studio versions, which tracks with a band whose whole identity is what happens in the room.
Openers Rotate by City
On the headline leg, support changes market to market rather than one act across the run; documented 2026 support has included Paris Jackson and the band doug. at one of the Texas dates. Because it varies, check your specific show. On the AC/DC dates, the openers question is inverted: The Pretty Reckless are the opener.
The Set and the Covers
The 2026 average set (setlist.fm) opens on "Death by Rock and Roll" nearly every night (48 of 51 documented shows) and moves through "Since You're Gone," "Follow Me Down," "Only Love Can Save Me Now," "Witches Burn," "Make Me Wanna Die," "Going to Hell," "Heaven Knows," and "Take Me Down." The covers are a tell about the band's record collection: they regularly reach for Nick Lowe's "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding," and across tours they have pulled out Soundgarden's "Loud Love" and Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World."
Going to a Show?
Seeing The Pretty Reckless on this tour? Add the date to Concerts Remembered now. You'll have the setlist and your own notes from the night instead of trying to remember it a year later.
The Pretty Reckless · artist guide
The Pretty Reckless crowd traditions
Two documented rituals. None of them need anything from you in advance.
Just show up
The Soundgarden Grief Moment
PermanentWhen the band plays a Soundgarden song or "Only Love Can Save Me Now," fans who know the history treat it as the emotional center of the night.
The Batgirl Saga
This tour onlyAC/DC 2024-2026 Era
A bat bit Momsen mid-song at the 2024 AC/DC tour opener, she needed rabies shots, and the lore stuck.
Concerts Remembered Artist Index · traditions documented from fan communities, tour reports and press · reviewed September 2026
Merch
What You'll Pay
T-Shirts
$25–$35
Below average — most artists charge $38–$45
Hoodies
$50
Below average — most artists charge $63–$85
Long Sleeves
$35
Below average — most artists charge $40–$55
Based on 338 artists · Updated Oct 2026
What's Exclusive
Tour-dated Dear God tees and color-variant vinyl are the collectible pieces. Dear God was pressed on Translucent Black Ice vinyl, and the catalog gets recurring color variants (Going to Hell on Petrol Blue, Death by Rock and Roll on Sea Blue Smoke, the "For I Am Death" single on Smoke Show vinyl). These sell through the official band store and the Fearless Records store.
The Strategy
Most apparel and vinyl are carried online through the official store and Fearless Records and they restock, so the venue table is not your only shot and the queue is optional. The pieces most likely to sell through are the tour-dated tees and the limited color-variant vinyl, so grab those first if you want them.
The Pretty Reckless · merch
Is the merch at a The Pretty Reckless show worth queueing for?
Not what it costs. The price card answers that. This is whether the queue is optional, which has different inputs.
- Can you get it later?
- Yes, restocked online
- When do you queue?
- Queue optional
- What will you spend?
- $25 to $50
Concerts Remembered Artist Index · exclusivity, quality and queue behaviour compressed from this guide · spend computed from documented merch prices · reviewed September 2026
The Pretty Reckless · tour history
The Pretty Reckless went from clubs to stadiums in 16 years
Room size by tour. A bar spanning two rows is a tour that played both.
| Year | Tour | Room size |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Light Me Up Tour and Vans Warped Tour | Clubs |
| 2014 | Going to Hell Tour | Theaters and clubs |
| 2016 | Who You Selling For Tour | Arenas and theaters |
| 2022 | Death by Rock and Roll Tour | Arenas and theaters |
| 2026 | Dear God Tour | Stadiums and clubs |
Concerts Remembered Artist Index · 5 documented tours · room size as described in each tour entry · reviewed September 2026
The Pretty Reckless · turning points
What made The Pretty Reckless's show what it is
4 moments that changed the live show, or changed who is in the room.
2024
May
Became AC/DC's sole opening act on the Power Up stadium tour
A band that headlines 1,500-to-3,000-capacity theaters started playing to full stadiums nightly as AC/DC's only opener, from the 2024 European run into 2025-2026 North America, putting the show in front of a far larger, mostly new rock audience.
2022
March
First tour in five years ends the post-2017 absence
The band came back to the road after roughly five years away with two sold-out Brooklyn Made headline nights and a 24-date support run with Shinedown, restarting live performance around the grief-driven Death by Rock and Roll songs.
2017
May 17 · Detroit, MI
Chris Cornell's final show, with The Pretty Reckless opening
The night closed their spring tour opening for Soundgarden and Cornell died hours later; Momsen's grief, deepened by producer Kato Khandwala's 2018 death, took the band off the road and became the core of 2021's Death by Rock and Roll, including 'Only Love Can Save Me Now' cut with surviving Soundgarden members Kim Thayil and Matt Cameron.
2014
The Going to Hell era turns the show toward blues
Behind Going to Hell the set gained extended blues jams and Ben Phillips improvisation, turning a teen hard-rock act into a blues-rock band that stretched songs like 'House on a Hill' well past their album lengths.
Concerts Remembered Artist Index · each moment sourced on its card · reviewed September 2026
Tour History
Dear God Tour
Behind the fifth album Dear God.
Death by Rock and Roll Tour
The comeback run and the band's first touring since 2017.
Who You Selling For Tour
The tour that ended in tragedy.
Going to Hell Tour
The blues turn.
Light Me Up Tour and Vans Warped Tour
The debut era.
Frequently Asked Questions
A short, blues-tinged hard-rock set fronted by Taylor Momsen singing live and barefoot, with lead guitarist Ben Phillips stretching songs into jams and the Soundgarden material landing as the emotional peak. No choreography, no costume changes, and often no encore. It plays less like a pop-rock show and more like a possessed blues séance.
Headline sets run about 1h to 1h 15m, roughly 12 to 14 songs, and fans routinely wish it were longer. As AC/DC's opener the set is trimmed to roughly 45 minutes and nine songs with the jams cut. Encores are inconsistent, so do not count on one.
She sings live, with no backing track carrying the lead. The unassisted growl-to-wail range on "Heaven Knows" and "Only Love Can Save Me Now" is the detail that surprises first-timers who only know her from Gossip Girl, and reviewers have compared the voice to Pat Benatar and Stevie Nicks since the earliest club tours.
Yes, with one caveat. The voice and Ben Phillips's blues guitar are the strengths, and the band is far heavier and looser than the studio versions. The common complaint is that in a small club the guitar can sit too loud and harsh in the mix on certain nights.
On schedule. The headline show does not have a reputation for long delays, and once the band is on, the set moves quickly with little between-song stalling. On the AC/DC dates you want to be in early, since The Pretty Reckless are the opener and go on well before the headliner.
Yes, and specifically on a headline date rather than the AC/DC stadium slot. The full-length theater show gives you the blues jams, the deep cuts, and the Soundgarden grief moment intact; the stadium warm-up set is a tight highlight reel by comparison. If you can only pick one, pick the headline room.
"Death by Rock and Roll" as the near-automatic opener, "Only Love Can Save Me Now" for the Soundgarden weight, "Heaven Knows" for the vocal, and "Take Me Down" or "House on a Hill" for the extended blues jam. The "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" cover is the wild card.
The 2022 comeback run was the emotional first touring after five years away, leaning heavily on the grief-driven Death by Rock and Roll songs. The current run swaps in the new Dear God material and adds the stadium dimension of opening for AC/DC, so you can now see the band at wildly different scales in the same summer.
The set is short, around 45 minutes and nine songs, with the blues jams cut for time, so get to your seat early because they go on well before the headliner. Note that Foo Fighters, not The Pretty Reckless, fill the opener slot for a single September 8 date.
The Pretty Reckless Links
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This guide is based on fan accounts, touring data, and community discussion. Claims we can’t source are left out rather than estimated, and the charts render only where the sample is large enough to trust. It is not sponsored by or affiliated with The Pretty Reckless.
Cite this guide
Concerts Remembered, "The Pretty Reckless," concertsremembered.app/artists/the-pretty-reckless, updated September 2026.