Nothing in Riverside

About Nothing

Nothing is the project of Domenic Palermo, a Philadelphia-based musician who makes guitar-driven noise that sits somewhere between shoegaze's wash and post-punk's teeth. Since the project's start in the early 2010s, Palermo's built a catalog of records that blur distortion and melody into something genuinely unsettling—not in a gimmicky way, but in the way repetition and feedback can actually get under your skin. Albums like 'Tired of Tomorrow' and 'Dance on the Blades' showcase Palermo's ability to construct songs that feel both brutally heavy and oddly vulnerable, with vocals that sit low in the mix, like someone speaking through walls. Nothing's music appeals to people who don't mind their guitar music damaged and their hooks buried under layers of noise. The project has a small but devoted following, mostly because Palermo doesn't make music designed to please—he makes it to explore a particular space between aggression and melody.

Nothing shows are loud and immersive in a way that feels more like standing in a storm than watching a performance. The crowd tends to be quiet and focused rather than cheering, drawn into the wall of sound. Palermo doesn't interact much—he's focused on the music, creating an atmosphere that's intense without being theatrical.

Known for Bent, Don't Start, A Quick One Before the Eternal Worm Devours Connecticut, Vertigo

Nothing in Riverside News

• 5 Places for Dinner and a Show in Northern Virginia and DC Northern Virginia Magazine · Feb 16, 2026
• Waxahatchee and MJ Lenderman announce co-headlining solo tour treblezine.com · Nov 17, 2025
• '60 Miles East:' A New Exhibit Celebrates The Era When Local Punk, Hardcore, and Ska Bands Ruled Riverside L.A. Taco · Nov 17, 2025
• Bret Michaels returns to Iowa thegazette.com · Oct 12, 2025
• Another one bites the dust at Block Party 2025 highlandernews.org · Oct 7, 2025

Live Music in Riverside

Riverside's underground music scene has historically leaned toward hip-hop and Latin sounds, but there's a growing appetite for heavier guitar-based music. The city's DIY venues and younger crowds are increasingly receptive to noise rock and experimental acts. Nothing's wall-of-sound approach could find real resonance with the right audience here.

Riverside road trip to see Nothing?

Stay in the Magnolia Center area near downtown Riverside, where restored historic buildings sit alongside new boutique hotels and wine bars—it's the only neighborhood that actually feels like somewhere worth spending an evening. Before the show, dinner at Duane's, a reliable California steakhouse with real cocktails and actual craft to the food. Spend your afternoon at the Riverside Metropolitan Museum or walking through the Mission Inn's sprawling Mission Revival campus—it's genuinely stunning architecture, the kind of thing that reminds you why people actually settled this part of California.