AFI Concert Review and Photos
AFI – The Observatory Festival Grounds – September 19, 2026
I discovered AFI shortly after moving to California in the early 90’s because my friend had one of their stickers on the window of his broken down and mostly-in-the-shop Corolla. I asked him about it, and a couple of his borrowed CDs got me started down the rabbit hole of all things AFI.
AFI
The Observatory in Sana Ana California is an institution – tons of famous bands representing all music genres have played the 1200 venue, but when a larger band rolls through Orange County, the streets surrounding the venue close down, the stage moves outside, and the capacity grows into the thousands. Food trucks galore line the closed streets, and The Observatory Festival Grounds really do feel like a music festival, complete with shuttle buses to move thousands of people from off-site parking lots to the location.
Saturday night’s event was completely sold out, and the grounds were as jammed with people as it could be. That overflow spilled into the photo pit – not just with crowd surfers of which there were many, but with more photographers than I’ve ever seen at one show – at least 30, not including the three videographers filming the show. Moving in the pit was madness, and trying not to blow someone else’s shot while vying for interesting angles and position was not an easy endeavor.
AFI went on at 9:30pm, and excited fans pressed up against the barricade. The doors opened at 5:00pm, and the area closest to the stage had been packed since then. The fans on the rail didn’t move and risk giving up their coveted spot, and stood in the heat of the day waiting for the sun to go down and the festivities to begin.
There is never a bad time at an AFI show – people are there to enjoy themselves, and the band always exceeds expectations. AFI delivers both great musicianship and intense energy, led effortlessly by frontman Davey Havok, who spent much of the night jumping off platforms, pacing the stage while singing passionately, and pushing ever closer to the edge of the stage to be as close as possible to the diehard fans. Despite being obscured by the stage right smoke machine and a westerly breeze, founding member Adam Carson clearly killed it on drums, while bassist Huntter Burgan moved with him in lockstep and held down the low end. Jade Puget was a whirling dervish with his guitar and great to watch as he seamlessly blended aggressive punk stylings with melodic textures.
The tour was in support of 2025’s Silver Bleeds the Black Sun, and four of the night’s seventeen songs were from it. The setlist at an AFI show changes every night, but Saturday’s offering seemed to be tailor-fit for the Southern California audience – the perfect balance of tracks to satisfy both the old-school fans and the newly converted.
This night was fun in every regard. Most fans in attendance had been to many AFI shows in the past and knew exactly what to expect, and AFI overdelivered. They played both the hits and deeper cuts from multiple albums, and gave their fans - some of the most passionate and loyal in music – a fantastic night of music that they’d remember for a long time, or at least until the next time the band rolls through town.
AFI are:
- Davey Havok – Vocals
- Adam Carson – Drums
- Hunter Burgan – Bass
- Jade Puget – Guitar
Setlist:
1) Strength Through Wounding
2) Girl's Not Grey
3) Love Like Winter
4) Holy Visions
5) A Single Second
6) Snow Cats
7) 17 Crimes
8) Killing Lights
9) Behind the Clock
10) Beautiful Thieves
11) Bleed Black
12) Marguerite
13) I Hope You Suffer
14) Nooneunderground
15) The Days of the Phoenix
16) Miss Murder
Encore:
17) Silver and Cold
18) Total Immortal
Brooks Robinson is an LA-based concert photographer, and 30+ year freelance camera operator for film, television, and music videos. He has photographed some of the largest film/TV projects in history, and hundreds of music videos in MTV's heyday.
