The Moss • Bad Luck Brigade • October 25, 2025 • The Complex
Reviewed and Photographed by Morgan Newbold
A couple of weeks ago, Salt Lake’s local gems, The Moss, kicked off Halloween with their headline show at The Complex! These boys have always put on incredibly fun and dynamic performances. Tyke James is a stellar frontman. They are so full of life and energy, playing groovy bangers to get everyone jumping! They love to put on a good Halloween celebration, and everyone dresses up! The crowd of young and older fans came ready to party!
The Moss is a 4-piece surf rock band that formed in Hawaii in 2015. With Tyke James on vocals and guitar, Addison Sharp on guitar, Caiden Jackson on bass, and Willie Fowler on drums, they are a group that will shake the house down every time! I was first introduced to them in 2019 when I saw them live and listened to their debut album ‘Bryology’, and I naturally gravitated towards loving Tyke’s stage presence. He’s interactive and playful with the crowd and super energetic! From dancing and jumping around onstage, or jumping off of things, and jumping into the crowd, there’s nothing that he wouldn’t do to put on a good show! The band has put out two albums and 3 EPs. Their new EP is branching out to new sounds and styles, which is exciting! They’ve toured the country many times and have played big festivals!
Bad Luck Brigade
The show was opened by Bad Luck Brigade, another great local band whose sound is defined by a fusion of funk, soul, hip-hop, and punk. They brought an electric vibe to the stage and got everyone pumped up! I vibed with their set a lot!
The Moss
The stage was decked out with caution tape and spider webs, and the crowd went wild as the band took the stage. Everyone was rowdy and excited, ready to rock and mosh! I smiled when Tyke came out dressed as Wednesday Addams, because yes, of course, icon. They opened with Grand Hoodoo to rile up the room! The folks at the back swayed and bobbed their heads with huge smiles on their faces, while the front jumped all night! This band is always so captivating to watch.
What sets The Moss apart is their ability to make a mid-sized venue feel like a tiny one. The band’s chemistry was impossible to miss. They locked into the grooves that kept every head nodding, while adding shimmering textures that gave each song their signature sun-soaked feel. Their stage banter was playful and genuine, their sound perfectly balancing precision and spontaneity! Tyke’s vocals were raw yet also flawless, cutting cleanly through the layers of guitar and bass. The crowd sang every word back, transforming the venue into a communal chorus!
They played a shorter set, but packed it in with some of my favorites of theirs! I personally love Blink and Willie’s Song the most. Specially for this Halloween show, they played an amazing and groovy cover of Daryl Hall and John Oates’ ‘Maneater’! Then they closed out with the banger Insomnia and, of course, Dog Valley for the encore. Dog Valley has the most rowdy energy, and Tyke feeds into it by quite literally leaping into the crowd and running through it. Everyone jumped around him, and even watching from above the pit, I had no idea where that man was.
As the show came to an end, guitars echoing through the room, the fans cheered loudly and ecstatically. The boys walked off, clearly satisfied with their killer Halloween bash. I’ve seen The Moss play over 6 times, and each time they get better. They’re one of Utah’s most exciting bands, I have a lot of love for them. You should absolutely check out their music and see them live if you haven’t already!