PRAYERS built a genre out of nothing most labels wanted to touch — cholo goth, a collision of darkwave, post-punk, and street-life storytelling rooted in Chicano identity. San Diego duo Leafar Seyer and Dave Parley have spent years turning that into a legitimate movement, one with a cult following that crosses goth scenes and electronic clubs and anywhere the music doesn’t fit neatly into a category. They bring it to Photo City Music Hall in Rochester on Saturday, October 24, for a mid-tour stop on their 15-date fall 2026 US run.
About the Show
Seyer, whose stage name reverses his birth name Rafael Reyes, handles vocals; Parley, a Tijuana native with an electronic music background, handles production and drums. The two moved fast from the start: eight songs written in two days became the 2013 debut EP, SD Killwave. Four records in — SD Killwave, Gothic Summer, Young Gods, and Baptism of Thieves — the catalog has held to what the band describes as music “created to enjoy and seek a sense of freedom, providing a safe haven for anybody who finds pleasure in breaking all kinds of stereotypes.”
The sound draws from Joy Division, Depeche Mode, and Christian Death, filtered through a Chicano cultural lens that keeps it from sounding exactly like any of those reference points. Ian Astbury of The Cult handpicked PRAYERS to open select California tour dates early in their career. Their “Gothic Summer” video won honors at the San Diego Film Festival; they also took Best Music Video and Best Alternative Band at the 2015 San Diego Music Awards. Collaborators have included Travis Barker, Kat Von D, and Shlohmo.
Rochester is the only confirmed upstate New York stop on the fall tour — PRAYERS roll through Cleveland on October 19 before this date, then Pittsburgh the night after, continuing east toward Providence, Hamden, and two Brooklyn dates. Opening the show are DEVORA and CHRIZ AMAYA.
Venue & Logistics
Photo City Music Hall at 543 Atlantic Ave is a 400-capacity club in western New York. PRAYERS’ sound — industrial bass lines, post-punk build, the whole cholo goth collision — rewards a room this size; when the set locks in, you want to be that close to it. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. This is a 16+ show. Venue info at photocitymusichall.com.
Tickets
Tickets run $39 to $92. No refunds. Also available at PhotoCityMusicHall.com. Buy tickets