Strange things are afoot with art imitating art tonight at The Roundhouse as Keanu Reeves, the actor in the band Wyld Stallyns, from the movie Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, appeared in his real band, Dogstar. Queues stretch far down to Camden Market for this performance. It is an impressive turnout when the rock and Metal community have upped sticks en masse to take over Castle Donington, at Download Festival, where Dogstar are also due to play.
Dogstar – Fletchr Fletchr
The Roundhouse, Camden – 13 June 2026
Words: Sean Titley
Photography: Manuela Langotsch
A well-behaved, orderly but clearly excited crowd roars as the band comes on stage, silhouettes in black with an inevitable extra uplift of a cheer as the tall Keanu takes the stage. It is a stripped-back set, no backdrop to speak of, with a basic lighting arrangement and just the three-piece all in black, made up of Bret Domrose (lead guitar/vocals), Keanu Reeves (bassist) and Robert Mailhouse on drums.
Drawing on material from their 2023 album Somewhere Between the Power Lines And Palm Trees and substantially from their new album All In Now, which was released this second week of June 2026, the set built in intensity from melodic rock to something that by the end was crossing the line into melodic grunge rock.
There were some bodacious, beautiful and interesting lead guitar moments and a brief Keanu Reeves bass solo on the final song, which lasted nowhere near long enough.
However, the crowd spoke volumes, never once really moving, forget mosh pits, dancing in the aisles or even the familiar nodding dog to a strong beat. While the crowd was certainly obeying the Bill and Ted’s mantra, be excellent to each other, the atmosphere was more bogus than most triumphant in terms of energy.
Sure, they were appreciating the music, and there were orchestrated clap-alongs and the ubiquitous modern ballad with the camera phone torches out, but almost no spontaneous riotous fun, the hallmark of almost any live rock and Metal performance.
One clue to the conundrum of the almost full house but the lack of momentum was when Domrose yelled to the crowd who had listened to the new album, which generated a fairly lacklustre response to which he suggested the crowd should “go out and get it”.
It is a fair guess that a lot of the crowd were there because of their love for Keanu Reeves, and maybe less due to passion for the band. If this were true, the band had no intention of giving them Keanu Reeves, the movie star, so they did not get what they may have wanted.
Judging by some cries of “I love you, Keanu,” and “take me on a date,” some were keen on more than just some crowd banter. Taking up the style of a classic grunge rock slacker bassist, think Nirvana, with a low-slung Fender bass and not moving more than a few paces back and forth on the same side of the stage, Keanu’s stage performance was traditional but downplayed to the max.
This felt like a missed opportunity. Reeves croaked “Thank you” into the microphone, which was the only words he spoke all night, not even one “Party on Dudes”.
Yes, they had achieved being a band, not a one-man ego machine and who Reeves is did fade a little into the background. But to audience members brought up on Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure, this was a far cry from the act that promised to “put an end to war and poverty”, “align the planets and bring them into universal harmony”, “allow meaningful contact with all forms of life” and be “excellent for dancing”.
Possibly the bar was set a little high. Whilst they may not have aligned the planets tonight, for the fans, it was still a most excellent adventure.
Fletchr Fletchr
Fletchr Fletchr, supporting Dogstar, are a British act playing catchy and at times genuinely powerful and moving rock. Hailing from Hertfordshire, Fletchr Fletchr acknowledged it was “their dream to play at the Roundhouse.”
This was an acknowledgement Dogstar also gave later, giving respect to the venue that gave early platforms to Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, The Ramones, and so many others.
Smart-casually dressed they played to a full audience. Maybe benefiting from the fact that no support act had been advertised, for me, this was the better band of the night.
Playing a short, less-than-half-hour set, drawn from a set of singles including the very newly released Fucking With My Head and songs from their 2025 EP We All Feel The Same, the crowd rapidly warmed to them and the visceral punch of a song about the grief of a band member losing their father, tangibly hit the audience.
A rock band, maybe alt rock, clearly, there were other influences, including jazz, at one point, a saxophone was played. Fletchr Fletchr are a group who will go on to make bigger waves.
