Written by Gustavo Roskowsky
Pinwheel took over The 13th Floor in Austin on November 29th with a set that felt equal parts rock show and beautifully unhinged experiment. Their current lineup features Jim on electric guitar, Mark on electric guitar, Cam on bass, and Terrin on 
drums, with Jimmy Swagg stepping in as vocalist for the night. Their recorded tracks “Lapse” and “Glass Ceiling” still feature former lead singer Riki Shae (Chryst Moon), but this live setup carried its own raw personality.
From the moment they stepped on stage, the band leaned fully into their aesthetic: mascara, a striped mime with full white face paint, a bassist who looked like he walked straight out of the intro scene of “The Dark Knight,” and a drummer thrashing from behind a skull mask. Jim and Mark framed the stage with riffs and energy, while Cam and Terrin drove the heartbeat from the shadows.
They kicked off the night with “Broke,” a gritty opener that set the pulse in the room. “Komodo” came next and immediately amped up the crowd before they slid into “Glass Ceiling.” Even without Riki on vocals, Jimmy Swagg filled the space with commitment that genuinely deserved applause. “Minerva’s Den” was another standout, but “Lapse” and “Glass Ceiling” hit the hardest and felt the most familiar to most listeners. The instrumental format ga
ve them room to experiment and reshape the songs in real time. They closed with “As Above” and left the room buzzing.
Pinwheel ran through instrumental versions of their songs while mixing in Jimmy Swagg for a few. He performed. He wandered off the floor, frolicked across the stage, exchanged moments with the crowd, and sparked playful interactions with the band. The whole set felt alive. At one point, the guitarists even touched guitars mid-song just to see what would happen. Whatever it was, it worked.
The night opened with Burning Low, who set the tone beautifully. Every musician in the group was fully engaged. You could feel that collective zone the moment they started 
playing. Even Pinwheel’s members were spotted near the front vibing to their set before their own show began.
The night felt like a small corner of Austin exploding with creativity. Pinwheel delivered a wild, funky, and memorable performance. Even after the show, the crew stuck around, helped each other out, and enjoyed their time watching other groups together. It felt like watching a group of friends who trusted each other enough to try anything and have a blast doing it. If this is the direction they are heading, they are a band worth following closely.