Dirty Wombs: Southeast Asia & Japan Tour Report 2025

Dirty Wombs is a hardcore punk band from Greece, formed back in 2011, when its members were still university students in the city of Patras. Musically, they draw influence from the powerful Japanese “burning spirits” style of bands like Death Side, Judgement, and Forward, but with lyrics in Greek and a firm grounding in their local DIY punk community and political context.

By the time they released their full-length Accursed to Overcome in 2018, the band had relocated to Athens, and the LP was followed by a US tour covering both coasts. Over the years, all of the members became active in other bands, including Chain Cult, Feral Kids, and Downwinder. As a result, Dirty Wombs stopped playing for a while, but they returned surprisingly in May 2025. They released two new songs on a 7-inch vinyl for their Southeast Asia and Japan tour in August, complete with artwork designed by Japanese punk legend Sugi. To document these special moments, our dear friend Dino of Dirty Wombs (and Chain Cult) wrote this tour report for DIY Conspiracy. We love him endlessly.

Writing a tour report, after years of touring, can be a tricky task. It’s difficult not to repeat yourself, and the level of genuine enthusiasm is not exactly the same as when you are twenty-five years old, for example. Not saying that you don’t enjoy it to the max, but it wouldn’t be fair to describe everything as a fairy tale. Also, growing up is another issue. Becoming a bit more peculiar as a character, having your own personal burnouts, and losing physical stamina or even the mental bandwidth to meet so many people and be upright all the time is challenging.

However, touring might be the only thing that keeps some people going, and this situation definitely describes me. It’s still one of my main driving forces, a kind of therapy during these crazy times, that develops gradually through the whole preparation period, during the tour itself, and of course with the post-tour experiences and memories, until the next time and the next adventure. And even in the most difficult moments, the unlucky and stressful incidents, or when you feel you’ve reached the bottom physically or mentally, it’s the smile of all these kind people you’ve just met, the people of your community, your new friends, that bring you back to life with all their hospitality, creativity, and personal stories.

I would like to move from the classic tour diary format and, through some short descriptions of what we did and how we accomplished it, focus more on impressions, thoughts, feelings, and comments that emerged from my personal experience in Southeast Asia and Japan, especially those related to the punk scene and the international DIY community’s practices, values, and rituals. But before I start, let me give a brief history of how three punks from Greece landed for the first time on a tropical island on the globe’s equator, in the middle of summer 2025.

A tour in Southeast Asia and Japan had always been in the back of our minds. First as a far-distant dream that you have in your twenties, then as a half-serious, half-joke idea you talk about in bars, and in the end as a sudden proposal and a concrete plan where you’re left with just six months to materialize it. Dirty Wombs never actually stopped playing. After years of activity, many releases, bigger and smaller tours in Europe, and a big tour in the United States, we just found ourselves living in different cities for a while, where everyone ventured into new bands and projects. And when we found ourselves again in the same city, seeing each other literally every day, playing together in other bands, and talking about our future plans with Dirty Wombs, procrastination is probably the reason everything got a bit delayed.

However, when our good friend and label buddy Dan reached out to us with a crazy but solid idea and a super detailed plan, we couldn’t resist but start the engine again, rock again in the basement, write new music, and start contacting every possible person we knew so the tour could begin to take shape. Surprisingly, everything worked according to plan, everyone and everything was on time, and one day in the beginning of August we landed in Indonesia, meeting our first friends in that part of the world and getting our brand new 7-inch Verge of the End in our hands.

Indonesia

The Indonesian punk community is huge. There are thousands—if not millions—of punks all around the country, even in the most remote villages, islands, and jungles. We were shown pictures by some older promoters in Jakarta of shows taking place in the early ‘00s with fifteen to twenty thousand people in the crowd. There are tons of small punk businesses all over the country, ranging from record labels and distros to merchandise brands, screen-printing companies, and even one-person operations crafting anything you can imagine. At our first show in Tangerang, for example, we were gifted Tech-Deck-like fingerboard with our band logo on them, courtesy of Jaydeck Fingerboard brand. That’s the way people survive there: how they are organized, how they make a living, and how they support their scene and their love for punk music and underground culture.

Coming from a European country, we can’t deny how privileged we all felt there in various ways. Besides the general social, political, and economic background, even when it comes to punk everything is much harder. Many local bands cannot afford to record their songs, means of production aren’t as accessible, and there have been bands playing for years without any proper releases out in the world. That’s a pity because there are some truly amazing and hard-working groups in those places (e.g., check out DIY Conspiracy’s 2024 and 2025 list articles on Indonesian punk demos).

We got to play three shows on Java, the most populated island of Indonesia—in Tangerang, Bandung, and Jakarta—with more than twenty bands in total. Most of them played d-beat hardcore, crust, or grindcore, and honestly all of them were very good. I can’t mention every band here, but I’d like to give a shout-out to the killer sets by crusties Döttland, crust-grind band Tersanjung13, legends Peace or Annihilation, Genosida, and noise d-beat act Gerd—all of them fast and loud! Two of the shows we played, one in Tangerang by the Aliansi Terlarang collective and the excellent, big, and chaotic Invasi Distorsi festival in Jakarta, took place in creative spaces mainly run as cafés, where people of the scene work as baristas and bartenders. In Bandung, we played an incredible DIY venue in the middle of the jungle, built with bamboo by a local community of punks and farmers called Pyrate Punx. Hail Klub Racun, that’s a place to remember!

It is very sad to see how devastated countries like Indonesia have been left after decades of colonial rule, followed by years of dictatorships and corrupt governments. You notice this in the general poverty, the inequalities in society, and of course the public infrastructure, where, for example, everything can be flooded in an instant when a sudden rainstorm begins. Streets and highways become rivers, and the traffic is insane. A good piece of advice would always be to start your trip early and on time if you move by car or cab, like we did. You may be left speechless when you realize you almost missed your flight or got stuck in traffic forever on a day off due to non-optimal decisions and miscalculations. The most important thing to say here is that under such living conditions, where a big part of society lives against all odds—sometimes with just the basics and facing real difficulties that many others in the world cannot even imagine—the spirit, the mindset, the passion, and the strength of those who live there and struggle is admirable. It’s essential to express our solidarity with our brothers, friends, and fighting people in Indonesia during these days of uprising, where everyone has taken to the streets to fight against corruption and police brutality.

Malaysia & Singapore

The impression I got about the scenes in Singapore and Malaysia is that they are probably the most connected ones in Southeast Asia with the scenes of the West. Many bands from Europe, the United States, and Canada have visited these countries over the decades, and many local labels regularly put out Asian represses of records from those continents, even brand-new releases. Some of the labels still doing great work are Black Konflik Records, Hardcore Detonation, Pissed Off! Records, and of course many more.

It was also great to see that there are some really nice options when it comes to venues. In Singapore, we got to play an amazing gig at Azadghei Punk Infoshop, a small record store in an almost abandoned shopping mall where people went nuts and started playing “little blind train” in the corridors of the lower-level floor of the mall, along with non-stop crowd surfing. The legendary The Wall in Batu Pahat (Malaysia) was probably the most “European-standard” venue we played on the whole tour, as it resembled the squats and project houses in Europe, with an amazing live stage and some wild vibes from the locals. Adam Music Studio (Melaka) and the new live stage PBKL (Kuala Lumpur) were also very cool places. Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to see another historic venue of Malaysia, Rumah Api in Kuala Lumpur; a space that has changed locations two or three times and has hosted numerous underground gigs through the years.

Another very positive thing about these scenes is that many young people are involved and playing shows. I’m not sure if they are also involved in booking gigs, organizing fests, or running labels, but there were several young bands that shared the stage with us, and they were each really good. Kudis in Singapore, with their Una Bestia Incontrolable-style sound, were amazing; same with Negative Kvlt, Chaos Bomb, and Slakt!, noisy punks all from Malaysia. Also worth mentioning were death metallers Disrotten. And of course, a shout-out to our friends, label buddies, and sick neo-crusties Osmantikos for the good company and the killer sets!

Philippines

The Philippines is a whole other story. We got to spend a full week there, played five shows, met tons of people, made a bunch of friends, and were lucky enough to do some really cool stuff in the country, relaxed and without any stress of time. I can’t say that the bonds of the Filipino scene with the other scenes in Southeast Asia are super strong, as the country is a bit more geographically isolated, and maybe also a little different in a cultural sense.

The Filipino punk scene is very historic, and it might be the first solid one in that area of Asia. From the stories I heard, there were many factors leading to this. There was a huge diaspora during the ‘70s and ‘80s, and people returning to their homeland from parts of the world where punk had started flourishing brought back with them all these influences and their love for punk music. There was also a pressing plant in the Philippines and, among all artists pressing their music on vinyl, there were punk bands who got their first records out in physical format. And then there was what we sometimes call “the power of the individual,” where certain people managed to make a change and play an essential role in those first days of punk, like Twisted Red Cross, an independent record label that became crucial in promoting the underground punk and hardcore scene in Manila during the politically turbulent ‘80s. I was even told there were relatives of high-ranking government executives actively involved in punk. From current labels, Delusion of Terror is doing great work keeping the punk flame alive in the country, while also being very connected with the wider international DIY punk world.

The presence of women in the scene is also very important and notable, and I’d like to point it out. It’s much bigger and more apparent than in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, both in terms of people attending shows and punks active in bands and collectives. Some great examples of hardcore bands where women’s representation was more dominant were Choke Cocoi and Banana Is the Bastard, who played with us and also helped us a lot with the tour.

Sound-wise, I believe the Filipino scene is a big mosaic of different smaller sub-scenes. For example, in Lucena and Batangas most bands were more into brutal and metallic American hardcore. In Cavite and Manila we played mainly with grindcore and crust bands, while the Legazpi bands covered all aspects of extreme metal punk. I’d like to give an honorable mention to the gig in Legazpi, as it was a crazy adventure for us. The city is located twelve hours from Manila by car, under the foothills of volcanic Mount Mayon, and there was this idea in our crew to do something more unusual than the main touring destinations that bands usually choose in the Philippines. Due to lack of time we had to take a cheap domestic flight to get there, where an amazing group of people greeted us with a rented minibus and spent two and a half incredible days with us in that region of stunning natural beauty. The love, feedback, and support we received in the whole Philippines was really moving, and it proved how thirsty people are for international punk and how rare it is for a foreign band to pay a visit there. People from Crux of Resistance and Existence crew in Legazpi, for example, told us that we might be the third non-Filipino band they’ve booked in twenty years!

Other great bands we played with included the black thrashers Sungayan; brutal hardcore acts React and Torture; grindcore heroes Swineslaughter; Istukas Over Disneyland, with their more traditional Filipino take on punk; and definitely the current lords of Filipino post-punk and new wave, Crepuscular Dawn, who played a surprise fun set with friends filling in on vocals due to a minor health issue of their singer.

All the venues we played resembled American diner-style establishments, where people hang out to eat, drink, and attend small concerts, comedy shows, or art performances. Even if they weren’t designed exactly for the gigs we’re used to, our promoters had such high spirits that they turned each place into a cool punk venue, like a celebration day for everyone—inviting many bands onto the bill, usually seven or eight, to make it bigger and more special. Totally opposite to what happens lately in some parts of Europe, where you hardly find a second act to play with the touring band in the middle of the week. Kudos to all the great posters people made for those gigs, all the nice backdrops that decorated the stages, all the gig memorabilia offered to attendees and band members, and of course the stance and solidarity messages regarding the war in Palestine—exactly as people expressed them in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia too. Free Palestine!

Japan

Musically, the week we spent in Japan was the most inspiring experience we’ve ever had in our entire lives, and I can definitely say it on behalf of all my crew. The bands we played with were out of this world. Some of them were legendary, some were bands we had been listening to for years, and others we had never heard before but who really blew our minds. The musical skills of these people and the tightness of their bands are unbelievable. Their performances are wild, and there’s something very special and unique in their compositions—details, structures, and ideas we noticed that really impressed us. It’s like there’s a whole different mindset behind the way they play punk music, something hard to grasp but really worth paying attention to. What I also liked is the humility and hard-working attitude of these killer bands. They give one hundred percent no matter how many people are in the club. They perform wildly even for fifteen people, may play every week in their town to support a local gig or a foreign touring band, and stay in great shape even if they don’t have the chance to tour regularly due to Japan’s notoriously strict work schedules. There was one band we cried to, which has never played two shows in a row in nineteen years of existence, as we were told.

Some bands I should definitely mention here are Illya, probably one of the best in the game worldwide; metal-punk heroes Military Shadow; punk rockers Bring Arrow; metal-punk legends G.A.T.E.S.; Japanese hardcore legends Gudon; crazy rockers Stupid Babies Go Mad; noise d-beat acts Axe Helvete and Warcloud; and Novadies, Weaks, Camarada, and Agony A.D., all hardcore punk bands that were a huge surprise for us.

The whole tour-booking thing in Japan works in a way closer to what happens in the United States. You are assured of playing a nice venue with some killer local bands, but the rest is for you to figure out: accommodation, food, booze, and transportation between and within the cities. This is in contrast to the previous countries where we were usually provided with food, and in some places accommodation too. For transportation, we purchased one-week train passes and used the super-fast bullet train to move between the cities. It was quite expensive, but it was the best and most efficient way to do what we wanted, given the limited time we had. Travelling by car would have cost almost the same but taken many more hours due to traffic. The only bad thing was that we had to carry so much stuff all the time—our instruments, merchandise, and personal bags—up and down staircases, leaving behind a pain that I can still feel in my body.

There are very strict rules and specifications for places allowed to host shows. They must have good soundproofing, a strong backline, and a solid PA system. That’s why most shows take place in clubs and small bars, sometimes with expensive rent. That rent is also the reason there can’t be a guarantee of payment from the shows. The good thing is that, at least in the places we played, the owners had roots in the punk and hardcore scenes. They were very nice to us, liked our shows, and there was a lot of understanding between them, the promoters, and the punks showing up. That was the case with the amazing tiny bar King Biscuit in Gifu, Club Conquest in Hiroshima, Club Stomp in Osaka, So Gen in Shizuoka, and Pit Bar in Tokyo.

The shows start really early, and the sound-check is even earlier. Even if it bisects your day, it’s a ritual you should be on time for and definitely not miss. Also, these places are so fucking loud that you can’t escape having your neck unscrewed from the high-energy vibes of the show. It totally makes sense why loud, noisy crasher crust music flourished in such basements. All the people were very nice and polite, and there was a pure interest from their side in our discussions. Really into learning and asking things about us, about the scene in Greece, our influences, and so on. We also had a great time at night in the Izakaya gastro-bars where we hung out, something very common for local punks after shows.

In Japan, we re-appreciated the CD format, the most common one in the country. Almost every band releases their music on CDs, sometimes even just three or four songs, usually with very nice, slim packaging. We also had a slim Discography Part Two CD out for the tour, released by Novembre Records. Last but not least, speaking about records, Japan is probably the Mecca of record stores, along with the United States. Some of the stores we visited were Revenge Records, Punk and Destroy, RecordShop Base, and Disk Union, where the selection of punk records—new releases, represses, and even some original pressings—was incredible.

This article is by no means a guide to punk in Southeast Asia and Japan. As I said in the beginning, it is just a tour report and maybe a very first glimpse for readers into that area, based on our personal experiences from the trip and what we lived as a band so far from home. On the contrary, I’d really love to read more articles and scene reports about places like Indonesia and the Philippines, from different periods and regions in each country. I didn’t include any touristic information or food recommendations, even if the food was excellent and cheap everywhere we went, because this was far from the basic goal of this text. Also, even if I have my personal opinions and views on broader social, cultural, and sensitive issues after that journey, this is definitely not the right medium, and maybe I’m not the right person, to share them here. Besides, I wanted to keep it “punk” or at least punk-oriented. It’s a very broad and deep discussion, and I’m sure that the information, context, and background I have are not enough for this endeavor.

As a traveler, it’s very important to respect people’s culture in those places, respect their codes, hear their personal stories, be patient, be less arrogant, and never take anything for granted. That’s the magic of what we do, the splendor of the international DIY community, letting music be the way to discover new things, exchange life experiences, meet people, and make friends all around the world. There is no room to be rude, spoiled, or expect things done promptly. It is not a tour where you’ll be able to cover your expenses. In fact, you’ll only cover a very small part, basically just what you spend while on the road. However, it’s something you do for yourself, and it’s totally worth every single cent.

We feel very fortunate to have lived such a unique and life-changing experience, and it’s definitely something we’ll take to our graves. I’d like to thank every single person who greeted us with a big smile and exchanged a few words despite any language barriers, and also give special thanks to my best friends, bandmates, and touring companions Aris and Kostas, and to Gaus, Hasib, Aizu, Talib, Tweetyy, Emman, Anton, and Dan, for helping us successfully arrange such a big adventure.

Terima Kasih, Salamat, Arigato!

Dino / Dirty Wombs