Concert Reviews
The Used/Pierce The Veil Pittsburgh Show Review
Summer is here, and for any music lover, that’s the best time of the year. Yes, you guessed correctly; that means it’s concert season. What better way to kick off the summer than with a pop-punk show like the Creative Control Tour, which features co-headliners Pierce The Veil and The Used?Every generation can appreciate this tour, whether you are old enough to have known about The Used since they formed over 23 years ago, or if you’re completely new to the scene and came to see Pierce The Veil because their song started a TikTok trend. There’s room for everyone on this upbeat and energetic wave of a tour. However, we do want to share a little bit of the spotlight with the opening bands, Girlfriends and Don Broco.
Hailing from across the pond in Bedford, England, comes Don Broco, a rock band with a bit of a funk-type vibe. These guys like to move, and dancing is certainly in their vocabulary. The band formed back in 2008 and has since then released 4 studio albums, the latest, Amazing Things, releasing back in 2021, and shared the spotlight on their short but jam-packed setlist with another fan favorite album, Technology. Don Broco most definitely took their time slot and went above and beyond with it, gearing the crowd up for the first half of our co-headliners, The Used.
With a set filled with a plethora of pink flowers and lights so bright, even frontman Bert McCkracken needed shades for the set when The Used took the stage. Forming nearly 23 years ago, the band was at the height of the pop punk music movement, and they certainly haven’t lost their touch. They played favorites such as “The Taste of Ink”, “The Bird and the Worm”, and “Pretty Handsome Awkward” just to name a few, and the band certainly filled the hearts of fans both old and new. To top it off, McCracken took a moment to shine a light on the sensitive subject of depression before playing “Giving Up” a song off of their latest album Toxic Positivity, which was released earlier this year. Along with new music, the band announced that they will be going on tour this fall with Sleeping With Sirens and Dead American, so if you missed this round of shows, be sure to catch one of the dates later this year.
Finishing up strong with a fan favorite amongst lovers of pop-punk, and alternative music, we have our other co-headliner, Pierce the Veil. Having just released their latest album, Jaws of Life, and frontman and lead guitarist Vic Fuentes welcoming a beautiful baby girl into the family, the band certainly has been busy thus far this year. Along with playing some of the more popular songs off their new album like “Emergency Contact” and “Pass the Nirvana”, the band certainly couldn’t go without playing some other fan favorites, which of course included songs such as “Bulls In The Bronx”, and “Hold On Till May”, which included a special serenade session for a lucky fan by Vic himself and ended with him giving them his personal guitar. Of course, this wouldn’t be a proper PTV show if we didn’t end the night with “King For A Day” a song loved by fans of the band and overall genre, as well as newer fans who have found it amongst some of today’s latest TikTok trends. So, whether you are a fan, young or old, remember that you are never too old to rock out.
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Concert Reviews
The Nothing That Is Tour
Another fall evening in the Burgh, the air was crisp and cool, setting the mood for a great night for metal. The Roxian in McKees Rock, PA, hosted The Nothing That Is Tour tonight, featuring Fit For An Autopsy. Bodysnatcher, Distant, Sylosisand, and Judiciary. Fit For An Autopsy brought some of the heaviest and nastiest together to throw down for all of you. An eclectic banding of hardcore and deathcore acts that are making waves in the metal community.
Judiciary kicked things off, their music a blend of hardcore, thrash, and punk. Their songs had thrash riffs with hardcore rhythms and breakdowns, with an occasional solo thrown in. With horns raised in the air, the crowd gave these Texas natives a well-received welcome. This band was a great start to the night, bringing the energy in the room up quickly.
Sylosis came out to a fury. Their vocalist ripped at the crowd from the start, asking for a circle pit as they kicked off. This band had moshers and crowd surfers amped up as waves of bodies started coming over the front barricade. Throughout the set, the energy never let up, as this band kept pushing the crowd. This energy came to a high when their newest single, “The Path,” was performed. High-paced hardcore mayhem throughout the set, this band had a vast amount of tricks in their bag, from solos to even groove to bring to the party.
At the midpoint of the show, Distant took the stage. This band is over-the-top heavy, riding low-tuned grooves into devastating breakdowns. The vocalist has a wide range, from high-pitched screams and growls to bottom-of-the-barrel gutturals. Distant announced their newest album, Tsukuyomi: The Origin, is a week away from coming out. Which kicked off the single “Torturous Symphony.” At this point, no one was standing still on the floor as moshers were on the move. Bodies colliding into each other until the band finally stopped, at this point the crowd was completely warmed up.
Deathcore veterans Bodysnatcher took the stage next to show Pittsburgh how to throw down. This band rides a low groove while keeping the energy high, accompanied by the unrelenting low growls of vocalist Kyle Medina. The band kicked off with “King of Rats” and went right into “Dead Rabbit.” The floor was swimming with bodies as the band raged on. Other standout songs were “Take Me to Hell” and “Black of My Eyes” before closing out on “Murder8.”
Headliners Fit For An Autopsy took the stage with a fury, kicking off with “Lower Purpose” into “A Higher Level of Hate” for a nasty one-two punch out of the gate. Seasoned veterans now in their careers, the band looked very polished and primed. FFAA just released their newest album, The Nothing That Is. The band played through several hits, “Black Mammoth”, “The Sea of Tragic Beasts”, and “Hellions”, before diving back into their latest album with “Hostage”. The crowd stayed up and moving through the set as Fit For an Autopsy is a Pittsburgh favorite, having visited the city several times during their tenure.
The Nothing That Is tour showcases some of the heaviest bands touring right now. Fit For An Autopsy have updated their live show and look ready to take the world fresh off the new album. If you are looking to release some steam or to hear some new music, The Nothing That Is tour will not disappoint.
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Concert Reviews
STRYPER ON A SUNDAY. YES PLEASE
STRYPER was just in Baltimore the other day on the 40 years of Stryper tour. Playing 2 sets spanning those 40 years. I’ve only ever seen Stryper play at M3 so it was amazing to get to see a full on set then another full on set right after.
For the 1st set we got the 1984-1990 set which included songs like “Loud N Clear”, “Soldiers under Command” and “To Hell with the Devil”.
The second set we got 1986, 2004-2024 with songs like “No More Hell to Pay”, “This i Pray” and ending the night with “Sing along Song”.
It was a great night for Music and sadly more then likely the last show at RamsHead Live I’ll be ever to attend as the are closing their doors (hopefully will be open again with a new venture) but the show was amazing to see Stryper play on the stage. Such great guys and a great band. I love that Stryper is fully engaged with the fans and the show is always amazing. I love that they put their religious beliefs 100% on display but the show never feels preachy or judgmental. If you get a chance to see Stryper play in your city I fully recommend it such a great time and a great band to see play live.
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Concert Reviews
King Diamond brought the Halloween party to Silver Spring MD
King Diamond who’s on tour now with Overkill and Night Demon.
Overkill always puts on a great show and shows that face pace thrash metal is still kick ass. Led by NJ’s Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth Overkill has that distinctive sound with Bobby’s high pitched and raspy vocals. With songs like “Scorched”, “ Rotten to the Core” and “Hello From the Gutter”, Overkill got the crowd into a frenzy and warmed up the stage before the king.
You know it’s gonna be a good night when it’s 3 days before Halloween and you get to see a kick ass set from King Diamond. King Diamond who’s 68 right now still commands that stage and sounds amazing with his insanely falsettos. The stage show at a King Diamond show is always such a great sight to see. With a multilayer setup of stairs and little pieces of elaborate set all over it’s such a great view and perfect setting to watch a King Diamond set.
The set list was amazing too we got to hear songs from such a great career like “A Mansion in the Darkness”, “Halloween “, “Spider Lilly”, “Welcome Home”, and “Eye of the Witch” and of course ending the night with “Abagail”.
If you’re a fan of King Diamond or just a fan of great music that adds that Halloween haunted asylum themed stage performances then you need to go out and check this tour now. King Diamond never disappoints and always puts on one hell of a show.
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