ERRA, Fit For A King, Northlane, Miss May I and August Burns Red all came out for a night of insanity at Irving Plaza (1/23). The bands who are some of the hottest in today’s metalcore scene, gave NYC one of the most intense shows it’s ever seen.
Fit For A King, a Christian metalcore band came on stage with heavy tunes that had the entire venue moving. Vocalist Ryan Kirby embodies what it is to be a lead singer with vocals strong enough to carry out long screams (as seen at the end of “Warpath”) and constantly keeping the energy of the fans at a high level. Fans were seen crowd surfing all over the ground floor of the venue, in order to get a closer look at the band. The band also consists of Bobby Lynge (guitars/backing vocals) and Ryan O’Leary (bass/clean vocals) who together compliment Kirby’s voice with contrasting vocals. Jared Easterling’s (drums) heavy beat only adds to the bands intensity. Although each fan kept giving their all song after song, they would instantly become more intense at Kirby’s demand. Fit For A King proves to be unique with Kirby displaying impressive vocals that’ll stop anyone in their tracks.
Northlane was up next, an Australian metalcore band who’s gone through some hard times over the past year. Having to part ways with original vocalist and founder Adrian Fitipaldes (due to his health) and finding new vocalist, Marcus Bridge, has put the band to the test. Although they now have a new singer, fans show they’ve stuck with the band and kept showing love, support and energy all throughout the show. Not to mention Marcus Bridge possesses vocals just as gruesome as those of Fitipaldes. The band who’s recorded a new song titled “Rot” and is in the process of recording their third album, gave fans a glimpse of what’s to come in the future of the band.
Next up was Miss May I, who may be one of the most intense acts in metalcore today. Band members Levi Benton (lead vocals), B.J. Stead (lead guitar/backing vocals), Justin Aufdemkampe (rhythm guitar/backing vocals), Ryan Neff (bass, clean vocals), Jerod Boyd (drums) were all raging with energy on stage, which only encouraged fans to be more energetic. Perhaps the band to have the most crowd surfing of the night, 3 security guards were not enough to catch all the fans crowd surfing. After last years incident in which a fan died after stage diving at Miss May I show, lead singer Levi Benton stated “Guys, we’re all going to take care of each other, alright? We love you guys so much and we would never want anybody to get hurt.” Benton proceeded by dedicating a song to the late fan, Alberto Scott. The band also played songs “Hey Mister”, “Forgive and Forget”, “Hero With No Name”, and “Relentless Chaos.”
The almighty, August Burns Red finally made their way to the stage, with fans welcoming them with loud cheers. Vocalist Jake Luhrs’ stage antics only made people go crazier. With one simple action, he could control the entire venue. By motioning toward the crowd to hush down while swinging his microphone in the air, he lowered the venues sound almost instantly. The band had the entire venue in their hands and with a simple gesture brought up the energy level once again. The band also performed songs such as “White Wash”, “Up Against The Ropes”, “Fault Line” and “Carpe Diem.” For any metalcore fanatic, the night was truly a treat and one they’ll never forget.
FIT FOR A KING:
NORTHLANE:
MISS MAY I:
AUGUST BURNS RED:
