London loves to party and Saturday 22nd April 2017 was no exception when metal heads queued up hours early prior to the show ready for a bash with Bury Tomorrow for the final UK tour date on the Earthbound Tour at the O2 Forum, Kentish Town. It was extreme, epic and thoroughly entertaining!
Opening band Any Given Day entered the stage to heavy cheering and applause which was constant throughout their 30 minute set. A mix of catchy riffs and frontman Dennis Diehl‘s harsh vocals and low screams had the crowd entertained all the way. Diehl told the crowd to open the pit to create a wall of death for their version of Rhianna‘s “Diamonds.” Their biggest YouTube hit to date was a crowd-pleaser and this metal version sent shock waves through the venue and energized the crowd for what was to follow.
Black Peaks offered a mix of prog infused heavy metallic riffs that the crowd seemed to take a slight interest in, however most lacked enthusiasm. This is a band that sound better live and the stand-out performance was “Crooks” where vocalist Will Gardner put on a flawless show coupled with impressive riffing provided by Joe Gosney. Halfway through, the flow and dynamics of the set lacked energy and the crowd reflected this behavior, which resulted in them leaving the pit.
Fans were treated to an undeniable presence by Japan’s electro metallers Crossfaith. They sent the crowd into a frenzy with a ten second countdown before they hit the stage hard with the opening track “Xeno”. Renowned for their intense live performance they did not disappoint the crowd whom were engrossed in the band’s energy. The destructive stage performance was mirrored by the rowdy crowd who created a brutal pit during the party anthem “Jagerbomb.” Vocalist Kenta Koie barked at the crowd to jump and bounce and the response was pure hysteria. DJ Terufumi Tamano fueled the crowd with adrenaline while sharing vocal duties with Koie. The highlight of the night was probably the cover of the Prodigy‘s “Omen” which turned into a mass sing-a-long when Koie pumped the crowd. He made everyone kneel down to the ground and jump up when the song reached its climax. It was insane to see the crowd create a wall of death twice during this song!
British metalcore band Bury Tomorrow have made a mark on the metalcore scene. To headline the O2 Forum for the first time, they came on stage full of energy to a chanting crowd and opened with “The Eternal” from the album ‘Earthbound.’ The crowd had the floor bouncing all throughout two favourites; “Memories” and “Lionheart.” Vocalist Daniel Winter-Bates had a unique way of commanding fans to “move” during “Knight Life” and did not want to see any “still bodies.” The crowd swayed and jumped along that sent tremors through the floor. There wasn’t much headbanging or moshing, but there was an array of shirtless crowd surfers and numerous beer showers. The frontman controlled crowd behavior through long monologues, which seemed to kill momentum between songs by starting and stopping. Their set was visually stimulating and the band brought their bespoke lighting which was refreshing to see at the Forum.
I enjoyed the mix of Winter-Bate‘s harsh, guttural vocals and clean vocals provided by guitarist Jason Cameron. The boys were on fire from the outset headbanging and swinging their guitars. Guitarist Kristan Dawson showed his musical talent in his excellent solos while using the finger-tapping technique. Their hour-long set was over too soon, but not before the band returned for two encore songs. All the while the crowd chanted “Bury, Bury.” The band praised the London crowd for showing their support to the opening bands and all the bands joined Bury Tomorrow for a final bow to a respectable audience.
Overall, the UK leg of the Earthbound tour ended on a high as the bands battered our aural receptors with different genres of metal. Headliner’s Bury Tomorrow provided a blistering set. They were almost upstaged by their road mates Crossfaith with their show-stopping performance of electro techno metal. Any Given Day and Black Peaks are worthy of a mention as they both put on a thrilling set to a packed out venue. All these bands sound great on CD, but are extraordinary live! Check them out in a city near you for an unforgettable experience!
Also check out our gallery of the gig here!
