The notion that “rock is dead” dances on the tongues of those who fail to seek beyond the industry trappings of Spotify’s pre-made playlists, radio play and the annual Coachella lineup.
10 years ago, Bring Me The Horizon were a bonafide hype train phenomenon. Fresh off the success of their now-classic, essential additions to the metalcore cannon, Suicide Season and There Is A Hell, the band had a bubbling underground of snake-bite pierced teens worshiping at their throne of angst-ridden, experimental party-mosh jams.
Witnessing Bring Me The Horizon’s rise since then has been nothing short of monolithic. They’ve managed to permeate areas of pop culture no other band who once sold neon green tank top merch packs have. They’ve evolved with trends, redefining them in the process, setting a whole new standard for what any band who dares to conquer arenas and festival mainstages.
Bring Me The Horizon encompass the past, present, and future of rock – leaders who’ve inspired metalcore bands to listen to Bonobo, for youngsters to re-appreciate the wonders of nu-metal and for punk rockers to offer up light show spectaculars.
If you aren’t aware of the revolution, your favourite rock album of 2018 was probably Arctic Monkeys’ Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino.
There’s something special about the connection fostered between bands and fans who came up in “the scene”. It’s visceral and deeply intense, with these artists defining every inch of their fans coming of age.
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Bring Me The Horizon’s Sydney show was a night of celebration for those who braved heat-stroke days at Soundwave and now camp in the rain at Unify Gathering. For everyone who’s teenage bedroom walls were covered in Blunt poster mags, whose wardrobes are now full of on-trend 24Hundred merch collections – it was wholly triumphant, cathartic and packed with sensory overloads that beckoned for even the most unconvinced of their most recent effort amo to join in on the fun.
Electricity permeated the air as Trophy Eyes emerged onto the stage. Armed with a catalogue of ultra-anthemic, heart-string tugging material, the band tore through tracks off their triumphant 2018 release The American Dream. Opening their set with the blissfully ethereal alt-rock scorcher ‘You Can Count On Me’, it truly felt as though the last three years of the band’s career had come full circle.
Trophy Eyes have been unashamedly daring in their moves to inject new life into the local melodic punk scene, and now they’ve found a home on some of the country’s most revered stages. Vocalist John Floreani demanded the crowd’s attention during ‘Something Bigger Than This’, whilst each member showcased their highly crafted capabilities on the swiftly catchy ‘More Like You’, allowing the track’s varied colours to shine through. Wrapping their set up with the sickeningly nostalgic sing-a-long ‘Friday Forever’, the band sent the crowd into an arm-waving frenzy.
Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes brought serious punk rebellion to the corporate arena.
“We are the best fuckin support band on the planet”, bellowed the larger-than-life Frank Carter after jumping into the crowd to lead a general admission standing area sized circle pit, well and truly oiling up a crowd for a rowdy evening.
You Me At Six are a renewed band, and their set shook off any expectation that they may spend the rest of their career riding on the coattails of their nostalgia factor. With powerful rock tunes like ‘3 AM’ and ‘I O U’ under their belts, they’ll be spending the remainder of their career sending audiences.
Opening their set with amo’s epic lead single ‘MANTRA’, Bring Me The Horizon erupted in a visually spectacular sensory overload. MANTRA’s pummelling riff could shatter any rock-naysayer, whilst Jordan Fish’s luscious Bonobo-inspired production sheen glazed the room in a modern sheen, proving that Bring Me The Horizon are at the utmost cutting edge of what it means to be a rock band in 2019.
The show ebbed and flowed in a mirage of colours and sonic palettes – one of Sempiternal’s heavier cuts ‘The House Of Wolves’, came early in the set allowed the band to stir up circle pits and walls of death, mocking fans who’ve claimed they’ve gone ‘soft’, quickly delving into ‘Mother Tongue’, accompanied nu-rave inspired visuals, one of 2019’s most accomplished and saccharine drenched pop songs that blare with the intensity that could only be reached by a band with a background in heavy music.
Oli Syke’s voice was in absolute top form – That’s The Spirit’s ‘Follow You’ allowed him to flex his pop-charisma in the best way, eliciting one of the nights biggest sing-a-longs. As the band’s show has evolved from sweaty-mosh pit hell to arena optimism, their stage presence has grown to a level of super-confidence – evident in the epic moves that swelled across the stage during the naff-as-hell 2016 anthem ‘Happy Song’.
Grimes collab Nihilist Blues turned a crowd of usual mothers into a proper rave-fest. “Someone told me this was the worst song we’ve ever written,” Sykes gleefully exclaimed before diving into the pulsating, synth-heavy track.
Sempiternal’s ‘Antivist’ was the night’s most metal-fuelled moment whilst a curve-ball acoustic performance of the heart-string tugging single ‘Drowned’, continued to offer punters serious emotional ebb and flow.
Bring Me’s triple-threat encore, including the Meteora era Linkin Park-meets-modern RnB evoking track ‘Doomed’, sent the night off in the knowledge that the band have well and truly silenced any naysayers claiming they’ve lost their way amidst a slew of albums that have pushed them to heights of superstardom.
In ten years time, we’ll witness the arena tour of whatever band is ruling the scene roost these days – a tradition commenced with Bring Me’s bravery.
The amo tour was a historic hallmark in the timeline of Warped Tour faithfuls and metalcore maniacs – and the hype will only grow on from here.
