Attila’s Chaos Tour lived up to its name. Chaos and madness ensued when Fronz and the rest of his tour mates played at Livewire in early November. This show was rowdy and definitely not for the easily offended.
Local Post Hardcore band Go Ask Alice was first up for the night. The trouble with having local bands open for bigger acts like Attila is that often people do not care about them. That unfortunately was the case with Go Ask Alice. When they went on stage, not many people were there to see them; they were playing to a half empty venue. The number of people there to see them in no way reflected their talent though. Go Ask Alice proved themselves with their distinct musicality which is not usually found in bands this young. Despite having a good sound, audience members did not seem enthused. The band made multiple attempts to get the audience involved with their performance, but much to their dismay, it did not work. Attila was far too big of band to be having an opener this small. Go Ask Alice was overshadowed by the other bands, and left their performance to be unmemorable in some audience members’ eyes.
YouTube | Revolt, Rebuild – Go Ask Alice
Note To Self was next, and like Go Ask Alice, they were slightly overshadowed by Attila and the other bands. Note To Self has gained notoriety by being featured in Alternative Press magazine, amongst other things, yet not many showed up to see them perform either. Their slightly Emo Metal engaged the crowd more than Go Ask Alice did. The audience took Note To Self a little more seriously. More of the crowd payed attention, but the venue was still eerily vacant. While the music they played was decent, Note To Self went too big, too soon.
YouTube | Akrasia – Note To Self (Official Music Video)
Sylar attempted to start their set twice, but due to technical difficulties were delayed. After the third try, Sylar decided that they did not need their opening audio and just went for it. The difficulties in no way slowed the group down. Vocalist Jayden Panesso, guitarist Dustin Jennings, guitarist and vocalist Miguel Cardona, bassist Travis Hufton, and drummer Thomas Veroutis seemed to be even more energized by their struggles early on. This Metal and Hardcore band from New York, brings good music as well as diversity to their scene, which gives them a leg up against most bands. While a lot of hardcore music has indiscernible screaming sections glossed over by pretty verses, Sylar takes a more Hip Hop approach to their sound. Panesso’s rap-like lyrics paired especially well with the screaming. Sylar was the perfect counterpart to Atilla’s Hip Hop style.
YouTube | Assume – Sylar (Official Music Video)
By the time Emmure took the stage, fans started to pile into the venue. Fans were more than excited to watch the band take the stage with their Cult Metal music. Emmure knows how to excite a crowd. Fans started a huge circle pit as soon as the first chord ripped across the airways. The opening acts were long forgotten and the crowd was glued to the stage. Hardcore sound filled the air, and although the band’s style is not that similar to that of Attila, Attila fans were into the music. Emmure was a perfect match to Attila on this tour. It countered Attila’s style and was a great way to expose this audience to new music.
YouTube | Torch – Emmure (Official Audio Stream)
Much like during Emmure, Chelsea Grin was given much love by the audience. Chelsea Grin was by far the heaviest band on the tour. Chelsea Grin is a band that screams and does just about nothing else. While this is most definitely an acquired taste, the crowd was into it. The fast-paced nature of the music made it hard to understand the lyrics, but what was distinguishable seemed to relay a good a message and more importantly the music sounded good. Even the little kids in the crowd gravitated toward the music. Emmure did wonders on this tour and hopefully they do a headlining tour soon because it would be amazing.
YouTube | Broken Bonds – Chelsea Grin (Official Music Video)
Attila’s frontman Chris Fronzak is known for his quirky style, but most importantly for his ability to enrage just about anyone who disagrees with him or takes life too seriously. Attila’s music is not to be taken seriously in almost any capacity. Fronz likes to have a good time and rage, that is about it. He uses topics such as devil worship and drugs to do so, which many find off putting. Whether or not people agree on whether the subject matter of Atilla songs is appropriate, Attila is one of the most original bands on the scene. The group pairs the basic Metal sound with Fronz’s quasi-Hip Hop screaming. It makes for a unique sound that cannot be found anywhere else. In addition to having an original, quality sound, Attila knows how to put on a stellar performance. The audience, fueled by Fronz’s words, created intense mosh pits. This actually looks and sounds quite dangerous, but the excitement of it all makes for a great show. Attila came to Arizona to party, and a party is what they got. Although it was not as hype as it could have been due to the show falling on a Tuesday, fans showed up to get chaotic making it one of Attila’s best shows yet.
YouTube | Bulletproof – Attila (Official Music Video)
Overall, the bands were paired nicely with Attila on this tour; however, there may have been too much packed into one night. Most of the bands who performed could have put on better sets, but due to time constraints, they could not showcase themselves fully. Despite this, the show was a success. The tour could not have been better with any other bands. This was a smart show, and that was what made it phenomenal.
Save