Photo + Words: Caitlin Mellors
There is hot, and then there is ‘sold-out metalcore show’ hot. It’s a temperature only the most hardcore bands put out and the most hardcore fans survive. And the scorching highs achieved at o2 Academy Leeds on Saturday night were definitely not for the faint of heart.
If I Prevail didn’t realise just how massive they are in the UK prior to tonight, they must certainly know by now. Having announced ‘The Violent Nature’ Tour late last year, they had sold out the UK leg months in advance, with Leeds being one of the first dates to go. The Michigan outfit commanded the room but looked wildly oversized for such a small space. They’re wholly ready to take on the UK arena scene.
We saw Gore open the show with a performance that was less about working the crowd with words and more about creating a frenzy with heavy breakdowns. Singer Haley Roughton looked ethereal under the spotlights as she delivered an amazing performance with her killer vocals and even deadlier screams. All the while the rest of the band provided a high-octane energy that the crowd responded to in kind. From showing their appreciation with love-heart hand gestures to many swirling pits, this Yorkshire crowd came ready.
When Polaris came out, the room was a sweaty, love-fuelled warzone. The beloved Australians were a whirlwind of energy. Within minutes, people were up on shoulders, signs were raised, and singer Jamie Hails demanded that he see “bodies on top of bodies.”
Polaris turned the old venue on its head with a wall of death, splitting the crowd from barrier to bar, and the relentless circle pits that took up half of the floor. The rafters rang from the chanting of the crowd between the heavy riffs and the guttural growls bounced off the walls. When Polaris was done with the Leeds lot, they were starving for more.
As the stage was set for I Prevail it was obvious that they did not come unprepared. With their multi-tiered setup putting drummer Gabe Helguera practically in the eaves, flanked by raised platforms for the synth and guitarists – we were already impressed before the band even came out. When the lights dimmed and the band emerged to a roaring crowd, they gave us ‘NWO’, ‘Bow Down’ and ‘Self-Destruction’ in quick succession. And the heavy hitters didn’t let up.
The banter throughout the night was effortlessly fun and it was a nice contrast to go from disgusting screams to light-hearted jokes. From some good old fashioned peer pressure to see guitarist Dylan Bowman to take his shirt off, to singer Eric Vanlerberghe and co giving us the best quotable exchange of the night – “You come to an I Prevail gig, we’re best friends! And best friends finish each other’s…? Finish each other off? No! Finish each other’s sentences!”
After some more tunes, including fan favourites ‘Body Bag’ and ‘Bad Things’, the band brought back out Gore singer Roughton to sing ‘Paradise’ with them. We then got an epic drum solo from Helguera, and some more back and forth with the whole band. After which Vanlerberghe switched the gears “Enough jokes, let’s play some heavy shit.” What followed was carnage. The opening riff of ‘Choke’ was like a lit match hitting kerosene. Wave after wave of crowd surfers toppled over the barrier, and that huge pit in the middle of the room was ever present.
The final songs of the night would have made any hardcore I Prevail fan happy. We were treated to ‘Come and Get It’, ‘Hurricane’, and the night ended with ‘Gasoline’. It was pure, unadulterated hype. The band seemed taken aback by the crowd’s intensity all night and it was quickly named the best start to a tour they have ever had. Of course, the crowd had to cement that fact with their county pride in a unified chant of “YORKSHIRE!”
I Prevail are a staple in the scene. With their latest album turning one already it’s only a matter of time before we are treated to some more heavy hitters…and a UK arena tour in the near future?
