Gig: While She Sleeps @ O2 Forum Kentish, London
While She Sleeps by Anne Pfalzgraf
After releasing their sixth LP Self Hell earlier this year, While She Sleeps headed out for an extended EU and UK run celebrating the release. They stopped at the iconic O2 Forum Kentish town in London for two nights, including the sold out 6 December. The night promised to be one for the books with a lineup boasting powerhouse support from Resolve, Thrown and Currents, three rising forces within the metalcore scene – treating the audience to an unforgettable evening filled with filthy breakdowns, epic vocals, raw emotions, chunky riffs and plenty of crowd singalongs.
Resolve
Opening the stage for the night was Lyon’s Resolve who set the tone with a captivating blend of cinematic soundscapes, chunky riffs, anthemic choruses and hard-hitting metallic breakdowns. Their emotionally charged lyrics paired with crunchy guitar tones and dreamy synth melodies won the crowd over quicky, seeing them spinning around in circle pits and singing along on the top of their lungs. Even though people were still coming in, Resolve waisted no time in warming up the audience, racing through their set wavering between raw, aggressive energy and delicate emotion – a perfect lead-up to what was yet to come.
Thrown
Swedish heavy weights Thrown were up next bringing a mix of hardcore punk, tech and nu-metal which allowed for a darker, murkier, aggressive atmosphere. Vocalist Markus Lundqvist’s animalistic screams filled the venue accompanied by the brutally soaring guitar tones, commanding the attention of the crowd as they explode into movement. They raced through their set keeping the crowd off their feet with the floor opening up as a result of their more aggressive sound.
Currents
Third band of the evening was Connecticut based progressive metalcore outfit Currents who brought a more melodic sound with them. Being known for their breakdowns, chugging riffs and heart-shuttering breakdowns all wrapped into a sweet melancholia, they sparked a wave of crowd surfers and singalongs early on, leaving everyone sweaty and excited for the main act.
While She Sleeps
The room was filled with blistering excitement by the time While She Sleeps marched onstage to the intro of ‘Peace Of Mind’ before directly bursting into ‘Leave Me Alone’, instantly sweeping the crowd into a frenzy. Known for their punk ethos, raw emotions, chunky riffs and big choruses, the Northerners took the crowd on an emotional rollercoaster throughout the night. While ‘Anti-Social’ and ‘The Guilty Party’ saw massive singalongs, and ‘Enlightenment’ swept the audience off their feet, vocalist Loz Taylor took it upon himself to break the crowd surfing record fellow Northerners Malevolence are currently holding commanding the crowd to send as many people to the front of the stage during the epic sounding ‘You Are We’ turning the room into a sea of bodies. Currents’ Brian Wille joined in on vocal duties during ‘Drown’, while Resolve’s Anthony Diliberto took over Oli Syke’s part in ‘Silence Speaks’. The setlist was mainly focussed on the band’s more recent discography only featuring ‘Four Walls’ as one of the older songs which saw the room being lit up entirely by phone lights, and turning the audience into one big metal choir. The band raced through their set with relentless energy demanding the crowd to keep the energy flowing before transitioning into the punk-fuelled set-closer ‘Sleep Society’ leaving the crowd exhilarated and eagerly awaiting the next chapter in While She Sleeps’ journey.
