ATREYU ROCKS THE FORGE IN JOLIET, IL

A long line of cold metal-heads bustled inside the Forge in Joliet, IL as the Thai band Defying Decay opened the Baptize Tour. The alternative metal band crowded their two guitarists, keyboard player, bassist, DJ, drummer and singer on the small stage and played their songs for a still shivering crowd. Hindered by two giant pillars and the stage’s small size, the band was very energetic and moved around as much as they could. At the end of their set, one of the guitarists stood on top of the drummer’s light-up drum kit which helped warm up the crowd.

Tetrarch, not to be confused with the British Mk VII Light Tank used in World War II, was up next with a feel-good story about how they played shows with only 2 people in the crowd and how grateful they are to be here in the crowded room. Their guitarist, Diamond Rowe is the first African American female metal guitarist to be featured in a major publication! Her guitar playing skills were excellent as she whipped her hair around while rocking out on her ESP LTD guitar. Baby mosh pits opened up but couldn’t fully develop into their teenage selves due to the pillars in the crowd. After Tetrarch’s set, a man in the bathroom line apologized to a stranger for “getting down in the pit.” All was forgiven and the two ended up chatting for a while before going their separate ways.

Crown the Empire performed next and the energy in the room instantly tripled. Early on in their set, vocalist Andy Leo hinted that crowd members should order them shots. A half empty bottle of Grey Goose appeared moments later with shots for everyone. 40% of the songs Crown the Empire played were off of their 2019 album Sudden Sky. Shots of Jack Daniels were brought on stage and were shared with everyone but CTE’s drummer who doesn’t drink. At one point, Andy Leo told the crowd, “if you have never been in a mosh pit before, this is your chance.” A mosh pit opened up and grew to be the largest of the showthus far. More shots were brought on stage and this time, Tetrarch’s Diamond Rowe joined in on the fun. At last, a four crowd surfers were lifted by their friends across the crowd and caught safely by the security guards.

After a long changeover, Atreyu finally came on stage opening with “Strange Powers of Prophecy” and “Baptize,” the first two songs off of their 2021 album Baptize. Brandon Saller, now acting as the lead singer instead of his previous drummer/vocalist duties, performed very well as the frontman. Bassist Porter McKnight took over many of the screaming duties after the departure of former vocalist Alex Varkatzas. Atreyu played six songs off of their 2007 album Lead Sails Paper Anchor and six songs off of Baptize along with a few hits off of other albums. The same bottle of Grey Goose appeared and shots were consumed by the band. Despite all of the COVID-19 precautions, I saw one of the girls on tour drink straight out of the bottle. A girl in the front row picked the song “Fucked Up” from a bowl of songs Saller produced which was a unique concert moment. Later, Saller chose a crowd member named Nick to lead the “first official mosh pit of the night.” The entire crowd chanted “Nick, Nick, Nick” as Atreyu played “When Two Are One.” Grown men kept screaming “I LOVE YOU” to the band and eventually Brandon Saller got all of the women to scream “I LOVE YOU” with their most guttural voice. Arms went across the shoulders of friends as Atreyu played “Lead Sails (And A Paper Anchor),” the slowest song of the night. For the next song, “Bleeding Mascara,” Brandon Saller assumed his previous duties as the drummer and vocalist while the drummer Kyle Rosa played bass and Porter McKnight screamed. Dan Donegan, guitarist of Disturbed, came to the show and hung out at the bar with Andy Leo of Crown the Empire and a few other friends. Almost no one noticed that the legendary guitarist was there. During the song “Warrior,” Brandon Saller rapped on top of the Travis Barker drum feature which was a very fun surprise. The guitarists played their instruments behind their backs at the end of “Lip Gloss and Black,” the final song of the night. Overall, the Baptize Tour was excellent and the bands deserved a larger venue to encapsulate the energy of the music.

Defying Decay Gallery: