This week’s episode of the Get Some Magazine party bus, we went to one of our “home away from home” venues, The WC Social Club, for a fantastic night of metalcore music. Escape the Fate was on the run a few show dates leading up to a couple festival runs. Tonight’s show will be a mid-capacity venue with an arena feel from the crowd and bands. All the bands tonight were bringing a little something for everyone. Let’s get to it, baby!!!
Kicking the night off was Chicago locals SoulKiller, with their hard-hitting EDM/metalcore mix of music. Soulkiller set the tone for the night with their opening number, “Devi”, and immediately, this crowd jumped into action. Throughout the set, mosh pits broke out, and all on the barricade were either seen singing or headbanging along with this band. SK dropped some new songs on us tonight with “Fake Faith” and “Venin” (will be released soon). The band is packed with so much talent and has only been around for 2 years; they have made great strides in becoming a “tour-ready” band. Each member has their own way of commanding the stage and bringing the crowd into their set. So, if you want to see a band with epic EDM breakdowns with the metalcore in your face music…look no further.
The fun thing about what we get to do as photographers is that we get the opportunity to discover new artists. To be as transparent as possible here, we did no background on Nini, which means we wanted the surprise of what her stage show felt like. Nini mixes traditional Asian melodies with newer metal and metalcore music, which all fit this bill perfectly. The entire band was full throttle and so energetic that they immediately pulled the fans into their set. This was one that definitely surprised us. The band hits hard on their original songs, but also throws in the mix “The Trooper” (Iron Maiden) and “Hit Me” (Britney Spears), in which they put their own metalcore twist on these songs that puts them in a whole different, amazing style. This is definitely a must-see band live.
“Brutal” metalcore at its best, Renesans brings an epic beat down to the stage every time they perform. Tonight, the band hit the stage swinging with their opening number, “Grown Cold”, and fans immediately went into a frenzy. Lead Singer David Benites (also vocal coach for Extreme Vocal Institute) commanded the stage with his vocal range, getting the crowd in a mosh pit mood. David has some of the most impressive vocal change-ups we have seen live, ranging from some beautiful cleans to some very “demonic” lows and screams. Renesans has been full steam ahead since their album was released (Born from the End) last March. Each member of this band brings something to the table that makes this band a new force to be reckoned with. Tonight’s set had the WC Social Club moshing the entire time. The band destroyed the crowd with a brutal 10-song set list that left the fans screaming for more. Keep an eye out for this band live, so you can come out and throw down with this band. Notable songs in this set were “Witch Hunt”, “Labor of Hate”, and a new song, “Split Brow.”
Fans were getting anxious and were ready to rock out with tonight’s headliner. So. Here. We. Go…. Escape the Fate is a band we are familiar with; they’re one of those we choose for a road trip because they have nothing but good songs to jam to for a couple of hours. Let me tell you, they did not disappoint and brought the energy tonight. The crowd was pumped and ready to give security some work to do. Every person was singing their hearts out along with lead singer Craig Mabbitt through the entire 15-song setlist, just giving it their all. We saw our first crowd surfers of the night right off the bat, and it was a steady flow of bodies throughout the whole set. Escape the Fate hit us hard with some old school early (Craig Mabbit) songs, and then the newer stuff was just as hard. The exhausted fans were still wanting more after all of this. Escape the Fate may have been in a small club show tonight, but to everyone there, it felt like a huge arena show. The Energy put out by this band was fantastic tonight. Notable songs in this set were “Gorgeous Nightmare”, “The Flood”, “Live Fast, Die Beautiful”, “This War is Ours”, and “One for the Money.”
For me, as a photographer, the WC is one of my home venues, which gives me some of the most up close and personal shots I get to experience. Tonight’s bands went all out. I’ve worked with both Soulkiller and Renesmee on multiple occasions since their start, and would have to say both bands have made great strides and have gained a massive following over the last year. Nini was a huge surprise and would love to see this band again live. Escape the Fate…. the band has been rocking crowds for a long time, and tonight was no exception. Whether it’s a huge festival show for these guys or a small venue, they always give 100% back to the crowd. Well, sorry to say it’s time for us to bounce out of here…we’ll see ya all on the next one.
