When this tour was announced it was an absolute no brainer that this was a must go. I mean, Poison The Well, Converge, The Armed and The Barbarians Of California all on one tour! Yes please!

On a quite perfect Wednesday spring night, Poison The Well, Converge and more rolled into the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles, CA, and made sure to let everyone in the downtown area know they were in town.

As the clock hit 7:00 pm, the lights went down and The Barbarians Of California took the stage and immediately went into their blend of hardcore and punk. Their infectious energy radiated through the audience for the next thirty minutes. There is an absolute fun aspect to this band that really helps to ignite the crowd and spirit of the night.

Next up was The Armed. If you haven’t had the opportunity to check out this band live, you are truly missing out. The Armed, like the Barbarians, are a fun band that demands your attention. For the next thirty minutes, The Armed blazed through their set with reckless precision that left you wanting more. I’ve had the pleasure of seen them a few times now and this might have been the most exciting show I’ve seen of theirs.

Converge! What else can be said about this band that hasn’t been said before. This band is legendary for a reason. For the next hour, Converge, delivered a set that was as brutal and beautiful as it was pummeling and destructive. Riding high off their new album, Love Is Not Enough and their upcoming other new album, Hum Of Hurt, there was no stopping Jacob, Kurt, Nate and Ben on stage. Ripping through new songs like the title track, “Bad Faith,” “To Feel Something” as well as “Hum Of Heart” and “Death In Bloom,” these new songs have fast become live fan favorites as well as future set staples. The classic songs like “Dark Horse,” “Eagles Become Vultures,” “Concubine” and “Conduit” sounded even more ferocious with age. This set and tour shows why Converge are the blueprint for so many hardcore/metal bands today.

When it was time for Poison The Well, the energy in the Belasco shifted from a very intense energy into a very welcome burst of explosive fire as “Botchla” opened their set. From that point it was game on. The band is on tour now promoting their fantastic comeback album, Peace In Place. The new songs like “Thoroughbreds,” “Everything Hurts,” and “Wax Mask” sounded gargantuan and very urgent, especially “Everything Hurts.” The choice classics played like “Ghostchant,” “Slice Paper Wrists,” “For A Bandaged Iris,” “Crystal Lake” sounded violent and crisp. The band themselves had a sense of joy while playing. Watching Chris, Ryan, Jeffery, Vadim and Noah on stage was inspiring to see as they, like Converge, created a blueprint within hardcore.

This tour was one of those that if you didn’t go to, you missed out. This was one of those lineups that showcased the old school and new school in the best way possible. Each band delivered the goods the best way they can. Having this show in the middle of the week was also a welcome break to all of life’s craziness. We need more events like this to help us all!

What a night!

Review/Photos By: Brian Lacy

The Armed Setlist:

1. All Futures
2. Everything’s Glitter
3. Grace Obscure
4. I Steal What I Want
5. Night City Aliens
6. Fortune’s Daughter
7. Liar
8. Big Shell

Converge Setlist:

1. Love Is Not Enough
2. Bad Faith
3. Eagles Become Vultures 
4. Dark Horses
5. Under Duress
6. Conduit
7. Hum Of Hurt
8. Amon Amok
9. Distract And Divide
10. To Feel Something 
11. Doom In Bloom
12. The Broken Vow
13. We Were Never The Same
14. I Can Tell You About Pain
15. Concubine 

Poison The Well Setlist:

1. Botchla
2. Zombies Are Good For Your Health
3. Slice Paper Wrists
4. Thoroughbreds
5. A Wish For Things That Work
6. For A Bandaged Iris
7. Everything Hurts
8. 12/23/93
9. Letter Thing
10. Ghostchant
11. Parks And What You Meant To Me
12. Crystal Lake
13. Artist’s Rendering Of Me
14. Loved Ones (Excerpts From Speeches Of How Great You Were, And Will Never Be Again)
15. Nerdy

CONVERGE PHOTOS:

Poison The Well Photos: