Probably the hottest tour this Spring, the American Nightmare Tour is in full swing—with British post-metalcore band Bring Me The Horizon at the helm, and post-hardcore heavyweight Underoath and opener Beartooth in supporting roles. We caught up with it on the eighth night of the tour as it came to Tsongas Center in college town Lowell, MA to play before a packed arena with 5,000+ in attendance.
Due to a ticket scanner issue, many fans were still stuck out in line as Beartooth came on to play a short seven-song set. Despite frontman Caleb Shomo being beset with technical issues related to his in-ear monitors throughout their set, the band put on a great performance and had kids crowd-surfing before the first song had even ended.
By the time Underoath were up, the venue had filled in. The band was greeted by a thunderous response from the audience as they launched into “Everyone Looks So Good From Here” off of their classic album Define the Great Line. In fact, almost the entirety of their set on this tour is drawn from their two most popular albums—2006’s Define the Great Line and 2004’s They’re Only Chasing Safety. As someone who never had the chance to catch Underoath’s before their hiatus or during their reunion tour, it was a real treat finally getting to see them live (total nostalgia)! Their set would go on to include fan-favorite tracks “In Regards to Myself,” “A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White,” “Reinventing Your Exit,” and “Writing on the Walls.”
Finally, it was time for Bring Me The Horizon to take the stage—the band emerged to the opening notes of “Happy Song” and dove straight into their set with a blast from the four confetti canons placed along the front of the stage. Their production on this run is rather unreal, with a giant backlit LED screen/platform displaying graphics throughout their set, multiple confetti blasts, and CO2 cannons. Much of the songs covered on this tour are of the newer variety. We were treated to the eight songs from their most recent record That’s the Spirit and six tracks—including “Shadow Moses,” “Antivist,” and “The House of Wolves”—from 2013’s Sempiternal. For fans of their older material, the band is also including their classic “Chelsea Smile.” All in all, their set was fantastic—frontman Oli Sykes sounded the best I’ve ever heard him, even on the one older song. You can catch the American Nightmare Tour through April 8th. This is likely the last tour they’ll have in the states this year and maybe for a bit longer as the band is slated to go record their next album afterwards, so it’s definitely worth getting out to see them if you can!
Remaining Dates on the American Nightmare Tour
3/20 New York, NY @ Terminal 5
3/22 Philadelphia, PA @ The Liacouras Center
3/24 Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
3/27 St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
3/28 Kansas City, MO @ Arvest Bank Theatre
3/29 Broomfield, CO @ 1STBANK Center
4/01 Seattle, WA @ Wamu Theater
4/03 San Francisco, CA @ Warfield Theatre
4/06 Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Expo Hall
4/07 Phoenix, AZ @ Comerica Theatre
4/08 Las Vegas, NV @ The Joint
