Pierce The Veil and Sleeping With Sirens World Tour
To many, the mere mention of a “Pierce The Veil and Sleeping With Sirens dual headline world tour” would provoke sniggering, judgement, and homophobic slurs. Regardless of this however, both bands, along with support Issues, proved at their sold-out LCR show why it is that the pair are conquering the world and leading the way in a rock revolution.
Georgian-born Issues were the first to take the stage, bringing their unique blend of metalcore, hip-hop, and R&B to the table. Since last playing in Norwich with Crown The Empire in 2013, Issues have quickly been tagged as one of the fastest rising bands on the scene. Immediately coming in with Life Of A Nine, the band continued to plough through a setlist consisting entirely of tracks from last year’s self-titled debut. Whilst a nod back to 2012’s Black Diamonds EP wouldn’t have gone amiss, the band absolutely destroyed the set, with Tyler and Michael’s vocals perfectly complementing each other throughout, and the rest of the band only aiding this. Even with Scout’s announcement earlier in the year that he would not be touring with the band, the essence of the band was clear throughout an incredible set which only left the audience wanting more.
Regardless of the opinions people hold on both Sleeping With Sirens and their controversial frontman Kellin Quinn, they are a band that know how to entertain an audience. Entering in with Kick Me, the first track off of their recent release Madness, the crowd immediately come alive as Quinn’s vocals ring throughout the venue. The band continued through songs taken mostly from this, although nods to both Lets Cheers To This and Feel are given across the set. The audience clearly loved this, and already seemed to be able to sing along to every song from the new album, however it seemed clear that more of their big hits from Lets Cheers To This were wanted. Kellin’s vocals, feminine as many may label them, were on point throughout the entire set, and the rest of the band only complimented this. The personal highlight of the set came from a rendition of the band’s cover of Iris – Goo Goo Dolls, an unexpected slower moment which was surprisingly heart-warming in a set consisting of otherwise fast songs, and which the entire audience (even those too young to have any idea who Goo Goo Dolls were) seemed to greatly appreciate. Coming to a natural finish with If You Can’t Hang, even the older members of the audience stood by the bar had a sing and a dance, and everyone in the room seemed highly satisfied with the set they had just seen. Say what you want about Sleeping With Sirens, they know how to put on a show.
Finally, Pierce The Veil took the stage. Coming on to album opener May These Noises… and then straight into Hell Above, the audience started a riot. Fists were flying, fans were jumping, and the loudest screaming came not from frontman Vic Fuentes, but instead from the hoard of pre-teens stood in the crowd in front of him. Playing through a set mostly consisting of 2012 release Collide With The Sky, Pierce The Veil show themselves to be a failsafe band, in that they will never not provide an audience with a fantastic show. Playing through a set, both Vic and Tony have a lot of fun with the audience, and the delighted screams that they continually receive back prove how successful this is, even making a girl cry when bringing her on stage. Since their last appearance in Norwich at The Waterfront in 2013, the fan-base seems to have increased massively, and deservedly so. With such a rapidly growing UK rock and metal scene, it seems to be becoming increasingly harder for new American bands to break through here in the UK. Despite this, Pierce The Veil have managed to go from unknown to huge in the past few years without so much as releasing a new album. This serves as a testament not only to their talent and perseverance as a band, but to the possibility of breaking into an international market. Bringing the night to a close by bringing Kellin back out for the moment everyone here was waiting for, a show-stopping rendition of King For A Day throughout which everyone in the place was screaming the lyrics, all three bands tonight prove not only that they all rightfully deserve their place at the helm of an emerging US rock revolution, but that it is still possible for such bands to make such huge waves on this side of the pond.
Photo: Kayleigh Francis
Review: Liam Forkes
