Alpha Wolf | Buffalo

Alpha Wolf brought the US leg of their “Let It Rip” tour to Town Ballroom last Friday, May 15th, delivering a night filled with relentless intensity and an impressive lineup of some of the best metalcore in today’s scene.

Resolve kicked off the night right with their mix of heavy breakdowns and melodic hooks. With seamless harsh to clean vocals from vocalist Anthony Diliberto, this France-based band immediately captivated the room. Playing songs exclusively from their latest album, Human (Extended Cut), Resolve showed the crowd exactly what their current sound is. By the end of their set, they undoubtedly walked away with many new fans, myself included, and I cannot wait to see what they do next.

A small but enjoyable detail of the night was how you could tell that the tour package likely chose their own between-set playlist. Not only did this keep the energy flowing from set-to-set, but it also gave some insight into the bands themselves. From Edith Piaf’s “Non, je ne regrette rien” leading into Resolve, to Sleep Token’s “Chokehold” seamlessly transitioning into Mugshot’s opening track, and the mix of country, rap, and metal before Gideon hit the stage, these transitions created a wonderful polyjamorous blended soundtrack for the evening.

Next up was Mugshot. Brutal and heavy all the way through, this California group owned the stage for their whole 25 minutes. Opening with “Die in Fear” from their latest album All The Devils Are Here and never letting the intensity dip, their set was a nonstop barrage of punishing breakdowns, frantic energy, and cathartic release, keeping the pit in constant motion with waves of moshing and two-stepping from start to finish.

By the time Gideon took the stage, the crowd was fully amped up. Everyone went wild as vocalist Daniel McWhorter took the stage, donning his signature Stetson, effortlessly commanding attention as the band launched into one of their newest singles, “Wrong One.” Gideon’s raw and aggressive hardcore brought an intense atmosphere to the room, which was only amplified when they called for crowd surfers a few songs in. From the opening moments through the closing notes of “No Love/No One,” Gideon set the room ablaze with an unrelenting barrage of mosh-ready riffs that left the floor in complete disarray while perfectly setting the stage for the headliner.

After a night of nonstop energy from every band on the lineup, Alpha Wolf closed things out with the most explosive set of the evening, both sonically massive and visually striking. The production alone was a standout, driven by pulsing lights, an enormous boombox looming behind the band, and their large banner with a graffiti-style logo. Guitarist Sabian Lynch immediately ignited the room as the first member to storm the stage, sending the packed Buffalo crowd into a frenzy before the rest of the band joined him for a crushing opening run of tracks.

Opening with “Sub-Zero,” Alpha Wolf wasted no time throwing the venue into chaos before tearing through fan favorites, including “Sucks 2 Suck,” and “Pretty Boy.” The band maintained an overwhelming level of intensity throughout the entire set, keeping the pit in near-constant motion. Every breakdown felt heavier live, amplified by the band’s chaotic stage presence and the crowd’s nonstop energy.

One of the night’s highlights came during “60cm of Steel,” one of my personal favorite Alpha Wolf tracks and originally a collaboration with Holding Absence. Live, the clean vocal sections were handled by bassist John Arnold, whose delivery captured the emotional contrast of the song perfectly while still fitting seamlessly into the band’s crushing sound.

Another memorable moment came during “Bleed 4 You,” when Alpha Wolf’s photographer, Olivia, joined the band onstage, adding an extra layer of excitement and personality to an already unforgettable set. From there, the band launched directly into “Bring Back the Noise” before closing the night with the unmistakable opening of “Akudama,” sending the packed Town Ballroom crowd into one final eruption of chaos.

Each band brought something distinct to the lineup, but together they created one of the strongest heavy tours currently making its way across the US.This is a show you do not want to miss. Check out the remaining dates here!

Words and photos by Kayla Kreller

Motionless In White | Los Angeles

It’s the end of September, and it’s never too early to go full Halloween mode. Fans gather up at the barrier wearing their favorite blacks with handwritten signs on hand, waiting eagerly for metalcore bands to take over on this cool night. The show takes place at L.A.’s newest open air venue, The Torch/Los Angeles Coliseum, a historic landmark famously known for its Olympic games.

Alpha Wolf started the show with high intense energy that makes you wanna two-step to their breakdowns. The crowd went wild when their newest member, Sabian Lynch, climbed up the metal stage truss and trying to encourage the guitarist to stage dive.

Next up is one of my favorite metal bands, After the Burial, coming in with some heavy riffs, double drum kicks, and death growls that inspired concert goers to headbang and circle pit to their progressive sound. They played their newest song ‘Death keeps us from Living’, and ended with a popular favorite “Behold the Crown.”

Another great band I love, Knocked Loose, kept the adrenaline going with one of their best songs “God Knows.” Unfortunately, my time in the photo pit was cut short when someone in the crowd decided to throw a tall can of beer that landed on top of my head while I was shooting. Funny, I've shot many of their shows without barriers and not once did I ever get hit badly that caused bleeding. I expect this sort of thing to happen from crowd surfers and stage divers — NOT from a beer can, that’s just tacky.

Thankfully there was a medical staff on location that provided all the help I needed, and was able to return just in time for the final act.

Headliners Motionless In White took the stage and were greeted to monstrous applause and shrilling screams from the audience that can be heard for miles. Their massive theatrical production was filled with spectacular lighting design veiled with sparks, flames and snow machines — this is no ordinary concert. The band were accompanied by a fabulous girl gang group The Cherry Bombs in full creepy costumes, props, and choreographed routines.

Vocalist Loochie Keogh of Alpha Wolf joins the fun on “Immaculate Misconception,” a song favorite for the old school heads who've been around the band’s journey since the Warped Tour days. Later on in the show Bryan Garris of Knocked Loose also shares his wicked screams alongside with Chris on their latest collaboration “Slaughterhouse,” a middle finger anthem against those who abuse God’s name for profit and hate.

The best song from their setlist that night happens to be their least heaviest, yet you can’t help but groove to this 80’s inspired industrial new wave sound “Werewolf,” a single from their newest album Scoring the End of the World — this tune is a homage to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”

It is almost impossible not to be drawn to frontman Chris Motionless, underneath his dark slytherin aesthetics lies a soulful voice with eerie undertones. It was amazing to watch him be able to go from screaming “blegh” growls to vocal cleans effortlessly. Showing gratitude, he took the time to talk about how the band’s fan base grew massively over the years, and thanked everyone for their undying support. His kindness showed that the Motionless In White shows will always be a safe space for them.

On a large projector screen they played a wacky commercial ad featuring zombie, as well as hilarious interactions between him and lead singer Chris on a FaceTime call, trying to convince zombie to come back on tour. With his new found acting career and crazy schedule, zombie tells Chris he’ll think about it.

This was my first time seeing Motionless In White, and they definitely exceeded my expectations. It was so much fun watching fans be captivated by the band’s music, losing their minds, and chanting every word with their chest out. Practically everyone was surfing through the crowd one right after the other, there was no slowing down for them. The band continued to play classic bangers like “Devil’s Night,” “Reincarnate,” and closed out the show with “The End of the World.”

Words and photos by Adriana Torres

ERRA | Vancouver

ERRA (with support from Alpha Wolf, Thornhill, and Invent Animate) performing at Rickshaw Theatre in Vancouver, BC on July 30, 2022. All photos taken by Emma-Jane Dotchuk.