LIVE REVIEW: Wage War @ O2 Institute, Birmingham
The ladies and gents (but mostly gents) that file into Digbeth’s mid-sized gig venue tonight are here for one thing and one thing only: metal. Metalcore to be precise, as tonight sees two titans of the genre, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA and WAGE WAR, take to the stage to an adoring Monday-night audience.
First up though are Danish metallers SIAMESE. The Copenhagen four-piece waste no time, thrashing out a series of epic anthems complete with an on-stage violinist. The band have incredible stage presence and are clearly stoked to be there, but it doesn’t change the fact that their tunes are generic pap. Think of a more sincere ABANDON ALL SHIPS. Thankfully, their single based around an interpolation of GWEN STEFANI’s Hollaback Girl is left off the setlist.
Rating: 7/10
Thanks to the sheer energy of tonight’s openers, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA don’t have to do much to get the crowd moshing. But, being THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA, they go off anyway. It speaks to how elegantly the band’s sound has matured that they are able to play a setlist that’s so short, which still spans albums from throughout their career and most importantly, rocks hard.
Despite having been in the game for well over a decade, dual frontmen Mike Hranica and Jeremy DePoyster still perform like someone has lit a fire under them, leading sing-alongs on anthems like Chemical and ushering in crushing breakdowns on Outnumbered. Danger: Wildman is still the highlight of the set, pulling in the entire crowd for the defiant opening scream of “I KNOW A GHOST!” THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA headline shows, please!
Rating: 9/10
While few would accuse WAGE WAR of pushing the envelope of the metalcore genre, their appeal as they stride onstage to the ten-tonne banger Relapse is hard to deny. Riding high off the momentum of their latest record Manic, WAGE WAR are a screaming, moshing, leaping carnival of chaos.
Without wasting a second on formalities, the Floridian quintet rip through the opening tracks of their 2021 record, before diving into the djenty riffs of Low. Don’t Let Me Fade Away and Gravity from 2017’s Deadweight get the OG fans jumping before High Horse whips the pit into a frenzy. The highlight of the set is the synth-tinged title track, Manic. The rhythmic banger perfectly demonstrates WAGE WAR’s strengths, building anticipation with its grungey verses before kicking into a furious breakdown-cum-chorus, culminating in the defiant refrain of “try to calm myself down but I feel the panic/Is it all up in my head/Manic!”
The only criticism that can be levied at tonight’s headliners is the repetitive nature of their catalogue. After on 45 minutes, their repertoire already feels exhausted as fatigue begins to set in. Luckily, Circle The Drain gets the pit fired up more than ever with its furious riffs bringing the set to a close. The encore of Stitch sees a circle pit ignite, providing the perfect closer for this particularly riffy night of heavy rock music.
Rating: 8/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Birmingham from Max Adams Photography here:
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