When this tour was announced back in November, I recall thinking to myself "nope, not going". Then my friends told me they'd be going to the show in Salonica and I started considering tagging along just for the advenTOUR. Besides, I hadn't been in the wild north in 10 years. Rumor had it that Parkway Drive would also bring their full stage production and that's where things got interesting -or so we thought . At the show on Saturday, it was suggested on multiple occasions that I should attend the one in my hometown as well. And yes, I'm definitely prone to bad influences. If there is one word to describe this weekend, it has to be "ouch!".
I last saw Darkest Hour back in 2011 in a small but sweaty club show. The band has grown since, and turned out be the perfect warmup for the evening. They only had 30' to play so the setlist was inevitably short but still to the point. But believe me, time wasn't an issue for these guys. They stormed on stage, making sure they had everyone's full and undivided attention with their highly energetic performance (8).
The show in Athens was no different, only the guitars were slightly muffled in the beginning. The kids were more into it (Darkest Hour does have a fanbase in Athens and the feeling is reciprocal), singing along and warming up in small pits.
Stick To Your Guns is one of my favorite live bands. Over the course of the years I've seen them grow from small clubs to bigger venues to playing in front of over 10.000 kids on a sold out Impericon festival in Leipzig (just imagine all these people screaming in unity "we don't need them!". Got goosebumps yet? I know I did). These guys never disappoint. The opening track "Against Them All" found the entire band jumping around and stomping. A restless Jesse Barnett invited the kids to participate more and sing along. Their sound was crystal clear, which only added to their performance. The setlist was once more based on "Diamond"; with only two tracks off of the latest EP and "Amber" closing the show. (8)
Again, Athens was not much different. More kids were singing along, crowdsurfing and sweating (literally) in anticipation for PWD.
I should be very forward with something. I stopped following Parkway Drive two albums ago, as I didn't really fancy their new musical direction (and seeing them on "Tour Of The Year" only solidified this opinion). However, there's no denying that these guys are incredible performers who know exactly how to get a crowd pumped and give it what it wants. Their stage production was on point; excellent lightshow, amazing sound -and confetti instead of pyros. Well, that one was a bummer. Chants at the intro of "Wild Eyes" were definitely setting the mood for what was to follow. Winston McCall's vibrant smile always radiates a contagious positive energy. Kids across the room were singing at the top of their lungs, moshing and crowdsurfing from the very beginning -we also spotted the fitting presence of someone in a shark onesie. The setlist artfully intertwined old and newer material, although it was slightly shorter than usual (personally, I didn't mind not hearing the cover). After a good 60', "Swing", with the anticipated drum solo finished the main performance. The band returned on stage for the encore with "Crushed" and "Bottom Feeder", which found everyone in the venue bouncing until the last note. (7.5)
As mentioned earlier, I wasn't planning to go to either show and I'm not exactly a fan of PWD. People who are indeed fans will tell you it was an "insane!" performance, or "the best show of [their] lives"; quite rightly if you ask me. I will tell you that, even though I had more fun at the show in Athens, both performances where a bit overwhelming when someone is just watching and not participating. There was an excess that one could interpret as a show-off. Maybe that's the case, but Parkway Drive is a well-oiled machine that has been around long enough and which doesn't have anything to prove. Perhaps my friend is right and hardcore music was never meant to be played in big stages for/with big crowds.
Our travelling crew had a good time regardless, and at the end of the day, that's what really counts.
Scroll down for photos from both shows.
Pictures and review by Dearohwell Photography
I last saw Darkest Hour back in 2011 in a small but sweaty club show. The band has grown since, and turned out be the perfect warmup for the evening. They only had 30' to play so the setlist was inevitably short but still to the point. But believe me, time wasn't an issue for these guys. They stormed on stage, making sure they had everyone's full and undivided attention with their highly energetic performance (8).
The show in Athens was no different, only the guitars were slightly muffled in the beginning. The kids were more into it (Darkest Hour does have a fanbase in Athens and the feeling is reciprocal), singing along and warming up in small pits.
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| Darkest Hour (Salonica) |
Again, Athens was not much different. More kids were singing along, crowdsurfing and sweating (literally) in anticipation for PWD.
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| Stick To Your Guns (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
As mentioned earlier, I wasn't planning to go to either show and I'm not exactly a fan of PWD. People who are indeed fans will tell you it was an "insane!" performance, or "the best show of [their] lives"; quite rightly if you ask me. I will tell you that, even though I had more fun at the show in Athens, both performances where a bit overwhelming when someone is just watching and not participating. There was an excess that one could interpret as a show-off. Maybe that's the case, but Parkway Drive is a well-oiled machine that has been around long enough and which doesn't have anything to prove. Perhaps my friend is right and hardcore music was never meant to be played in big stages for/with big crowds.
Our travelling crew had a good time regardless, and at the end of the day, that's what really counts.
Scroll down for photos from both shows.
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| Darkest Hour (Salonica) |
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| Darkest Hour (Salonica) |
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| Darkest Hour (Salonica) |
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| Darkest Hour (Salonica) |
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| Darkest Hour (Salonica) |
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| Darkest Hour (Athens) |
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| Darkest Hour (Athens) |
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| Darkest Hour (Athens) |
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| Darkest Hour (Athens) |
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| Darkest Hour (Athens) |
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| Darkest Hour (Athens) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Salonica) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Salonica) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Salonica) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Salonica) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Salonica) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Athens) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Athens) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Athens) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Athens) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Athens) |
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| Stick To Your Guns (Athens) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Salonica) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
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| Parkway Drive (Athens) |
Pictures and review by Dearohwell Photography
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