After skipping 2017, Summerblast festival returned this year, also supporting a good cause; saving the ExHaus, whose grounds have been hosting the festival for a long time and also serve as a concert space, youth center and daycare center. Featuring some of the hottest names in the contemporary hardcore/metalcore scene, Summerblast was one of the best events this festival season had to offer.
A Night In Texas kicked off the day in the noisiest -and best- way possible. Their sound was good and despite the early slot, they had a very decent attendance and an impressive stage presence. Up next was Our Hollow Our Home. Musically they've never been my cup of tea but after I got warmed up to them, I grew amused of the show. Their generic metalcore was full of harmonious clean vocals, earning geater participation as time went on.
Following in the British tradition, Polar got on stage under cheers from the crowd and delivered an exquisite show. "Deus Ex Machine" found Comeback Kid vocalist Andrew Neufeld joining Polar on stage to sing his part, while the band's vocalist was more then eager to spend a couple of songs on the barricade, sharing his mic with the fans. It's safe to say that the band killed it once more -and a little bird may or may not have told us that the new album is coming early next year. Moving on.
It was too early for Casey's emotionally charged hardcore but it didn't stop the band from giving all they got, with vocalist Tom Weaver joking that "[they] were scheduled to play Summerblast last time and then [he] almost died". Got to love a person with a good sense of black humor.
I didn't really stick around for Malevolence, as I've never really been a fan of their sound, but the kids who did had a great time, moshing and climbing on top of each other. Counterparts, on the other hand was intense, to say the least. Kicking off with "Bouquet" and "Stranger", the band had their fans crowdsurfing from the first notes. The band seemed to be in a good mood, being very active on stage. However, it wasn't until the last part of "The Disconnect" when things got really, really serious, and a great deal of kids screaming at the top of their lungs along to the lyrics. Still the show wasn't over yet. The band had a special surprise planned, as Loren and Chase of Living With Lions (and Comeback Kid) joined Brendan Murphy, who moved to bass, and Blake Hardman to play The Dirty Boys' "Winners Shoes".
The crowd had thoroughly warmed up at that point and was ready for the Deez Nuts party. The kids were really into the music, while the band performed one fo the best shows I've seen them play, intitiating constant crowdsurfing -JJ Peters even climbed on the baricade, passing along his mic during one of the countless singalongs. Northlane is a truly captivating band and even in open air spaces, they can create a feeling of intimacy. It was very interesting to see them seamlessly mixing the very new material ("Vultures") with the very old such as "Masquerade" (who would've thought! I was blown away), "Worldeater" and "Dispossession", and the hit songs off of "Mesmer" ("Colourwave", "Intuition", "Citizen"). Very well done, lads, very well done.
Now, it's not a good show if you don't start a riot and that's exactly what Comeback Kid did. Andrew Neufeld, who at that time had done guest vocals in almost every band that played before them, took advantage of the cooperative security and the small barricade to jump up there early into the set. Nothing new here, the Canadians were flawless as always (and yes, I might be a little biased), with everything that entails; pit hits, jumps, crowdsurfing, singalongs. The final track, "Wake The Dead", found Polar's Woody and Counterparts' Blake Hardman on stage, singing with the band (also checking it off their bucket list).
Hardcore legends Sick Of It All headlined the festival. Their youthful energy is unparalleled, that's for sure. Although they lost some of the audience, they managed to keep up with the mayhem CBK left behind, their revolutionary tunes resounding in the Exhaus, motivating you to participate. Excellent band, excellent show.
The only sad point of the night was the end of Comeback Kid's show when, towards the closing of "Wake The Dead", a security guy dragged a crowdsurfer and threw him on the ground not letting go, until his peers pushed him off. The poor guy was helped to get back on his feet, possibly having suffered head trauma after hitting the stage. Truly shame for the bouncer who abused his power, especially when their whole crew had been on point all night.
Overall, Summerblast was a blast (still not tired of this pun) and Tier was really beautiful. I look forward to returning next year.
All pictures courtesy of Dearohwell photography
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A Night In Texas kicked off the day in the noisiest -and best- way possible. Their sound was good and despite the early slot, they had a very decent attendance and an impressive stage presence. Up next was Our Hollow Our Home. Musically they've never been my cup of tea but after I got warmed up to them, I grew amused of the show. Their generic metalcore was full of harmonious clean vocals, earning geater participation as time went on.
Following in the British tradition, Polar got on stage under cheers from the crowd and delivered an exquisite show. "Deus Ex Machine" found Comeback Kid vocalist Andrew Neufeld joining Polar on stage to sing his part, while the band's vocalist was more then eager to spend a couple of songs on the barricade, sharing his mic with the fans. It's safe to say that the band killed it once more -and a little bird may or may not have told us that the new album is coming early next year. Moving on.
It was too early for Casey's emotionally charged hardcore but it didn't stop the band from giving all they got, with vocalist Tom Weaver joking that "[they] were scheduled to play Summerblast last time and then [he] almost died". Got to love a person with a good sense of black humor.
I didn't really stick around for Malevolence, as I've never really been a fan of their sound, but the kids who did had a great time, moshing and climbing on top of each other. Counterparts, on the other hand was intense, to say the least. Kicking off with "Bouquet" and "Stranger", the band had their fans crowdsurfing from the first notes. The band seemed to be in a good mood, being very active on stage. However, it wasn't until the last part of "The Disconnect" when things got really, really serious, and a great deal of kids screaming at the top of their lungs along to the lyrics. Still the show wasn't over yet. The band had a special surprise planned, as Loren and Chase of Living With Lions (and Comeback Kid) joined Brendan Murphy, who moved to bass, and Blake Hardman to play The Dirty Boys' "Winners Shoes".
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Now, it's not a good show if you don't start a riot and that's exactly what Comeback Kid did. Andrew Neufeld, who at that time had done guest vocals in almost every band that played before them, took advantage of the cooperative security and the small barricade to jump up there early into the set. Nothing new here, the Canadians were flawless as always (and yes, I might be a little biased), with everything that entails; pit hits, jumps, crowdsurfing, singalongs. The final track, "Wake The Dead", found Polar's Woody and Counterparts' Blake Hardman on stage, singing with the band (also checking it off their bucket list).
Hardcore legends Sick Of It All headlined the festival. Their youthful energy is unparalleled, that's for sure. Although they lost some of the audience, they managed to keep up with the mayhem CBK left behind, their revolutionary tunes resounding in the Exhaus, motivating you to participate. Excellent band, excellent show.
The only sad point of the night was the end of Comeback Kid's show when, towards the closing of "Wake The Dead", a security guy dragged a crowdsurfer and threw him on the ground not letting go, until his peers pushed him off. The poor guy was helped to get back on his feet, possibly having suffered head trauma after hitting the stage. Truly shame for the bouncer who abused his power, especially when their whole crew had been on point all night.
Overall, Summerblast was a blast (still not tired of this pun) and Tier was really beautiful. I look forward to returning next year.
All pictures courtesy of Dearohwell photography
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