GIDEON, Left to Suffer, With Blood Comes Cleansing, Fox Lake, and NO CURE played the final show of the "MORE POWER MORE PAIN" tour in Nashville, Tennessee at Eastside Bowl on March 16, 2024
GIDEON brought together a handful of phenomenal bands from all over the U.S. for one explosive tour!
NO CURE, the first band on the roster, is near and dear to me. I first saw them in 2021 at a little venue called Insanity Skatepark in a tiny party room. I might have gotten a little emotional as they walked on stage. I had the chance to talk with Blaythe, the vocalist of the band. He remembered the exact outfit and the roster of bands that NO CURE played with that night. He attributed his mind like a steel trap to being drug-free!
Hailing from Birmingham, Alabama, these folks embody straightedge hardcore. The band has a large following in Alabama and Tennessee.
NO CURE's song matter may be horrifically violent (Justified, though, looking at "Slumped in the House of God".) These rockers are upbeat and amazing to watch shred till their fingers fall off.
The band released their newest album "The Commitment to Permanence" in November 2023. Included on this album was the band's anthem and best song live "No Cure Straight Edge Die Slow F@$* You". The crowd chants the title during the chorus of the song.
You will feel the energy, rage, and sound of NO CURE fans no matter the size of the venue!
FIND NO CURE HERE
Fox Lake was next to take the stage. This hardcore hip-hop group brings the scorching heat from Denver, Colorado.
Fox Lake scratches an itch that I didn't know I had! Fox Lake is a great mix of hardcore, nu-metal, and their unique spin. Nathan Johnson, vocalist, can swap between rap and gruff vocals in the blink of an eye.
"Tunnel Vision" was my favorite of the songs performed. I found myself humming it on the way home from the show. A stand-out track to say the least. The band is very entertaining to watch perform, the entire band bounced around during songs. You can tell they love what they do, and that is reflected in how hype the audience gets.
With Blood Comes Cleansing came as a complete surprise to me. I had no idea they were on the roster for the last few dates of the tour. WBCC is a Christian deathcore band from Albany, Georgia. The band was active from 2005-2010 before a 12-year hiatus.
WBCC is a band that is so loud, you feel their music in your bones. I stepped out for a moment to get some fresh air and could still feel the music pulsating through my bloodstream. Their sound is explosive and grueling.
Saying that the band is intense is an understatement. Other deathcore bands typically have lyrics about satan and worshipping the devil but WBCC is very forward about their dedication to Christ and being Christian.
Vocalist Robert Manzone delivers absolutely brutal vocals. Their drummer Zach Lewis is also insane. Even imagining playing those blast beats makes my feet hurt!
I'm glad that this band was brought back from hiatus. I can always stand behind a band that is forward with their motivators and inspiration. Their passion for their music and salvation is something to be beheld.
Left to Suffer is an Atlanta, Georgia hardcore band formed in 2019. They released their first album in 2020 titled "A Year of Suffering". When I say they go hard, I MEAN they go hard, both the band and the audience. I've never seen an entire venue rage as hard as the Eastside Bowl did.
Left to Suffer is a band that I was warned about by some friends of mine. I understand why I was given a warning. As soon as the band walked out, crowd surfers were flying up toward the photo pit. It was a fun challenge to photograph the band while dodging people who were two times bigger than me! I learned some good spatial awareness that night. I think I counted about fifteen different people crowd surfing during the first three songs.
Taylor seems to affect crowds. He brings out the rage and anger of every person in most venues the band plays. With songs like "Loathe" and "Consistent Suffering" the breakdowns are brutal and the beatdowns, even more so.
I'm gonna use this as an excuse to shout out Eastside Bowl's security. They were working double time during this show. Thanks for keeping people safe and also putting up with the rowdiness.
As previously mentioned, the band's crowd control is out of this world. They know how to get people pissed and swinging at each other in the pit. If you need to rage, find a local Left to Suffer show!
FIND LEFT TO SUFFER HERE
Gideon is an American metalcore band hailing from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The band was formed in 2008 and consists of vocalist Daniel McWhorter, guitarist Tyler Riley, bassist Travis Beal, and drummer Jake Smelley. Growing up, I was pretty engrained in the hardcore scene in Huntsville, AL but have somehow never had the pleasure of crossing paths with this group.
Gideon’s image is a little confusing to anyone who's a Nashville native. I usually attempt to
avoid men in cowboy hats as they are usually tailed by swarms of bachelors bar hopping.
Gideon is nothing of the sort thankfully.
Gideon erupted onto the stage with their song “BITE DOWN” from their album "Out of Control" released in 2019. Their high-energy performance had the crowd completely captivated from start to finish. Many in the crowd donned cowboy hats similar to McWhorter's iconic hat.
The band fed off of the audience's bats**t insane energy. One dude tried to jump onto the stage but was promptly stopped by security. McWhorter, much like Taylor of Left to Suffer, has an insane amount of crowd control and really knows how to get an audience hype.
The second to last song of the set, "Cursed" was amplified because Blaythe of NO CURE, Austins Evans, and Blake Hardeman also joined in. The last song, "No Love/ No One" was so ground-shakingly powerful. McWhorter even let out a growl with no mic during the last song that you could hear in the hallway.
Overall, this was one of the most fun shows I've been to in a while. Despite the violent nature of the music, everyone came together and treated each other with respect. What a way to end a huge tour like this! Every band on this tour was fantastic. You should catch every single one of them the next time they're in your city.
FIND GIDEON HERE
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