When a band like Machine Head hits the road, you can bet they’re going to be bringing a powerhouse of support with them, and this tour is no different. Featuring Unearth, In Flames, and Lacuna Coil, the tour is hot on the heels of Machine Head’s newest release, “Unatoned”.
Released April 25, the album led with a single featuring every single one of the support bands – called “These Scars Won’t Define Us”. Something to note is that the album version doesn’t feature the guests, and they don’t perform it with the band live. Fun little promo thing for the tour, though.
Unearth kicked off the night in spectacular fashion, pummeling through a half dozen tracks and whipping the crowd into a frenzy. I missed Anders from In Flames for a meet and greet to get to the venue on time to catch Unearth, and I’m really glad I did. What a kick-ass band.
Following them was Lacuna Coil. This was my 3rd time shooting them, and they always deliver a super fun show. The interactions between Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro are always fun to watch, and the dynamic of the two vocalists brings a really accessible style of metal that many can enjoy. Most notable for me was the addition of guitarist Daniele Salomone, whom I haven’t seen perform with the band yet. He was great, filling out their lineup nicely. Marco Coti Zelati (bass) is always an interesting character to watch, and every time I’ve shot them, he’s played into the camera for me. What a solid move, hah!
This particular performance of In Flames was a record breaker for me – They are officially the band I have seen the most, with this being my 6th time seeing them (according to my setlist.fm account). I’ve been a massive fan of the band since the album Clayman came out, and I’ll always jump at the chance to see them. While I’m a bit more of an “old-school” fan, their setlist still packed a ton of treats and songs I absolutely love hearing live. As usual, the band was phenomenal. Chris Broderick and Bjorn Gelotte are absolute monsters on the guitar, and their chemistry is undeniable.
Machine Head finally took the stage, after the 3 openers had the crowd absolutely riled up, and the carnage just continued. Delivering an absolutely searing set from start to finish, the Bay Area thrash vets fired their way through a dozen songs, essentially 1 song from each album, and 2 from the new album. Robb Flynn is a master of whipping the crowd into a frenzy, and there was a literal hail of crowd surfers as we shot photos through the first 3 songs.
Highlights for me were Ten Ton Hammer, From This Day, and Davidian, but the set was a pretty solid mix from their whole catalogue. I was a bit bummed to see stuff like Darkness Within and Aesthetics of Hate, but its also nice to see them switching it up.
This was my first time seeing them with new guitarist Reece Scruggs (Havok), and he’s such a great fit. Stellar player, super active on stage, and a pleasure to photograph.
For more photos from the show, head to our Facebook page!