LIVE REVIEWS
BAD OMENS / CASSYETTE / STATIC DRESS
AO ARENA, MANCHESTER
Sheffield’s electro-metal behemoths lead the charge into the future
OLI SYKES GAZES out at the Manchester AO arena, as if seeing it for the first time. His view from the stage must be magical: thousands of phone lights twinkle and dance, and the atmosphere in the room seems charged with electricity, but the Bring Me The Horizon singer’s eyes are focused way up, towards the Gods. “We’ve played here before, haven’t we?” he asks his bandmates. “But I never knew there were seats right up there.”
It is, in fact, the second time Sheffield’s genre-mashing pop-metal behemoth have played this venue, but the first time they’ve sold it out. It’s testament to their ever-evolving story, but tonight isn’t just about them. Having built a reputation for championing new acts –their last two UK tours saw them take out a rising Nova Twins, and Fever333 –this bill feels similarly finger-onthe-pulse.
First, STATIC DRESS rampage through a set of angles and shards. Their sound is a burst of glammy vitriol that nods to Alexisonfire, Thrice and Glassjaw, while the likes of Disposable Care and Clean sound as though they could teeter off the rails at any moment, burning with potential. Nu gen star CASSYETTE switches up the vibe with a barefoot stomp through nu metal and synth-heavy industrial, her shapeshifting voice turning Petrichor, September Rain and the excellently tongue-in-cheek Dear Goth into future anthems.
As the road crew unveil BAD OMENS’ backdrop, an excited cheer goes up from the crowd. The Virginian metalcore quartet are indisputably the band of the moment, having gone stratospheric with their 2022 album, The Death Of Peace Of Mind: a record that straddled metalcore, electronica and the kind of soulful, R’n’B-inspired pop you’d expect from The Weeknd. Their show is arena-ready in its own right, incorporating pyro, ominous visuals and atmospheric lighting that perfectly captures the icy and sensual aspects of their sound. But the main focus is vocalist and superstar-inwaiting, Noah Sebastian. He’s easily one of the best singers in the alternative scene right now, as he stalks the stage, segueing seamlessly between powerful gutturals on the hyper-aggressive Artificial Suicide and elastic cleans on top-tier bangers Nowhere To Go and Just Pretend. It’s impossible to say how long it will be until Bad Omens are selling out venues like this on their own, but the fact there’s barely an empty seat in the house for the entirety of their set tells you exactly where they’re headed.
BRING ME THE HORI
