Poison the Well and Converge just rounded out their North American tour. Both bands are out promoting new albums. Poison the Well put out their first new studio album in 17 years this past March entitled Peace in Place. Meanwhile, Converge are out supporting not 1 but 2 new albums -- Love is Not Enough released this past February and Hum of Hurt is slated to be released in just a couple of weeks on June 5th. Joining the duo for this leg of the tour were The Barbarians of California who have been putting out a steady stream or new tracks recently and The Armed who have been pushing their 2025 album The Future is Here and Everything Needs to be Destroyed. Together these groups have put together one of the best metalcore/heavy music tours of the year.
I showed up not long after Barbarians of California took the stage. Their brand of a thrashy blend of hardcore and metal was a feast for the early attendees. Following was "The greatest band in the world" The Armed. I was familiar but had not delved deep into the band after all these years. I was blown away! The band's unpredictability and onslaught of hardcore music mixed with experimental elements was giving me a sensory overload. The stage presence was reminiscent of earlier Dillinger Escape Plan and Blood Brothers shows. The vocalist would constantly throw the mic out to the crowd for anyone that knew the lyrics. Even handing off the guitar at one point to a fan on the barricade. Needless to say, they showed why they are deemed "The greatest band in the world."
Next up were heavy music legends, Converge. The band never ceases to amaze after decades of performing. I'm unsure how front man, Jacob Bannon, is still able to scream and growl the way he does over the years. The band ran through a number of tracks from their new album, Love is Not Enough, including opening the set with the title track and "Bad Faith" back-to-back before a taste of You Fail Me with "Eagles Become Vultures." Bannon introduced their new song "Doom in Bloom" from Hum of Hurt by mentioning the struggles he goes through from the loss of others and how his mind goes to a dark place. For the older fans in the crowd, the band played "Conduit" from Forever Came Crashing but of course the crowd went nuts for Jane Doe tracks "The Broken Vow" and when they ended the set with "Concubine."
Poison the Well closed out the night. The band walked out to the Geto Boys' "Still" before jumping into "Botchla" from their sophomore album Tear From the Red. The crowd erupted as Moreira switched from the soft crooning opening to the guttural screams. During "Thoroughbreds" from the bands new album Peace in Place, the fans made it apparent they weren't just there for the old stuff by singing along or moshing in one of the few pits scattered on the floor. Poison the Well are aware of the affinity of their older albums though and continued to run through tracks from their debut album The Opposite of December and You Come Before You while avoiding anything from 2009's The Tropic Rot entirely and only playing "Letter Thing" from Versions. The entire floor turned into a pit when they closed out the night with fan favorite "Nerdy." During the song's esteemed breakdown, a flurry of crowd surfers made their way to the front where Moreira had joined the fans.
The entire night was a powerhouse of heavy music. The audience has grown older, but there is still a spark of youthfulness when a couple of the best bands in their genre come together to remind the fans what it was like to be young. After 20 plus years, Converge and Poison the Well are still putting out music that overshadows their disciples and putting on some of the best hardcore performances you can see. Converge will be heading to Europe in June while Poison the Well are heading to Japan and then Australia. If you find either in your neck of the woods, be sure not to miss them.
