Nonpoint takes Johnson City to the Emerald City

Here at Keynote we never shy away from difficult topics especially when it surrounds mental health. Over the last six months, my own mental health declined rapidly and I made the difficult decision to put music photography on hold. After a four-month break, the longest break I’ve taken yet, I decided it was time to lace my vans up and make my way back to the photo pit. Though this came with a whole new wave of anxiety I was elated to be approved to photograph Nonpoint on their Emerald Cities Tour.

The anticipation continued to build leading up to the day of the show, but the time had finally come for me to dive back into the photo pit head first. I needed some moral support so I made a pit stop in Kingsport to pick up a friend to drag her along and look after my camera bag. I typically get to shows just before the show starts but this time I decided to arrive a little early. Lucky for us we arrived early enough to make it to the front of the line and into Capone’s without any issues. Once inside there was a buzz of excitement in the air. Will the historic venue hold up to its motto “eat drink, be entertained” tonight?

Up first was Sumo Cyco, a Canadian band hailing from Hamilton, Ontario. The punk-metal group currently consists of Skye Sweetnam (lead vocals), Matt Drake (guitars/vocals), Oscar Anesetti (bass/vocals), and Joey Muha (drums). I’ll be honest in saying that I hadn’t heard anything about the band until the tour was announced, but obviously, I was missing out. They opened with their song “undefeated“, and I have to say this band came to play and hype up the crowd. Fans of the four-piece were screaming along to every song and everyone else joined in by headbanging their way through their set. These guys know how to entertain and you can tell they were thoroughly enjoying being on stage. Within no time Sweetnam jumped off the stage and began signing directly to the crowd atop the barrier. And before the end of the night, she made her way to the middle of the venue floor to interact with fans as they closed their set with their song “Bystander“.

After Sumo Cyco thoroughly warmed up the crowd, it was time for Blacktop Mojo to take the stage. The texas band was founded by Matt James and Nathan Gillis in 2012 and consists of James (vocals), Gillis (drums), Chuck Wepfer (rhythm guitar, Matt Curtis (bass), and Malcolm Booher (lead guitar). They began their set with “Stratus Melancholia” and the crowd went wild. As a deathcore and metalcore enthusiast, they aren’t the type of sound I typically gravitate towards, but I was undoubtedly impressed by their set and live performance overall. The band’s presence filled the entire stage and fans were hanging on every word and move they made. Gillis also made sure to make the performance a little more personalized by jumping onto the barricade to sing along with adoring fans. If you weren’t a fan of these guys before you couldn’t help but be one after their enthusiastic set.

As if I thought the venue couldn’t hold any more people, they kept filing into the less than 500-capacity venue by the dozens, in the hopes of catching Nonpoint live. By this time fans’ excitement had reached a new high as they anticipated the headlining performance of the night. The Florida-born band first hit the scene in 1997 and has been gracing us with nu-metal bangers since. Their lineup since 2011 consists of Elias Soriano (lead vocals), Robb Rivera (drums), Rasheed Thomas (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Adam Woloszyn (bass), and Jaysin Zeilstra (lead guitar, backing vocals). As the band burst onto the stage with their hit “Mindtrip” the crowd could not be contained, their screams echoed through the overflowing venue.

Nonpoint has been touring for nearly half a decade so it should come as no surprise that they know how to command a stage. Their energy was undeniable and fans passionately headbanged and sang along to every song. This group of professional rockers gave it their all on stage even causing a small pit to form in the middle of the room in record time. Though their setlist included a mix of their old and newer hits, many were deadset on hearing a few specific songs like their hit “That Day” and their cover of “In the Air Tonight“. To everyone’s surprise, Soriano brought out Gillis and Sweetnam to help him sing both songs to round out their setlist. Nonpoint then gifted the crowd with their most popular anthem “Bullet With a Name on It” as their encore.

I’ve mentioned it many times before but music truly heals the soul. And I think that I speak for a lot of people that were in attendance, that Nonpoint healed a lot of souls, myself included with their staggering performance this night. Everyone left their worries at the door and rocked out like it was their full-time job. From their fiery stage presence to their heartwarming words between songs, Nonpoint gave their new and veteran fans an unforgettable night.