Deathcore is seeing a huge revival.
These hardworking metal bands are experiencing significant success in the past year alone, with sold out shows across the country and songs even going viral on social media.
The Chaos and Carnage Tour is filled with some of the industry’s biggest heavy bands, and the 2022 lineup features deathcore legends Suicide Silence and Carnifex, along with a band who’s arguably the most popular in the genre right now, Lorna Shore. Other bands on the tour include Upon a Burning Body, Signs of the Swarm, AngelMaker, and Distant. The tour made a stop in Atlanta on May 24th, and since I’m the deathcore-obsessed contributor at Keynote – I had to be there.
I already experienced a portion of this lineup when Lorna Shore’s routing dates kicked off in Knoxville in April with Distant (which our own Ash Ogle covered), but seeing all seven bands perform in Heaven at the Masquerade was a different level. The production, staff, and lighting in this room are always phenomenal. It has been a few years since I’ve been to the Masquerade, but I was happy to see that everything is still running exactly as it was in late 2019, if not better.
My goal for the day was to lose myself in the mosh pit if I did not get approved for a photo pass, but I was stoked to receive my confirmation while I was on my way to the venue from Knoxville just before seeing that the show sold out. Not only is this tour full of bands that I listen to regularly, but I also know several of the band members and crew. I felt at home when I stepped into the photo pit and saw familiar faces. This tour is clearly a family for all the bands too, as the night was dominated by so many vocalists featuring on each other’s sets that I lost track of exactly who all took the mic.
The show kicked off promptly just a half hour after doors opened with Distant. This is the Dutch band’s first tour in the United States, although unfortunately only their vocalist Alan Grnja and drummer Jan Mato were able to get their visas. Luckily, they have been able to perform and sound just as huge as the full band with the help of Jordan Milner from The Breathing Process filling in on guitar. Their energy started the night off strong, inspiring the pit to get rowdy and urging crowd surfers to start their journey to the barricade.
Setlist:
Hellmøuth
Oedipism
Vermilion Rivers
Cursed (with Johnny from AngelMaker)
Aeons of Oblivion (with David from Signs of the Swarm)
Heirs of Torment (with Will from Lorna Shore)
AngelMaker took the stage next – and I instantly regretted never listening to them before now. The Canadian band’s dual vocalists have a powerful dynamic on stage. This band is just as strong as the headliners on this run, with their fast, brutal, old-school death metal sound.
AngelMaker has a few significant members to note. Steven Sanchez, formerly of The Last Ten Seconds of Life, is filling in on drums for this tour. Johnny Ciardullo from Carcosa is an official guitarist of AngelMaker now, but he is also known for his viral TikTok videos, like the metal pickup lines series with fellow Carcosa member, Andrew Baena. These new members are a perfect fit for the band, and their energy was infectious.
Slaughter
Vengeance
Bloodthirster
Hollow Heart
What I Would Give
Radiance in the Light of a Dying Sun
Leech
Signs of The Swarm kicked off their set with a darker tone, both in lighting and sound. This deathcore band from Pittsburgh caught my attention with David Simonich’s sickening vocals and violent bass drops. I have only ever seen this band on smaller stages, so it was refreshing to see them with a bigger production. Signs of the Swarm is clearly one of the strongest bands in the genre that can simultaneously enhance the ambience and energy in the room.
Hymns ov Invocation
Revelations ov a Silent King
The Collection (with Alan from Distant)
Pernicious
Totem
Death Whistle
Upon a Burning Body brought a different flavor to the show. I’m used to seeing them on metalcore tours, so their Texas-inspired flare and groovy riffs resonated refreshingly in Heaven and broke up the more darker-sounding bands. This band was all smiles and clearly having as much fun as the crowd. They also brought a longtime fan on stage to celebrate his 11th birthday (see their post below).
Unfortunately, the band did have to recently drop off Chaos and Carnage due to illness, but plans to announce more tour dates soon.
All Pride No Pain
A New Responsibility
King of Diamonds
5×3
Shapeshifter
Extermination
Sin City
Texas Blood Money
Lorna Shore has skyrocketed into success after adding vocalist Will Ramos to the band’s lineup last year and going viral with their single “To The Hellfire” and subsequent EP …And I Return to Nothingness. The band recently released another song titled “Sun//Eater,” which was debuted live at the Knoxville show we covered just a few weeks ago.
While the band was setting up the drums on stage, the room began a massive chorus of Journey’s “Separate Ways” while it played over the PA. Suddenly, the lights went out and the band powered through a set of new music from their EP and a few songs from their previous Immortal album. Ramos’ vocals were impeccably controlled and brutal despite being so far into the tour, and gaining massive reactions from the audience. A violent push pit and a sea of crowdsurfers also began in the middle of the room while the heat – or Hellfire – continued to increase with all the moving bodies. One thing I definitely noted during their set was the sound: every snare hit and the blast beats resounded sharply in the 1,000 cap room. Their set ended with “To The Hellfire” and the iconic breakdown sent everyone into a frenzy.
I had the opportunity to talk to Lorna Shore’s guitarist Andrew O’Connor later that night, and he mentioned that the band is not used to all the sudden fame. Lorna Shore has stayed so humble and kind in their interactions with fans and others in the industry despite a few hiccups in their lineup along the journey, and for that I believe they deserve all the recognition.
Immortal (with David from Signs of the Swarm)
…And I Return to Nothingness
Death Portrait
Sun//Eater
Of the Abyss (with Eddie from Suicide Silence)
To The Hellfire
The room cleared out partially after Lorna Shore’s set, but the old school and longtime deathcore fans stayed to experience the legendary headliners of Chaos and Carnage.
Carnifex set up the stage with their own backdrop, scrims, and even candles to create the perfect ambience for their set. As the purple lights filled the stage, the band delivered one of the best performances I’ve experienced at the Masquerade. I saw Carnifex briefly last summer at my first show since 2020, but I chose not to take photos of them – so seeing them in Atlanta was a bit of a redemption for me.
Carnifex’s setlist was longer than the rest of the bands so far, and even included a cover of “The Heretic Anthem” by Slipknot, which was dedicated to Paul Gray and Joey Jordison, who have both sadly passed away. Carnifex also dedicated “Lie to My Face” to Trevor Strnad of The Black Dahlia Murder, who tragically passed this month.
The heat in the room was sweltering, although there were a few spots in the room where the air conditioning was on full blast. I noticed even the crowdsurfers had calmed down. I also went outside once during their set to cool off. However, that didn’t stop the circle pit from spinning, and several people even got kicked out of the pit. I believe the energy in the room was purely coming from the music itself, because I was still going strong somehow after photographing every band’s set.
Slit Wrist Savior
Pray for Peace
Seven Souls
Dark Heart Ceremony
Drown Me In Blood
Hatred and Slaughter
Dark Days
In Coalesce with Filth and Faith
The Heretic Anthem (Slipknot cover)
Graveside Confessions
Lie to My Face
Hell Chose Me
Another chorus erupted in the room as fans (and security) sang the entirety of “Bohemian Rhapsody.” The lights went out and Suicide Silence took the stage – and it was a whole other level of incredible musicianship, stage production, sound, and moshing. Frontman Eddie Hermida was chatty with the crowd all night, talking mostly about mental health and the huge, recent success in deathcore.
Most deathcore fans know that the band suffered the tragic loss of former frontman Mitch Lucker in 2012, and it felt like he was there in spirit. Hermida mentioned that Lucker’s last lyrics “You Can’t Stop Me” have a whole new meaning now, especially after the recent death of The Black Dahlia Murder’s Trevor Strnad.
“Trevor will never fucking die. It’s a crowd like this that would never allow that man to perish. For that reason, I want you guys to show me your fucking muscles right now. And I want you to fight the tiredness and everything inside you telling you to put them down.”
Eddie Hermida
Suicide Silence also had a lot of love for Atlanta, saying it was their favorite city and even giving a huge shoutouts to the security and venue staff. Hermida also pointed out how strong the scene is in Atlanta, including Left to Suffer, whose members were watching most of the show from sidestage. He mentioned that getting to play a show of that size was such a huge highlight, because he’s never seen the deathcore scene quite like it is now.
The band welcomed to the stage their brand new drummer, Ernie Iniguez, who’s worked for bands like Jinjer, Chelsea Grin, and Whitechapel in the past. I know Ernie from working with Whitechapel on multiple hometown shows, so it was incredible seeing him on stage with another huge band in deathcore. He seems to fit in perfectly – Hermida said they finally got him to literally let his hair down on stage.
The mosh pit was still pure chaos, and I even saw a random pizza box fly out of the pit and a guy dressed like Patrick from Spongebob Squarepants was crowdsurfing. I could see security smiling and laughing while doing their job, happily encouraging crowd surfers and the mosh pit. The band was also filming for a music video for their unreleased song “Dying Life” with the tour’s content creator Caleb Arnaud, so the fans went extra hard on giving Suicide Silence the last of their energy.
The band chose to make the end of the show nice and clear – they weren’t doing any encores.
Unanswered (with David from Signs of the Swarm)
Disengage
You Only Live Once
You Can’t Stop Me
Slaves to Substance
Thinking In Tongues
Love Me To Death
Wake Up
Bludgeoned to Death
The Price of Beauty
Fuck Everything
Dying Life (unreleased)
No Pity for a Coward (with Johnny of AngelMaker)
“Always show respect, always show love.”
Eddie Hermida
Chaos and Carnage may become one of the biggest nationwide tours at this rate, and it’s incredible to see how much it’s grown. I even hope to become a part of their crew someday. I attended C&C just a few years ago in Atlanta, and the crowd there was nowhere near the size and brutality I saw in Heaven this year. The fans, bands, photographers, and security were all in this together, having fun, and making sure that everyone had a wonderful night. This is how you do a deathcore show.
Near the end of Carnifex’s set, I made a small note in my phone about how this entire experience felt for me, and I believe it reflects everyone’s feelings that night too: “I needed this show for my soul.”
“DEATHCORE IS ALIVE AND WELL!”
@chaosandcarnagetour (instagram)
