Starset is both a band and an experience, and they are personally very impactful for me. They inspired me to pursue my own role in the music industry and follow my passions when I first saw them in 2017 at The International, a former venue associated with The Concourse. This was my seventh demonstration so far, and it was unlike any other that I – or the band – has ever experienced.
The Horizons 2022 tour also included hard rock giants Red, along with Fame on Fire and Smash Into Pieces. I attended both Tennessee dates on their last run back in late 2021, and those stages were nowhere near as intimate as The Concourse. I was both excited and curious to see them at one of my favorite venues, especially knowing how much goes into their larger-than-life stage production.
Smash Into Pieces
Smash Into Pieces is an electronic hard rock band from Sweden, and they delivered a visual performance that perfectly complimented Starset. This was the band’s last date on the Horizons tour, and they seemed very thankful to everyone involved in the tour. Their drummer was a huge focal point of the band – exuding charisma despite being behind a light-up mask. The band started things off with high energy, interacting with the already-packed crowd. Vocalist Chris Adam took some time during their set to talk about the war in Ukraine and thanked the United States for their support, which yielded a roar of cheers from the audience.
Setlist:
Wake Up
Big Bang
Broken Parts
Glow in the Dark
Let Me Be Your Superhero
Forever Alone
Running Away From Home
Vanguard
Boomerang
Fame on Fire
Fame on Fire brought a slightly heavier vibe to the show. This band from Florida caught my attention, with their tasteful blend of metal, rock, pop, and rap. Fame on Fire is known for covering pop songs, but their original music is very catchy and matches their on-stage personalities perfectly. The band did one cover song during this set that sent everyone in the room into singing and jumping – “Numb” originally by Linkin Park. At this point in the night, the heat and humidity were rising in the room and the band reminded everyone to keep an eye on each other.
Welcome to the Chaos
Her Eyes
Lost in Doubt
It’s Okay
Plastic Heart
Cut Throat
Numb (Linkin Park cover)
Headspace
Red
Red is a band that I’ve been wanting to see live for years. The Nashville hard rock band is best known for their song “Breathe Into Me” from 2006 and their Christian influences. Their sound is often compared to other popular early 2000s rock bands like Breaking Benjamin, Chevelle, and Flyleaf.
Red brought a very interesting stage setup with rows of TV screens against a city skyline, and drummer Brian Medeiros on a riser in the center. This band really showed off how much they’ve established themselves as a top hard rock band. Their energy stayed high, with vocalist Michael Barnes jumping up onto the barricade to sing with the crowd and leaping from the risers. Red was clearly a huge crowd favorite of the night, and they ended their set with the crowd singing along loudly to “Breathe Into Me.”
Feed the Machine
Falling Sky
Faceless
The War We Made
Death of Me
Release the Panic
The Evening Hate
Breathe Into Me
STARSET
Fog descended upon the venue as a large white cloth was spread across the stage. After a wait, the PA started blaring an appropriate setlist of heat-related songs, including Nelly’s “Hot in Herre.” The lights cut out, and a glitching star was projected on the curtain for some time before it dropped and revealed Starset’s stunning stage setup of video walls, lasers, and brilliant lights.
Starset began with “Carnivore,” a song that helped gain the band popularity back in 2014, and then moved into a perfect blend of both newer and older material. Since the band is now a seven-piece as of last year, their live performance is much more raw and visually involved than ever before. In particular, Violinist Siobhán Cronin, Cellist Zuzana Engererova, and multi-instrumentalist Cory Juba deliver such a core part of the band’s live sound. The smaller stage was packed with lights, instruments, and fog, but it made the band feel so much closer to the crowd.
Fans continued to keep an extra close eye on each other while the heat and fog mixed. The crowd and the band still powered through, singing along loudly and shedding extra layers as needed, but many fans had to take breaks to go outside and cool off. Vocalist Dustin Bates mentioned that out of the hundreds of demonstrations – this was the hottest so far. Luckily, the venue responded quickly to this with changes after this show to battle the unprecedented heat wave, and rented a supplemental AC unit for future events.
After an intermission, the band returned to the stage in their classic spacesuits to power through the remainder of the set, including the heavy breakdown of “DEVOLUTION” and my favorite song, “Ricochet.” The show concluded with “My Demons,” which always includes a powerful statement about science and technology. After leaving the stage, Dustin returned to fulfill his tradition of tossing his bowtie to the crowd.
This demonstration was intimate, visually beautiful, emotional, raw, and sweltering. I’ve never been to a Starset demonstration that gave me this many emotions. I’m very curious to see the direction the band is heading in next, as these recent demonstrations seemed to fall heavily into promoting both their newest album Horizons and their previous record Divisions, which came out months before the pandemic and did not get as many touring cycles.
Starset’s production, immersion, and attention to detail is out of this world – and this demonstration almost literally sent us to the heat of the stars.
Carnivore
ECHO
INFECTED
WHERE THE SKIES END
Let It Die
TRIALS
MANIFEST
Monster
It Has Begun
(Intermission)
Satellite
DEVOLUTION
Ricochet
Die For You
EARTHRISE
My Demons
