On September 23rd, a clear evening on the bustling South Side of Chicago, metalcore fans gathered to witness the highly anticipated Metalcore Dropouts Tour, co-headlined by Fit for a King and The Devil Wears Prada with additional metalcore stars Counterparts and Landmvrks. Hosting this monster of a show would be one of Chicago's newest venues located on the border of the Pilsen and Chinatown neighborhoods, Radius, which opened in early 2020 and has hosted a variety of metal, hard rock, and EDM shows. The same weekend, they would host both Dance Gavin Dance and Parkway Drive.
At the very start of the show, France's own Landmvrks took the stage for a 25-minute set. Formed in 2014 in Marseilles, the band has been touring regularly for the last two years, since the release of their latest album Lost in the Waves in February 2021. Despite only having 25 minutes and approximately eight songs, the band's performance was not to be forgotten and kicked the show off to an incredible start. The crowd welcomed them with open arms, singing their lyrics back to vocalist Florent Salfati, whose screams echoed the same level of emotion and intensity as their tour mates.
Following their set would be Canada's notorious hardcore act Counterparts. After gradually gaining a large fan base since their formation in 2007, the band shot to hardcore fame with their sixth studio album Nothing Left to Love in 2019, peaking at number 97 on the Billboard 200 charts. In October of 2022, they cemented their success in the hardcore scene with their seventh album, A Eulogy for Those Still Here. On this particular night, vocalist Brendan Murphy would deliver an emotional performance of "Whispers of Your Death," dedicated to his late cat. In contrast, while donning athletic shorts and an oversized t-shirt, he would also live up to his hectic stage (and social media) presence. The band would perform a 10-song setlist mostly consisting of songs from their latest album, rounding it out with a mix of older songs, including "The Disconnect" from 2011's The Current Will Carry Us and "Monument" from their 2018 EP Private Room. Despite yet another short set of 30 minutes, Counterparts not only gained new fans but sang to their long-time loyalists with their eclectic setlist.
Up next was The Devil Wears Prada, a seasoned metalcore band that both felt and brought the love to Chicago. Calling Chicago their second home, the band would say at the end of the night this city had their favorite crowd of the tour so far. With a majority of their setlist featuring songs from their 2022 album Color Decay, the band proved why their 15-plus-year-long career has not even begun to slow down or plateau. Loved by fans and considered a fascination by newcomers, The Devil Wears Prada gave Chicago an exciting and electric performance.
Finally, Fit for a King rounded out this stunning lineup and closed out the night with an intense display of chugging riffs, perfect screams, and plenty of bass spins. And of course, the crowd responded accordingly with nonstop moshing and the most crowd surfing one may ever see at a metalcore show. While most of the bands that night played a majority of songs from one select album, Fit for a King certainly had the most versatile setlist based on their discography, performing a nearly equal number of songs from their last four albums--2022's The Hell We Create, 2020's The Path, 2018's Dark Skies, and 2016's Deathgrip. Their energy remained high during their entire hour-long set, and in spite of the venue's sound curfew, the band was able to carry out their encore as well. Truly, the band's vigor and their co-headliner's and openers' equally intense performances have made the Metalcore Dropouts Tour an unforgettable one that fans should not miss.
The tour will continue throughout the east coast, Canada, and the central United States and end in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 19th.
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