Children of Bodom’s “Halo of Blood Over North America 2014 Tour” – REVIEW

We recently had the pleasure of attending the Chicago date of Children of Bodom’s recent “Halo of Blood Over North America 2014 Tour” with Death Angel and Týr, at the House of Blues. You can check out our review of the tour, after the break.

Another spring, another season packed with shows. When it comes to times like these, you simply can’t attend them all. You have to weigh your options based on so many criterias and this show was one of the one’s that made the cut on my “must see” for this jam packed season of concerts/shows.

Hailing from the Faroe Islands was Tyr. At first listen on record, I was not sure what to think. However, after catching them live my opinion of them has flip flopped. Their songs boast infectous melody, and its broadly diverse sounds. The bulk of the set relied on their latest opus, 2013’s “Valkyrja” and their lyrical content based on viking lore and mythology had made me want to unleash my inner warrior and go to battle! An impressive opener indeed. Especially on a 3 band bill where all the bands are sonically different.

The Bay Area of California’s Death Angel ripped through the crowd harder than any movie of SAW wishes it ever could. Another band relying on their latest full length for the duration of their set, DA continue to get better every time I see them live. The instruments are in your face and vocalist Mark Osegueda wails out every lyric, shout and scream like it matters. There is no pretending here with these guys. It is very hard to believe at one point they had split for a decade cause it feels like they have never missed a step. The volumes this speaks is staggering considering the amount of bands that fall off the wagon that have been together for only 1 or 2 albums. The 5 piece thrash machine has a recipe for success that is working. Hopefully one day that can be duplicated for the better of all music! Seriously, go see Death Angel live now!

Named after the (in)famous Lake Bodom murders, Finland’s Children of Bodom had everyone on the floor pushing their way to the front immediately. Frontman and shredder-of-the-arts Alexi Laiho is now at veteran status of the guitar virtuosos and still kicking in his prime, only his lead playing is more efficient and he and the rest of the band sound more confident than ever considering they had big shoes to fill from the previous act. “Shut up and play” was their priority as they cruised through song after song faster than a track runner. The title track off last years “Halo of Blood” brought back a black metal influence that was prevalent in their early years. Thus, a sound so bleak yet missed by many including yours truly, it was my high school years brought back to the time I discovered them. An honorable mention to the man on the synthesizers, Janne Warmann completes their melodic death metal approach and is the ultimate compliment to the dueling leads between Alexi and Roope Latvala. Classic COB anthem with a chorus that wouldn’t sound out of place on a hard rock album, “Hate Crew Death Roll” had everyone singing arena rock style. From the roller coaster ride of “Downfall” to the pounding groove of closer “In Your Face”, crowd surfers were flocking in droves and all Bodom-ites were at their rowdiest in every aspect of the word. They came, they saw, and hot damn did the mighty Finns conquer!

This was one of the final shows of the tour so if you passed this one by, you’ll be grieving over your choice of doing so! Don’t miss if you still have a shot at making it!

Information about this review:
Tour: Halo of Blood Over North America 2014 Tour
Bands: Children of Bodom, Death Angel, Týr
Reviewer: Nicholas Wier
Date: March 25, 2014
Venue: House of Blues in Chicago, IL