Inked Music Tour 2012 feat. Alesana – REVIEW

Right smack dab in the middle of last week, the Inked Music Tour came rolling through Chicago at one of our favorite venues, The Bottom Lounge. The tour featured performances from Alesana, In Fear & Faith, Vampires Everywhere!, Glamour of the Kill and This Or The Apocalypse. Check out our review after the break.

When a concert gets moved from a venue like House of Blues to a much smaller place like the Bottom Lounge you can’t help but wonder why?  Chances are ticket sales were low and the venue would have seemed too empty.  But moving the show to a smaller venue can be a blessing in disguise.  This was definitely the case for the Inked Music Tour featuring Alesana, In Fear & Faith, Vampires Everywhere!, Glamour of the Kill, and This Or The Apocalypse.

This Or The Apocalypse kicked the night off to a fairly empty room, but throughout their entire set they relentlessly tried to get everyone in attendance to move their feet and head bang.  Midway through their first song the vocalist leapt off the stage and worked the entire floor, pushing his way through the pit and around the entire room, making sure to get in the face of everyone in the crowd and make sure they were enjoying the music.  The band played songs mostly off their recent release “Dead Years”, which most of the crowd didn’t seem too familiar with.  They got a good reaction when they played songs off their older album “Haunt What’s Left”.  This Or The Apocalypse ended their set with the lead single off “Dead Years”, In Wolves, which saw Denny from Alesana join them on stage, causing the growing crowd to erupt and signal what lay ahead for the rest of the evening.

Up next was British rockers Glamour of the Kill, on their very first United States tour.  The band entered the stage while the refrain of “God Save The Queen” echoed throughout the venue.  Having never heard the band I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but I was certainly impressed by the time Glamour of the Kill left the stage.  With a sound similar to Bullet For My Valentine if they grew up on 80’s metal the enthusiasm from the crowd grew with each song.  They relied heavily on high pitched, sometimes acapella vocals and technically proficient guitar solos to win over the crowd with songs like “A Hope in Hell” and “Feeling Alive”.  For the final song of their set Glamour of the Kill threw the entire audience for a loop by playing a cover of the KISS song “Love Gun”.  Once the song finished about half of the crowd left the room and went to hang out at the bar until Vampires Everywhere! was finished.

When a band takes the stage looking like a cross between an 80’s glam metal band, Marilyn Manson, and Black Veil Brides it can polarize a crowd, just like it did to the audience at the Bottom Lounge.  It was obvious to tell which fans were there to see Vampires Everywhere! Based on the black and white makeup that matched the band’s makeup.  The band opened their set with a member of their tour crew coming on stage shirtless, dressed in leather pants and handcuffed behind his back.  Vocalist Michael “Vampire” Orlando then came on stage and paraded the handcuffed crew member around like a slave.  After pushing the slave off the front of the stage the remaining members of the band rushed the stage and launched into their song “Immortal Love”.  From there the band continued the onslaught of horror themed lyrics playing songs such as “Drug of Choice”, “Undead Heart”, and “Carnage at the Castle”.  Vampires Everywhere! Tried to win over the detractors in the crowd, but in the end just fed off their dedicated cult of fans.

Up next was In Fear & Faith, out of San Diego, California.  In Fear & Faith is, in my opinion and underappreciated band that doesn’t get the recognition they deserve.  The opened their set with “Heavy Lies the Crown” off of their album Imperial.  The crowd seemed to have a renewed energy as the band tore through its latest single “The Calm Before Reform” next.  Fans were clamoring to get up on stage and sing along with the band as they worked through older material like “Pirates…The Sequel “ and  “The Road to Hell is Paved With Good Intentions”.  The band closed out their set with their most well known song “Live Love Die”, during which vocalist Scott Barnes invited members of the crowd to sing-along with him.  In Fear and Faith finished their set and left the stage so the evening’s headlining band, Alesana, could take over.

Alesana hit the stage with their trademark “North Carolina Sweetcore” sound and kept the audience on their feet for the rest of the night.  Alesana was on top of their game, seamlessly blending together songs from all four of their albums.  Co-vocalists Shawn Mike and Dennis Lee traded vocal lines with Mike handling all the clean vocals and shrieks with Lee bellowed all the growls and low end.  Mid-way through their set Alesana told the story behind shooting their most well known music video and followed up the story by playing that song, “The Thespian”.  The entire crowd jumped in unison, looking like they had all just slammed a case of pixie sticks and was on a sugar high.  Alesana played a few more songs before exiting the stage and returning for their encore, which included an acoustic version of “Seduction” and closed with “Lullaby of the Crucified”.

The Inked Music Tour was a solid show with every band on it bringing something different to the table.  Although the show was moved to a smaller venue it seemed to add a little more excitement and intimacy to the night, giving the bands a far better opportunity to interact with their fans.  Be sure to check out any or all of these bands next time they roll though a town near you.  You’ll you be sure to leave with a smile on your face and a song stuck in your head.  2 days later and I still can’t stop singing Alesana songs.

Information about the tour…
Tour: Inked Music Tour 2012 feat. Alesana
Bands: Alesana, In Fear & Faith, Vampires Everywhere!, Glamour of the Kill and This Or The Apocalypse
Date: October 17, 2012
Venue: The Bottom Lounge in Chicago, IL