The grey clouds are approaching as I enter the city, but that won’t stop me from seeing some of the promising bands coming out of mainland Europe. The Blind Channel “Exit Emotions” tour has found itself in Nottingham, and I’m ready to hear some “metal boy band” music.
Rock Band From Hell is a Finnish 3-piece with the aim to give new life to punk. They came on to the ominous sound of a bass and the lights going low. The drummer came on first, raising his arms in the air to get the crowd to cheer. Swiftly they obliged and on came the guitarist and guitarist/vocalist. The energy of the two guitarists is immediately palpable, with their constant moving and jumping around the stage. Already I could see some fans around the venue singing the lyrics along with the band – a fan base already forming.
“Sex is on Fire” went down particularly a treat with the crowd. The hooky melody and chorus (of a phrase people are well aware of due to a different song) had people bobbing their heads and even at one point the vocalist had everyone crouch on the floor for the ol’ “on the count of 4, I want you all to jump”. The band constantly had people clapping to the beat of the songs, which I think is also a testament to the crowd below who were eager to partake in anything the support wanted. We love a crowd here to have a good time.
The guitarist especially was a standout to me. Was this because he was shirtless? No…of course not…what do you mean why are 90% of my photos him? Mind your business. In all seriousness- the energy the guitarist brought to the stage was on par with that of the vocalist. Both would constantly be meeting each other in the middle of the stage (at one point doing a synchronized sway with their instruments). With the vocalist being quite limited in how hard he can go, with being the vocals and a guitarist, it’s great to see another member of the band sharing the responsibility of hyping the crowd. The drummer at the end of their set even threw out some sticks, which is a nice sentiment I think. Even if the band isn’t the headliner, why not?
GHØSTKID are a German based band formed in 2019, with a range of experienced musicians. The fact all these members have experience isn’t something lost on you when you see them live. Each member has an insane confidence on stage, only heightened by the themed wardrobe they have that adds to their presence. The black goth get up paired up with the eye make-up, at first makes you think you’ll be hearing something either deathcore or like Creeper, but no – the band deliver some catchy emo rock. The band also released a new album, “HOLLYWOOD SUICIDE”, which is already raking in good numbers on spotify.
The band had a hefty setlist, I counted about 10 in total, with some being cut by the looks of the paper on the stage. Each song though, the band just absolutely delivers in. During “Start a Fight“, two guitarists descended from the stage to join the crowd below. A mosh pit now forming and a circle pit going during the chorus. The crowd was definitely vibing with GHØSTKID.
GHØSTKID had great crowd interaction too, which only further influenced the crowd in their favour. The vocalist encouraged people to meet them after the set by merch, the entire band including the drummer were throwing up their hands to clap, the vocalist was ensuring they introduced each song with some context and even shouted out the people who had seen them during their support slot with Bad Omens last year (which undoubtedly led to many new fans, with how much of a success it was). It was great. There’s no doubt in my mind the band knows what they’re doing. They even made one of the people who was sitting on the balcony, clearly having no interest in supports, stand up for a better view towards the end of their set. I mean what a flex?
Blind Channel are a “violent pop” Finnish band (that also happened to star on Eurovision in 2021) that have clearly been well awaited in the UK. The tour has many sold out dates, promoting their latest album, “Exit Emotions“. The band came on to an already hype crowd and that energy just burst on the stage. Every single member was moshing and vibing with the people below. The two vocalists were jumping between sides to interact with as many people as possible.
I honestly didn’t know what to expect with this band. I love to go in blind to most gigs…that wasn’t an intentional pun, and I’d heard they were “nu-metal”, “a metal boy band”, “heavy pop”…then I see the keyboard with a drum set and I’m even more perplexed. The sound these guys have is one that I’d describe as at the center of the new wave of metalcore. This blending of genres that you can’t confidently define what they are, is the forefront of modern music in this scene. The fact these guys can blend the genres they do and it works is a feat not many can pull off. The absolute energy they bring just takes you along for the ride, no questions asked. The song “DEADZONE” being a particular favorite of the crowd it seems with how hard people were singing the lyrics.
The whiplash the guys must have with how hard they were moshing their heads is something I can only imagine. I don’t think anyone was as into the music as the band themselves and it’s so obvious they make music for fun first and career second, a vocalist even saying how they “didn’t start the band 11 years ago for fame or money…though that is nice.” The crowd weren’t going as hard as they did for GHØSTKID, but it’s obvious they were captivated for the entire set. I didn’t see one person even approach the bar for refreshments, everyone was just glued to the stage. The vocalists were constantly crouching down and singing to the fans and pointing to people, which just influenced the singing harder. It’s hard to describe other than saying they were “hype”. The band is just hype, man. I can see why Electric Callboy brought them on their tour.
There’s been a wave of bands that have a party energy, recently. Blind Channel is one of those bands. Just bringing the fun back into metal. No stereotypes. No expectations. Just go cut loose. There is one more date of the tour in the UK, before they take the tour to the European mainland.
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