Moments before Parkway Drive took the stage last night at House of Blues for a sold out show, fans started to chant “Parkway Drive” in hopes that it would get the band out on stage quicker. To no one’s surprise, it didn’t.
Eventually, the Aussie band did make its way onto the stage and began its set with “Wild Eyes,” a song that featured a rousing “oh-oh-oh” chant before transitioning into vicious riffs heavy enough to rip apart the floor. You can see a slideshow of photos from the concert here.
Well known for brutal breakdowns, Parkway Drive kept the security guards busy as fans started to crowd surf and make their way to the front of the stage. It was pure chaos as singer Winston McCall intertwined his long growls and screams with the breakdowns.
Despite the fact that the crowd seemed to be absolutely out of control, McCall knew how to control the chaos. In fact, McCall acted as a conductor half the time, and the fans were his orchestra pit. He used the microphone as his baton, waving the crowd to move closer or start a circle pit that would last for the entirety of a song. Parkway Drive concluded the set with “Romance is Dead” but as always, a few moments later an encore ensued and the show would officially end with the raucous “Bottom Feeder.”
Wage War had the responsibility of kicking off the show and bringing the crowd off its feet and into the air. Fans crowd surfed throughout the Ocala, Florida-based band's set. The group pounded out riff after riff, complimented with ferocious growls and screams from singer Briton Bond. Backing singer-guitarist Cody Quistad helped as he often sang the main chorus, though at times he seemed to teeter on the brink of being off-key as some of the singing seemed too high-pitched. In the middle of the set, Bond took a brief moment to talk about suicide and depression and said that regardless of what we may all feel, we aren’t alone.
The Word Alive followed Wage War, and the band effectively elevated the energy. Guitarist Zack Hansen, Tony Pizzuti and bassist Daniel Shapiro jumped and spun to each breakdown and heavy drops, bringing the crowd off its feet and into the hands of the security guards upfront. Just when you didn’t think the energy could exceed the level it was already at, singer Tyler Smith left the stage mid-song and reappeared in the crowd. Everyone was ecstatic as he sang the band's last song from the mosh pit.
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