British metalcore band Architects arrived in New York City last week for a stellar performance as the newly opened Brooklyn Paramount in the heart of downtown Brooklyn. Just blocks from the foot of the Manhattan Bridge, the venue was decked out in dazzling lights and a giant marquee denoting Architects headlining performance on Tuesday evening, May 7. It was the first true spring day in New York City, after a string of dreary weather and everything was looking up for the band as fans lined up down Flatbush Avenue. Joining Architects for the evening were fellow Brit rockers, While She Sleeps and metalcore veterans, Of Mice & Men.
It was an early start to the evening as While She Sleeps graced the stage at a quarter to seven. The massive concert hall towered above the crowd as the band performed on stage. In such a big venue, it can be easy for the crowd to get swallowed up in it. However, fans were letting their energy be known, immediately opening up a mosh pit and throwing crowd surfers over the barrier. Lead vocalist, Lawrence Taylor, even pointed out that not many crowds would be interested in moshing “at 6:45pm on Tuesday night” but that Brooklyn was “f**king ready to go!”
As you guessed, the same high energy was carried over into Of Mice & Mens’ set. Rooted in Southern California, Of Mice & Men are no strangers to the game and their set spanned a variety of songs throughout their discography. Fans were loving every second of it, but it all peaked during their final song — the song that seemingly everyone in the room was waiting for: “Second & Sebring”. By the final verse of the song, lead vocalist Aaron Pauly allowed the crowd to finish it off acapella as he pointed his microphone towards the crowd. As a big Of Mice & Men fan in high school, I had to hold back from joining in on the moshing throughout!
Following their set, a half-hour break ensued in which the Brooklyn Paramount stage was transformed. A dual-level LED screen stage setup was rolled out onto center stage, with keyboards on both sides of a drum kit that sat atop the middle of the second floor. On the stage, three mic stands were lined up in a row against the very front of the stage — this was going to be one close encounter. The house lights and music went dark and silent and Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” began to play. Everyone in the crowd (and security guards) were going crazy dancing along to the song. If Architects plan was to get the crowd hyped up before they came on, then mission accomplished!
The Brighton, UK based rockers jumped onstage and immediately ripped into the heavy, gritty song “Seeing Red”. It was a perfect intro song and the band wasted absolutely no time as the crowd surfers were pouring over the barricade, reaching for lead vocalist Sam Carter’s hands on their way out of the pit. It was clear that every single person in there was having the time of their life! Architects played a lengthy 16 song setlist including “Doomsday”, “when we were young” and their newest single “Curse”. The band closed out their performance with their most popular song, “Animals”, before thanking the crowd and bidding everyone farewell.
Having never seen any of the bands on the bill for the evening, it was an absolutely epic show. The evening had everything you could ask for from a metalcore show: three amazing bands, supreme talent, high energy and fans that were neck deep in the energy throughout the entire night. Architects are taking North America by storm on tour this year, you better get your tickets now!
Of Mice & Men
