Gideon brought the MORE POWER. MORE PAIN. Tour Part II through St. Louis, Missouri and we had an incredible time attending!
The openers, No Cure, knew exactly what to do to get this St. Louis crowd riled up and ready for a night full of metal. The first thing that front man Blaythe Steuer did once he took the stage was scream “ST. LOUIS HARDCORE, WHERE YOU AT?” and it got the exact response he was hoping for. This type of callout always works well in St. Louis, as the roots in hardcore metal scene go back to as early as the 1980s.
One would not think this was an opening act, as the crowd was fired up for the rest of their set. Special guests joined the band on stage at different times to do vocals and each time it popped the crowd even further. No Cure did an amazing job getting things warmed up for the next act.
Up next was Fox Lake, the pride of “Hip Hop Hardcore,” as they have labeled themselves. The group kept the pace going, matching the raw energy of the banging opener. If the energy in the crowed would let up if even for a moment, front man Nathan Johnson would call out the crowd directly and ask for more. Navigating through a set that included fan favorite tracks such as “Tunnel Vision” and “Gaslight” made sure that the next set, performed by Left To Suffer, was met with the same hype.
Left To Suffer are no strangers to St. Louis, as they were just recently in the city as a performing act on the [M]other Tour with Veil of Maya. Coming through as a co-headliner meant that the group would have more room to play through their discography. This allowed them to play one of their oldest tracks, “Loathe,” and a brand new track from 2024, entitled “Left In The Dark.”
This set brought just as much moshing, headbanging, and crowd involvement as one could ask for. Left to Suffer completely delivered on setting the stage for the headliner, Gideon.
Gideon is one of those bands that always receives a warm welcome when they return to St. Louis. They have been making their way through the city as performers for nearly a decade with many other touring acts. Lead vocalist Dan McWhorter pays homage to this at every chance he gets by asking the question, “How many of you have seen us at the Fubar?” The Fubar being one of the oldest and smallest venues where metal acts would perform if they came to St. Louis. It has sadly since closed its doors, but the call-and-response question calls back to Gideon’s roots.
As they have in the past, Gideon made sure to bring as much energy as physically possible for this performance while also making sure that guests were allowed to do the same. At one point the band paused to stop and ask “Where are all of my crowd surfers at?” and then checked with security by saying “We good?”
Bodies then proceeded to cover the entirety of the Old Rock House from front to back. This set included hits from each one of their well known eras, as well as some newer tracks. We don’t want to spoil everything for you by listing out the set here, but know that fans of all eras of Gideon will be pleased.
MORE POWER. MORE PAIN. Tour Part II featuring Gideon, Left to Suffer, Fox Lake, and No Cure continues on for a few more weeks, so be sure to check out if they are coming your city by checking their website here!
Leave a comment