BLEED FROM WITHIN

VENUE – O2 Academy Liverpool

DATE – 29^th August 2023

Words and photographs – Graeme Wright

This is the first time I’ve seen Bleed From Within in a live setting and they are the perfect choice as the main support act for the still mighty Trivium. The venue was already rammed as we arrived and it was incredibly hot. The crowd were at a fever pitch before Bleed From Within had even hit the stage and there was a real buzz of anticipation in the air. The band played brutal, but still melodic in your face Heavy Metal and judging by the number of band T-shirts in the crowd there were as many people here for the crew from Scotland as those who had attended to see the Floridian giants.

The band enter the stage at full throttle and are immediately into ‘Stand Down’ from the 2022 ‘Shrine’ album. It’s a hugely aggressive and pounding attack on the senses and singer Scott Kennedy is everywhere, powering out the main vocal and immediately whipping the crowd into a frenzy. It’s not long before the crowd surfing is at full throttle and the security staff deal with it perfectly (unlike some venues on this tour apparently.) ‘Sovereign’ follows and is fast-paced and heavy, while always retaining clean guitar work and a crunching back line accompaniment. The crowd are going mental at this stage and the circle is the biggest I’ve seen in an age with people throwing themselves around with sheer abandon.

‘Levitate’ was my favourite track from ‘Shrine’ and is the one that tips the crowd over the edge. Amazing drumming, tandem brutal and “clean” vocals perfectly in harmony and a huge chorus that has the whole crowd singing along. Sheer perfection as far as I’m concerned, this kind of music doesn’t get any better. ‘Pathfinder’ from the band’s second album ‘Fracture’ is another well-established crowd favourite and the pace of the show doesn’t flag in the slightest. ‘Killing Time’ is a slower-paced monster of a song and I can feel my heart pounding in my chest I have to mop my brow because of the loudness, heat and intensity within this venue. ‘I Am Damnation’ is also from the last album and the song selection for this show has been on the money.

For me their third album was easily the band’s strongest and it was a no-brainer to go with the songs from that record for the most part in a seven-song set. By this time the crowd surfing is incessant, but the biggest roar of the night occurs when the singer decides to join the party and throws himself into a crowd who are happy to aid him in his attempts to surf thirty feet into the packed auditorium.

The band closes out with the song that most people associate with Bleed From Within, the mighty ‘The End Of All We Know’ and the whole place is jumping, I’m exhausted (and I haven’t crowd surfed since 1988!) and this finale brings the house down. This has been a fantastic, high-energy performance and I’ll be making the effort to get out and see these boys on their next headline tour. Brilliant stuff.

Band

Scott Kennedy – ‘Unclean’ Vocals

Craig Gowans – Guitar

Steven Jones – Rhythm Guitar/‘Clean’ Vocals

Davie Provan – Bass

Ali Richardson – Drums

SETLIST

1. Stand Down
2. Sovereign
3. Levitate
4. Pathfinder
5. Killing Time
6. I Am Damnation
7. The End Of All We Know