The Metalcore Dropouts 2nd Semester Tour came to Soma San Diego, with co-headliners Fit for a King and The Devil Wears Prada, and support from Counterparts and Avoid! With a little delay getting my pass, I missed my photo opportunity window for Avoid.
If I didn’t know, I would have thought I walked in on the headlining band.
It was a packed house, pit going, people lined along the steps and standing on the ledges. Avoid started in Seattle, but San Diego is now home to lead vocalist Benny Scholl and he was so hyped! He said he grew up going to shows at SOMA and even worked there sometimes. They ended their set with “Song About James’ which is also on the soundtrack for the Xbox video game Nascar Heat 5. This was my second time seeing them and I absolutely love them! I’m hoping that they get their own headlining tour soon because they can definitely pull in the fans! I’m pretty sure I saw Benny later in the night out there crowd-surfing.
Canadian Metalcore band, Counterparts, was up next! They released their last album, A Eulogy for Those Still Here, in late 2022. I didn’t know much about them before this show, but they fit so well with this lineup. Fit for a King walked out on stage next and the crowd doubled down on the energy. The pit was going and non-stop crowd surfers came over the rail.
Bassist Ryan “Tuck” O’Leary is in the air more than he’s on the stage!
It’s hard to take your eyes off of him. He is either in the air, spinning his bass guitar around him, or singing in the mic. Lead Singer Ryan Kirby was dressed in all white and reminded me a bit of Jesus with his long hair and beard. They played an amazing set with insane energy at SOMA. That 26-second scream in Backbreaker is legit live! They played a fourteen-song set with AVOID coming out to sing the last song, “God of Fire.” Benny and his “REEE’S” are insane! Tuck went down on the barricade and jumped into the crowd for some surfing. Amazing way to end their set!
This was my first time seeing The Devil Wears Prada. Mike Hranica sings with such intensity.
They played a twelve-song set list with an encore song. This is one of those shows where you could not know a single song and have a total blast! This is a great line up and they all were having a blast up there. There are still a couple more dates on this tour so be sure not to miss it!
Remaining Dates on Metalcore Dropsouts Semester 2:
2/20 — Edmonton, AB — Midway Music Hall
2/21 — Calgary, AB — The Palace Theatre
2/23 — Winnipeg, MB — The Park Theatre
2/24 — Minneapolis, MN — The Fillmore
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