Nonpoint came to the Whiskey A Go Go on their Taken Apart and Put Back Together Tour with support from VRSTY!! For this show there was also special support from some local bands Syndicate 4, Matriarchs and Fused By Defiance. The first act we saw was Fused By Defiance and they blew us away! Taj, the lead singer, came running past me straight into the mosh pit to kick off their set! I’ve heard of their name before, but not their music, and I was instantly captivated by their energy. Taj is an amazing frontman for this metal rap band. Midway through their set, they threw fruit snacks into the crowd and I actually caught one! Never thought I’d be eating fruit snacks at a metal show, but I loved it! We hope to see them on a festival lineup soon!
VRSTY is at the top of my list when it comes to my favorite bands.
I first heard of them on Sirius Xm’s Octane when their song “Massive” had just come out; it just hit me and I instantly fell in love with them. They have this really unique sound that blends metal with R&B-styled vocals, showing us that there are things that still haven’t been done before in this genre. Lead singer, Joey Valera, has been deemed as the “Metalcore Micheal Jackson”, which is so suiting, especially when a couple lines in their songs go “Hee Hee”.
Joey was telling me before the show that people tell him they think they sound heavier live and he was so right! I love their songs as is, but they just take them to a whole new level live. They played an unreleased song, “The Goat”, and it went so hard! They just released their first full-length album, Welcome Home in January, so I’m so excited that we are already getting a new VRSTY! Definitely keep your eye on these guys, because they are making their way to the top fast! If you go to one of their shows, make sure to buy them lots of White Claw, especially the Black Cherry flavored ones for Paul 😉
Nonpoint came out looking sharp! Lead singer Elias Soriano was in all white with his dreads — it was such a great look! We were supposed to see Nonpoint at last year’s Blue Ridge Rock Fest, but they had to unfortunately cancel hours before going on. While traveling to the grounds, their trailer unhitched and crashed into a wooden area, damaging some of their equipment. They all made it out safe, but they were definitely missed by us at the fest! I was so happy to finally be able to hear “Ruthless” and see those dreads at this show! Nonpoint is another band whose energy is just so mesmerizing to watch… drummer Robb Rivera had his kit facing sideways, which was really interesting, cause I’ve never seen a drummer do that before. He also had the muppet Animal attached to his kit, which was a cool little touch. They closed out their set with the classic “Bullet With a Name”. Afterwards, they took a group photo onstage with the crowd and said they were printing it out right then and there, so you could take something home to remember the night. The Taken Apart and Put Back Together Tour has concluded, but you can catch Nonpoint back on tour in just a couple weeks.
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