Show Review: Atreyu - San Francisco, CA

Jared Stossel
Music
Atreyu performing at The Fillmore in San Francisco, CA. December 11, 2018. Photo Credit: Jared Stossel

Atreyu performing at The Fillmore in San Francisco, CA. December 11, 2018. Photo Credit: Jared Stossel

Atreyu
w/ Memphis May Fire, Ice Nine Kills, Sleep Signals
The Fillmore
San Francisco, CA
December 11, 2018

Photos and review by Jared Stossel

The phrase '“rock is dead” has been uttered, verbatim, hundreds of times by passerby around the world in the last several years. Gone are the days of hard-hitting guitar-driven songs dominating the Billboard charts and radio airwaves (in most cases); we exist in an era that is predominantly catering to the new generation of hip-hop that’s dominating the “Soundcloud rap” genre, and a scene where artists judged more often than not by their social media presence rather than the actual sound of their music. Now I’m going to be honest: I’m tired of hearing that statement. Rock is not dead; it is very much alive and well, as I’ve stated countless times before. Sure, it’s current iteration hasn’t been propelled into the arms of the mainstream masses like the current state of hip-hop or pop, but rock music still lives on. For proof, one would only have to point to last Tuesday’s show at San Francisco’s legendary Fillmore Auditorium, where hard rock/metalcore five-piece Atreyu made their Bay Area stop on their In Our Wake headlining tour.

Given that Atreyu hadn’t released an album in around four years (their last album for In Our Wake was released in 2015). The band’s highly anticipated seventeen-song setlist marked an incredible return back to the Bay Area for the Orange County-based quintet. Joining the band on the tour were up and comers Sleep Signals, the horror-film-influenced Ice Nine Kills (who I must say were one of the biggest performance highlights of the entire evening), and metalcore legends Memphis May Fire (who brought one of the strongest performances of the evening).

People were ready for utter madness by the time Atreyu took the stage, and it was clear that they did not disappoint. While a number of songs were pulled from their most recent effort, including the eponymous track that opened the band’s full-speed-ahead set, an equal number of tracks were pulled from their highly successful albums Lead Sails Paper Anchor (“Becoming The Bull”, “Falling Down”) and The Curse (“Bleeding Mascara”, “The Crimson”). Throughout each performance of each track pulled from the band’s extensive catalogue, fans screamed the words right back at vocalists Alex Varkatzas and Brandon Saller (who also covers all drum duties) while crowd surfers barreled over the barricade in excitement.

After a powerful performance of Lead Sails Paper Anchor’s “Blow”, the band returned to the stage to perform two covers, both on complete opposite ends of the spectrum: Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” and Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love A Bad Name”. And as for the closing number, well, who could ever forget “Lip Gloss and Black”?

Just because you don’t see it in the mainstream as much as it once was present doesn’t mean that it’s not there. Tuesday night’s performance from Atreyu and Co. at The Fillmore proved that rock is very much alive and well. All you need to do is open your eyes and search your nearest local venue, buy a ticket, put up your horns, and let loose.


Atreyu Setlist
In Our Wake
Becoming the Bull
Right Side of the Bed
Anger Left Behind
Ex's and Oh's
The Crimson
Do You Know Who You Are?
The Remembrance Ballad
Bleeding Mascara
The Time Is Now
When Two Are One
Falling Down
House Of Gold
Blow

Encore:
Never Gonna Give You Up (Rick Astley cover)
You Give Love a Bad Name (Bon Jovi cover)
Lip Gloss and Black

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