Apr 12

Apr 12 Show Review, Photos: Pop Evil Bring 'Skeletons' To Life in Sacramento

Pop Evil
w/ The Word Alive, AVOID
Ace of Spades
Sacramento, CA
April 11th, 2023

Review and Photos by Jared Stossel

Pop Evil has been writing and recording music for the better part of two decades. Seven albums in, with their latest being this year’s Skeletons, they know exactly who they are: heavy-hitting hard rock and metal that’s polished yet still sharp enough to cut like razor blades. Their songwriting ethos shines through in their performance, and it hits like a ton of bricks when they’re all playing in unison. Such was the case last night at Sacramento’s Ace of Spades when the band brought their tour in support of the Skeletons album.

Two outstanding acts opened up the evening’s festivities. Like an adrenaline shot to the chest, Seattle’s AVOID returned to the Sacramento stage with enough energy to take down a football team’s defensive line. It is rare to see an opening act so engaged with an audience right off the bat, yet AVOID have managed time and time again to impress, whether they’re headlining on their own or helping get the party started. This band is poised to dominate the metalcore scene at any minute, and I’m anxiously awaiting the moment when they do. The band’s vocalist, Benny Scholl, is the kind of frontman you want: someone who can hit the notes while never letting the energy drop for even a moment. They’re stylistically impressive, and one needs to look no further than their most recent effort, 2022’s Cult Mentality.

The Word Alive followed and immediately took things back to the days when metalcore acts on Rise Records and Fearless Records dominated the scene, launching headfirst into Deceiver’s crushing single “2012”. You could almost feel the barricade shake as the crowd moved in tandem with the band throughout each breakdown section. While the band has shifted lineups quite a bit over the years, vocalist Tyler “Telle” Smith and guitarist Zack Hansen have remained constant since 2008, and they guide the current iteration through a collection of songs both old and new, spanning over a decade of material including new singles like “Nocturnal Future”.\

It's very easy to tell when Pop Evil is in the building. A guitar intro signals the beginning of “Paranoid (Crash & Burn)” from Skeletons, and once the band kicks in, all hell breaks loose. Every band member utilized each corner of the stage, moving around constantly – with the exception of drummer Hayley Cramer, who hits every note with incredible ferocity and passion. Leigh Kakaty is an excellent frontman and an exceptional vocalist, leading the crowd through songs from the new album, in addition to tracks from albums like Versatile (“Let The Chaos Reign”, “Survivor”) and their self-titled release (“Be Legendary”, “Waking Lions”).

Kakaty speaks with the audience only a few times throughout the evening, keeping the focus solely on the music as it blares out to the engaged audience. A four-song encore closed out the evening, which included Onyx favorites “Torn To Pieces and “Trenches”, along with an acapella version of “100 in a 55”. This was an interesting choice – you don’t see many heavy acts opting to just sing one of their songs, but the crowd joined Kakaty and eagerly sang the words back to him. With precision and power, Pop Evil closed their set with a selection from their Versatile album, “Breathe Again”.

I really enjoyed their approach to hard rock; I don’t think I could recall a Pop Evil song before yesterday, but as of last night, I’m now eager to listen through their back catalog. I’ve seen the name Pop Evil on venue marquees and festival bills for the last few years, yet the timing never worked out to where I was able to check out a live show. Now, I understand why they continue to draw crowds: they’re a spectacle to be seen and heard.

The tour continues tonight in San Diego, CA. For tickets, click here.

Pop Evil Set List
Paranoid (Crash & Burn)
Deal with the Devil
Let The Chaos Reign
Circles
Dead Reckoning
Work
Be Legendary
Who Will We Become
Skeletons
Eye of the Storm
Footsteps
Survivor
Waking Lions

Encore:
Torn To Pieces
100 in a 55 (acapella)
Trenches
Breathe Again