After the release of their 2022 album THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND brought another swathe of new fans, Bad Omens trucked through Nottingham via an upgraded show at Rock City, and Jake Longhurst was there to review...
The Virginia metalcore quartet have been making their way around, taking their live show all over, and finally it came time for a Nottingham stop.
Having previously played at The Bodega, they were originally planning on playing at Rescue Rooms. The show sold out far quicker than anyone had anticipated, and so by the time the date rolled around it was a sold-out Rock City that was to be the venue of their latest conquest.
With support being provided by Oxymorrons and GHØSTKID, who both turned up and gave a respectable performance as more than worthy support acts, the stage was set for a monumental headline show.
Bad Omens have not messed about this tour. Bringing an arena quality set of visuals and lights, as well as a flawless live sound, the only criticism I could possibly have is actually to the sound desk - the show just didn’t quite feel loud enough!
Other than that tiny gripe, the band were exquisite, rolling through some seriously strong versions of their latest songs with highlights from the new album being CONCRETE JUNGLE, ARTIFICIAL SUICIDE and The Grey.
After opening with a few new tracks, songs such as Mercy and Glass Houses brought us back to both of their previous releases with a jolt, all sounding as good as each other.
The crowd lapped up everything thrown at them by the band, cheering and clapping for each and every song played. As the main set neared its end, the band played through four songs from THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND in a row - starting with IDWT$ and then playing What It Cost, before finishing the main set with a one-two punch of Like A Villain and Just Pretend. This gave everyone time to have a brief breather before calling for an encore, which was dutifully obliged by the band in phenomenal fashion.
The encore was short but sweet, featuring three songs. Two of those were again from their most recent LP, taking the total number of songs played from THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND to eleven, which frankly still could have been larger! Each of the two songs played came at the edge of the encore, as the band started with the title track of the album and finished with What do you want from me?.
However, it was neither of these two tracks that quite caught the crowd as the one that was sandwiched between them both, which was an album two fire blazer by the name of Dethrone. One of their most popular tracks, and possibly their defining anthem, the song is heavier than pretty much anything else in their set and it sounded even better live. The crowd was a mess of limbs and screams, with a truly stunning atmosphere.
Bad Omens will be able to leave the UK knowing they’ve firmly branded themselves into the hearts of thousands of fans, both new and old. With performances like these, their next visit to Nottingham may well take place at the Motorpoint Arena, so keep your eyes and ears peeled for them! And most importantly, if they do come back, don’t hesitate to grab yourself a ticket.
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