The Unheavenly Skye Tour opens up in Louisville, Kentucky - 5.28.19
Fans young and old welcomed The Unheavenly Skye Tour to the Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville, Kentucky for the first night of the tour. Coheed and Cambria, Mastodon, and Every Time I Die kicked off the summer on a heavy note. All three bands are capable of their own headlining run but together on one bill, produces a can’t miss lineup. The enthused but subdued crowd filled over 2/3rds of the amphitheater where there is not a bad seat in the house.
Buffalo-based Every Time I Die (ETID) began the night with their raucous brand of hardcore, metalcore, and rock. Vocalist Keith Buckley mentioned the history of the band playing in Louisville since the days of Krazyfest in the early 2000’s and dedicated a song to Kentucky’s own Knocked Loose from neighboring Oldham county. In the past when I have witnessed ETID live it’s in a smaller venue space and typically a chaotic environment. ETID simulated a heavy metal church with a stained glass video backdrop. The setting of the Amphitheater was a change of pace but it wasn’t long until the ETID faithfuls filled up the front to sing along with every song.
Mastodon from Atlanta, Georgia are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their 2009 album Crack The Skye with this tour. The set featured a rare experience for fans because the band played through the entire concept album after opening the set with 4 tracks from the rest of their discography. Producing a 60-plus minute set of progessive, heavy, and melodic metal with a trippy video backdrop spiraling through different scenes. Mastodon is one of the bands whose career I wish I followed more closely over the years. They’ve had a steady rise to become one of the most prolific progressive metal bands with each release. If the musicianship doesn’t do it for you, the themes and songwriting of the different records will seal the deal. Drummer Brann Dailor expressed gratitude to the fans for coming out and tossed some day of coupons to a local coffee shop only for them to fall in the void between the stage and fans. He spoke on the fact that all three bands have been friends for a long time and how great it was to put a tour like this together. It was kind of the perfect period for a Mastodon set who are extremely talented musicians that don’t take themselves too seriously.
As the sun fell, the tension rose for Coheed and Cambria to take the stage. This was their second trip to Louisville in a year. In November of 2018 after the release of their ninth studio album Vaxis - Act I: The Unheavenly Creatures, Coheed visited Louisville’s Mercury Ballroom to a sold out crowd. So Kentuckiana fans were rewarded with the opening night of this three headed beast of a headlining tour. Coheed’s set featured a heavy representation of the latest album, which was one of my favorite releases of 2018. They also played “The Pavillion (A Long Way Back)” live for the first time. ‘Epic’ is the go-to word to describe Coheed’s music. From the riffs, song structures, choruses, and concepts. In their 20-year career they have carved their own lane from thier post hardcore roots. The crowd was prepared and ready to sing along as the band let them take over a couple times to jam out. Day-one Coheed fans were treated to a throwback track from the first album, “Delirium Trigger”. Guitarist Claudio Sanchez and Travis Stever high stepped and moved about stage as men possessed even during their solos. The rhythm section, Josh Eppard on drums and Zach Cooper on bass, had plenty of high energy as well. Claudio’s live vocals were unmatched. I even found myself singing along to the infectious melodies.
The night ended with an encore of “Welcome Home” one of Coheed’s marquee hits with over 50 million streams on Spotify. The first time I saw Coheed and Cambria live was in 2009 opening for my favorite band, Slipknot. Back then they opened with “Welcome Home” and I was hooked. In my anticipation of this song closing out the night, I thought I was ready but I wasn’t. When the riff kicked in with the recorded orchestra underneath it felt like a blitzkrieg of sound. Claudio even brought out the double neck guitar.
The Unheavenly Skye tour featured a lineup of all-time great bands with storied careers and delivered an incredible night of performances.