Spiritbox in Munich: A Night of Energy, Emotion, and Progressive Metalcore

It's February 22nd and it's an almost spring-like Saturday evening in Munich. The black-clad masses are heading to the Tonhalle today for an evening of progressive metalcore with Spiritbox on their first headlining tour in Europe. The Canadians have Stray From The Path and Periphery in their luggage on their relatively short but completely sold-out EU tour.

Stray From The Path kick off the show at 7 pm with a show full of concentrated hardcore power. The band from New York managed to warm up the crowd and the first mosh pits and crowd surfers were already in evidence. After a relatively short playing time of 30 minutes and a “Peace and Love Motherfuckers”, they leave the stage and make room for the next band of the evening: Periphery.

Setlist Stray From The Path

• Needful Things

• May You Live Forever

• III

• Chest Candy

• Kubrick Stare

• Fortune Teller

• Guillotine

Shortly before 8 p.m., the intro by US-Americans Periphery starts and you immediately realize that it's going to be a lot more metalcore-heavy and progressive, which can be seen not least in the saxophone solo of the first song “Wildfire”. The vocal power of singer Spencer is definitely convincing throughout the evening and so one progressive highlight follows the next. It's also Spencer's birthday, which he announces with a short “Getting old sucks”. Accordingly, there is also a birthday serenade from the fans. They finish their set after 45 minutes with “Blood Eagle”, which they say is their heaviest song, leaving the crowd well warmed up for the evening's headliner.

Setlist Periphery

• Intro (Crush)

• Wildfire

• Atropos (With Icarus Lives! snippet)

• Masamune

• The Bad Thing

• CHVRCH BVRNER

• Marigold

• Blood Eagle

Spiritbox enter the stage punctually at 21:15 with a new song. As it turns out later, this is the first song from the new album “Tsunami Sea” entitled “Fata Morgana”. Singer Courtney LaPlante is not only convincing vocally, but also with her incredible charisma. The stage is initially draped in blue and purple and there are large video screens behind the band, which add to the overall atmosphere. One highlight song follows the next and the first crowdsurfers venture over the crowd. One crowdsurfer is holding an “I Love You Poppy” sign, which Courtney takes with a lot of humor after being mistaken for singer Poppy at the Grammys.

Songs like “Perfect Soul” or “Eternal Blue” showcase the vocal harmonies between Courtney and bassist Josh Gilbert particularly well. The second half of Spiritbox's set is mainly bathed in red light and begins with “Rotoscope”, a song that, according to singer Courtney, is ideal for crying in the club.

Stray From The Path singer Andrew Dijorio joins the band for “No Loss, No Love” and once again shows off his voice and energy.

Before Spiritbox start the last two songs of the evening, Courtney can be heard saying “No encore, no surprises. We give you the whole show”. And you get this feeling the whole evening. A thoroughly professional but also emotional show delivered by Spiritbox that evening. When they leave the stage at around 22:40, you wish the concert had been a little longer, or would have preferred it not to end at all.

Spiritbox setlist

• Fata Morgana

• Cellar Door

• Jaded

• Halcyon

• Perfect Soul

• The Void

• Eternal Blue

• Circle With Me

• Rotoscope

• Sew Me Up

• Hysteria

• Soft Spine

• The Mara Effect, Pt. 3

• No Loss, No Love

• Holy Roller

• Constance