Falling In Reverse • Tech N9ne • Black Veil Brides • Dance Gavin Dance • August 25, 2024 • Utah First Amphitheatre
Reviewed and Photographed by Morgan Newbold
Last week, Salt Lake welcomed Falling In Reverse to Utah First Credit Union on their The Popular Monstour Tour! Supported by Tech N9ne, Black Veil Brides, and Dance Gavin Dance, it was definitely a punk-rock party to remember! Most of the crowd was decked out in merch from all of the artists of the night. This was my first time photographing at Usana and I was really pumped to capture such a great show! I spotted my aunt and cousin at the barricade and met some really nice people in the pit! On top of seeing each of these artists for the first time, it was also the first time I’ve shot at this venue! It was all around a great experience.
Tech N9ne
The evening started with Tech N9ne. He is an American rapper from Kansas City Missouri born in 1971! Tech N9ne released his first studio album ‘Calm Before The Storm’ in 1999, and now has 24 released albums. He started a record label with Travis O’Guin called Strange Music and has his music featured in several movies and shows. For his set, he came out wearing a red sweatsuit, red gloves, and a gold crown. I wasn’t familiar with his music so I didn’t know what to expect! The sunlight gleamed off of his sunglasses and his crown.
Black Veil Brides
Next up was Black Veil Brides! I had heard of these guys and was eager to hear them live. These guys formed in 2006 in Cincinnati! They are now based in Hollywood and include frontman Andy Biersack, lead guitarist Jake Pitts, rhythm guitarist Jinxx, bassist Lonny Eagleton, and drummer Christain Coma. Black Veil Brides found rapid success after their first record in 2010 when they charted No. 36 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on Billboard Independent. They currently have 7 full length albums in their discography. They all have a very heavy metal emo style in their music and performance. Andy has strong vocals and piercing blue eyes that makes him a formidable frontman. I really enjoyed their set.
Dance Gavin Dance
Next up, an artist I was not familiar with, but was thoroughly impressed by, was Dance Gavin Dance. They are a post-hardcore group from Sacremento, California. They formed in 2005! It consists of vocalist Jon Mess, lead guitarist Will Swan, vocalist and rhythm guitarist Andrew Wells, and drummer Matthew Mingus. The band formerly included lead vocalists Jonny Craig, Kurt Travis, and Tilian Pearson, and the lineup has changed several times since they formed. They had great energy and style.
I had no idea what to expect when they walked out wearing colorful outfits and wild sunglasses and hats. But I quickly realized their sound was a lot heavier than I expected. I was vibing to it. At this point in the night, the sun had gone down a bit and the sky was a pastel pink and purple! The stage lights were finally starting to illuminate the band. I really liked my shots of these guys, and they were genuinely fun to watch!
Falling In Reverse
Finally, at around 9:45, it was time for Falling In Reverse! These guys formed in 2008, led by singer/frontman Ronnie Radke. The band has had several members and drama over the years, but now consists of Christian Thompson, Tyler Burgess, and Luke Holland! They signed to Epitaph Records and started recording their first album in 2010, and released it in 2011. It’s titled The Drug In Me is You. They now have 5 studio albums, and are touring their 2024 record called Popular Monster.
The intro started dark with ominous music. Unfortunately, the risers on the edge of the stage made it a little difficult to see the full production. Slowly, the band members walked out on stage in darkness, and the lights flashed briefly to illuminate them to the beat of the song. The haze rolled in and ignited the atmosphere of the performance. The lights reflected off the smoke and off of Ronnie briefly.
The set opened with ‘Prequel’ and ‘Zombified’. As the music started building, the other members came into sight. Was very pleased to see the use of pyro throughout the set, and it made for some really sick shots at the beginning of the set. Ronnie moved back and forth on the stage pretty frequently, waving to fans while simultaneously locked in to his stage persona.
As I made my way towards the back after shooting in the pit, I could more clearly see the production. There was a lot of visuals from music videos on the screen for nearly every song and lots of fire. Towards the end of the night, fans were ecstatic when Jelly Roll made a surprise appearance to sing their new collab song ‘All My Life’. Several people had suspicions that he would come out to play it, as he had his own show at The Delta Center a couple days later. This show definitely outweighed my expectations, and I could tell it was a highly anticipated lineup. Catch Falling In Reverse on the rest of their U.S. Popular Monstour Tour, you won’t regret it!