You don’t see too many bands nowadays announce a tour stop in San Antonio and sell it out almost immediately, but that’s exactly what Bad Omens did. At a venue like the Boeing Center at Tech Port that holds over 3,000 people, that’s not a feat to take lightly, so I had to go see what all the hype was about for the hottest metalcore band in the scene.
This wasn’t their first time playing in San Antonio but it was their first time headlining a show here. While many were getting to experience the band live for the first time, that wasn’t the case for my friend Josh, whom I later met up with at the show.
“The first time I saw them was when they were on tour supporting Underoath,” he said. I had never heard of them… instantly I was hooked. The sound and performance was just so legit and good. They killed it. From there on out, I told myself I’d eventually be seeing them again.”
I got to talk to my friend Sophia who was also at the show and she was one of many seeing Bad Omens for the first time. She told me what made her excited to see them was “their music style and overall message… especially with their visuals.”
Man, she was not wrong about the visuals.
I’ve been to quite a few shows at this venue and this was by far the best technically put-together show I’ve ever seen here. It featured an insane visual setup with five large LED screens. I’ve also experienced sound issues at past shows here but that was not an issue with this show. The sound was completely on point, with the sheer amount of visuals and lighting featured on stage accompanying it perfectly throughout the entire setlist.
The Virginia-based band features Noah Sebastian on vocals, Nicholas Ruffilo on bass, Joakim Karlsson on lead guitar, and Nick Folio on drums, with the latter elevated above them on stage. They came out to “ARTIFICIAL SUICIDE,” with Karlsson’s guitar piercing deeply right from the get-go. Sebastian began with his screaming vocals which sounded just as amazing as his regular singing voice. Fog was flying in the air, fans were going nuts, and it was already such a crazy atmosphere to start the night.
Bad Omens packed in a hell of a setlist to give the fans what they deserved, showcasing the versatility you’ll find in their discography. With “Like a Villain,” the range in pitch and tone in Sebastian’s voice was unbelievable to hear live. In “Glass Houses,” the breakdown after the line, “But not deep enough,” went insanely hard with a visual of a white-cloaked figure engulfed in red smoke looming right over the band members.
Sebastian never took a moment during the show to give the crowd a speech, but by referring to the audience as his friends, he really added to the communal experience of the show. Towards the end of “Nowhere to Go,” he called for a wall of death and had the crowd chanting the line, “Tell me what’s mine and tell me what’s yours,” back to him until they hit the line “And why I never ever got a fucking say?” The crowd’s screams instantly filled up the venue and only grew louder with the line “Are you ready? I’m in the driver’s seat now.” I felt like I heard what I can only describe as a powerful emotional release from every fan there.
This led to the pinnacle moment of playing their most popular song, with the band more than happy to tell the crowd that it just went platinum a few days ago.
“That said, you might know the words, it’s called ‘Just Pretend’ if anyone knows.” The crowd roared in anticipation, and Sebastian encouraged them to sing it as loud as they could.
“Alright, I want to hear you sing at that volume, the whole room, don’t be shy. You all sing together, no one can tell who sucks, let’s do it.”
At the song’s bridge, Sebastian had everyone hold their cell phone lights up high, with every fan in attendance singing “Weigh down on me, stay ‘til morning, way down, would you say I’m worthy?” This was followed by an unexpectedly perfect confetti blast that got the crowd so excited for the song’s final moments.
I was on such a high already that I would have been more than happy if the show ended right then. When talking to Josh, he said he felt the same high.
“I remember after the first time I saw them, I downloaded the most recent album they have to date… And that song was one of my favorites immediately… I don’t think they played it the first time I saw them so hearing it live was awesome. It was the moment I was looking forward to the most at the show.”
Bad Omens did come out for an encore, first playing “CONCRETE JUNGLE” and then unleashing into their finale, “Dethrone.”
As great as his screams were throughout the show, none of them even remotely compared to the unhinged nature and utter darkness that Sebastian poured out during this track. It was like hearing a completely different singer; he sounded incredible and when talking to Josh, he fully agreed.
“He’s so good, from screaming to singing. I think he might be the best vocalist in the scene right now.”
I asked Josh what he thought after seeing them for the first time, and he had nothing but raves for them.
“Oh, this was way more intense. Way more enjoyable because I knew who they were now. Knowing the songs, it was awesome.”
It was an absolute hell of a way to end a remarkable San Antonio headline debut, especially for a band that’s only going to grow even bigger by the time we see them touch down in the Alamo City next.
