The opening of the show is like something from a horror movie. The sinister choral intro of Welcome Back, O’ Sleeping Dreamer reaches a crescendo as blinding blue light floods the venue. Lorna Shore run onstage. “Berlinnnnn! Are you guys ready to fucking jump?” shouts frontman Will Ramos.
Then, punctuated by a “blegh”, plumes of flame shoot up around him. We’re at the 3,500-capacity Columbiahalle in Berlin, Germany. Tonight’s show has been upgraded from the 2,000-capacity Astra venue – one of many upgrades on this headline tour. It’s the culmination of a year in which the New Jersey quintet have played Download’s Main Stage, supported Parkway Drive in Europe’s arenas, and opened for Gojira and Mastodon in amphitheatres across the US.
