Live Review: Still Remains w/Carcer City & Wars @ The Borderline, London 15/10/2017!

It’s the final night of the 9 date UK headlining run for returned US Metalcore masters Still Remains, dragging Liverpool’s underground tech-metal kings Carcer City and Wars across our green and pleasant land to a newly refurbished Borderline. Wars [2] Open the show but for all their effort and endeavour, they’re hampered by technical issues from the first moment with their bass sound drowning out some of the guitar work and clean vocals. Probably Rugby’s finest offering deserve better but it just doesn’t happen. Hopefully we will see a new release from them soon as 2015’s “And So The Sea Will Claim Us All” EP was a hidden gem.

Tonight is the fourth time in the last 12 months that we’ve seen Liverpool tech-metal titans Carcer City [5] and they never cease to amaze in the live arena. Vocalist Patrick Pinion is in fine form as the band smash through half of their third album “Infinite//Unknown” to an audience loving every minute. The album itself is just over a year old in release terms and we’re looking forward to new material from them soon. The guitar work is tight and new drummer Brad (replacing Karl) looks like he’s been in the band forever. “Wolf Without A Pack” goes down a storm while classic “Sovereign” closes out the set in style.

It’s been 10 years since Still Remains [5] graced us with their presence on these shores and nearly 3 years since current release “Ceasing To Breathe”. Despite all suffering from heavy colds, the Grand Rapids, Michigan Metalcore crew have a blast. The colds are evident on the speaking sections but the vocals themselves are spot on throughout and pretty much every song is a sing-a-long throughout a career spanning set. New song “Crone” has the audience singing along to the chorus, and this continues through the likes of “Stay Captive”, “Blossom The Witch” and “White Walls”. Frontman TJ Miller has an emotional night, almost in tears while explaining to the audience how much getting to play with his best friends in the band means so much to him, while also leaping into the audience to give his wife a sweaty hug mid song. At one point he even takes a gulp of beer from the raised glass of a fan. There is the promise of the band returning home after this final date to records a new album “to blow our socks off” and the band have certainly created themselves a very high bar with the quality of their output so far. As final song “The Worst Is Yet To Come” is played, TJ Miller climbs into the crowd with his microphone held aloft. Every song is played to sweet perfection and despite it being a smaller venue and the band having heavy colds, Still Remains prove they’re still one of the finest Metalcore bands around.