Written by:	omne metallum
Published:	November 01, 2023
Event:	Thy Art Is Murder: Godlike European Tour 2023
Location:	O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, United Kingdom

The deathcore tour to end all deathcore tours: on this night, London got to bear witness to four bands at the top of their game who are pushing deathcore to new heights. Such a line-up comes round once in a blue moon, so I made sure I was in attendance soon after it was announced. Of course, tonight wasn't without an elephant (not) in the room, following the recent departure of Thy Art Is Murder frontman CJ McMahon; still, while it was the talk of the night going into the show, it soon faded into the background for a variety of reasons.

The first reason reared its head even before the show started, with the Roundhouse venue imposing a new ticket policy, one that was not communicated ahead of time, and only became known once you tried to enter the venue. This ticket policy meant that anyone who had bought a ticket from a vendor that wasn't the Roundhouse's had to create an account on their website and transfer it over. The ensuing bottleneck meant the queue to get in was extremely slow moving, and left many a bitter taste in the mouths of attendees, many of whom missed the first (and in some cases even the second) band on. While I'm no fan of Ticketmaster, the lack of forewarning or even informing while in the queue meant that any anti-Ticketmaster sentiment turned into anger at the venue.

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Spite (USA-CA) 18:30-19:00




I was fortunate to make it in before the band started; the same could not be said for many others, as Spite (USA-CA) played to a sparse crowd despite a large queue of punters eager to get in. On the flipside, I got to enjoy a barnstorming set from a band eager to impress the grateful few in the venue, while enjoying a great view and plenty of space. Spite (USA-CA) were certainly trying to make their mark and take advantage of the opportunity before them, with tracks like "Dedication To Death" hitting hard and getting the eager crowd moving. Spite (USA-CA) succeeded in making sure people knew who they were by the time they were leaving the stage.

Spite (USA-CA) setlist:

01. Made To Please
02. Cave In
03. IED
04. The Root Of All Evil
05. Thank You, Again
06. Dedication To Flesh
07. Kill Or Be Killed

Fit For An Autopsy 19:20-19:50




After a short changeover, up next were Fit For An Autopsy, who, for me, are the best deathcore band going. With a surprisingly short thirty-minute set, Fit For An Autopsy packed in as much as they could in the short time allotted to them. Blasting through a set packed with hits and new cuts that are as good as classics like "Pandora" and "Far From Heaven", the band were in fine form. Alas, the short changeover came back to bite them, with the irony that the band that has Will Putney in it had the worst sound on the night, suffering from a muddiness that made anything beyond the heavy chug rhythm inaudible. A shame that it wasn't as good as it could easily have been.

Fit For An Autopsy setlist:

01. A Higher Level Of Hate
02. Black Mammoth
03. Savages
04. The Sea Of Tragic Beasts
05. Hellions
06. Pandora
07. Far From Heaven

Whitechapel 20:10- 21:00




When the tour was announced, I was surprised that a band of Whitechapel's stature were only a support act in a venue this size, rather than headlining it themselves, given their popularity and quality. Be that as it may, after tonight's showing it should only be a matter of time that this comes to pass, as Whitechapel gave the audience a headliner’s display. Phil Bozeman certainly challenges Lorna Shore's Will Ramos as the best vocalist in the genre, with his performance tonight being laser precise on point. A solid mix of old and new, the band's nine-song set highlighted their evolution and contribution to the deathcore genre, from "A Bloodsoaked Symphony" and an early airing of "The Saw Is The Law", to an ending trio of older cuts that ended with a brutal rendition of "This Is Exile". Whitechapel ensured that, while tonight they weren't headliners, the audience certainly wished they were.

Whitechapel setlist:

01. I Will Find You
02. A Bloodsoaked Symphony
03. The Saw Is Law
04. We Are One
05. Forgiveness Is Weakness
06. Doom Woods
07. End Of Flesh
08. Prostatic Fluid Asphyxiation
09. This Is Exile

Thy Art Is Murder 21:20-22:45




With the recent furore surrounding their ex-frontman, Thy Art Is Murder came into their biggest UK tour to date riding a wave of scandal that threatened to derail the momentum they’ve generated in recent years. Needing to regain the narrative, Thy Art Is Murder came into the gig with plenty of purpose and determination. To the fading pop of the Vengaboys anthem "We Like To Party", Thy Art Is Murder strode on stage and just rolled out the blows to knock the audience off their feet. "Destroyer Of Worlds" set the mood, before a trio of "Slaves Beyond Death", "Death Squad Anthem" and "Make America Hate Again" saw the band kick into a high gear that they stayed in for the whole night.

Taking the place of CJ McMahon was going to be a big task for anyone, but newcomer Tyler Miller didn't shirk from the spotlight, as he faced some calls from the crowd for CJ (or possibly BJ's) on the few occasions that the band took a moment from grinding the audience down with breakdowns.




With the band churning out hit after hit, their stage show certainly added to the feeling of tonight being a special event for both band and audience, as sprays of fire, lasers and bubble machines made for a spectacle for the eyes and ears. Thy Art Is Murder have not only managed to take back the narrative after a performance like that, but made it seem inevitable that they will move onto even bigger venues in the near future.

Thy Art Is Murder setlist:

01. Destroyer Of Worlds
02. Slaves To Death
03. Death Squad Anthem
04. Make America Hate Again
05. Blood Throne
06. Join Me In Armageddon
07. Bermuda
08. Human Target
09. Holy War
10. The Purest Strain Of Hate
11. Godlike
12. Keres
13. Everything Unwanted
14. Reign Of Darkness
15. Puppet Master

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With that, the night drew to a close. While the event started off on the wrong foot, the quality of performances more than made up for the hassle that was entry into the show. Deathcore has had a new lease of life in recent years, in large thanks to the role that bands like those on stage tonight have played. Oh, what the future holds.

Oh, and in case you were wondering...