Beartooth w/ Silverstein & Kingdom of Giants @ O2 Academy Brixton, London - 03/10/26
Beartooth bring "Pure Ecstasy" to Brixton
Saturday night in London on a slightly chillier October day can only mean one thing: it is time to congregate into a sweaty room and watch thousands of people collectively lose their grip on reality at the O2 Academy in Brixton. On paper, putting Kingdom of Giants with Silverstein and Beartooth on the same bill seems like a straightforward exercise. In practice, the line up is considerably less mathematical and more chaotic.
Opening duties fell on California’s Kingdom of Giants, who had precisely 30 minutes to convince the room that they should stop talking and start paying attention. Admittedly, they succeeded. Launching straight into “Asphalt”, the band immediately established the mood and bar for the evening, with heavy guitars at the forefront of their performance. Despite the lack of drummer, who - as the band said - had visa issues entering the UK, the recorded drums filled in the venue and complemented the sound with their signature punctuation. As “Wasted Space” and “Respawn” kept the momentum moving, the band showcased their mastery in combining polished metalcore with electronic textures and slabby breakdowns. By “Reign” and “Wayfinder”, the floor was starting to wake up. When the set closed, the short but effective setlist did exactly what it should: establish credibility, make people move and keep the energy high ahead of the rest of the bill.
Second up were Silverstein, which is where the evening’s demographic suddenly realises that apparently nobody has aged since 2005. For a moment, their show felt like someone had just reopened a particularly traumatic chapter of MySpace history, with “Negative Space” and “Smashed Into Pieces” providing the soundtrack. Silverstein have been doing this for long enough that calling them nostalgic just doesn’t feel right; they are still perfecting their sound and show that their songs remain effective even two decades later. With “Infinite”, “Afterglow”, “Stress” and “Bad Habits”, it is immediately obvious that the sharp riffs and big choruses are all that is needed to have the masses sing along and the crowd participate in the history of the band as it is being made. When the inevitable “My Heroine” and “Bleeds No More” are performed live, the crowd immediately shifts. They are loud, nostalgic and sufficiently chaotic to match the band’s energy, making the transition between the bands seamless.
At 9:05pm, Brixton’s lights went down and then came “Pure Ecstacy”. The opening track of Beartooth’s latest album is an interesting choice for a live set, and yet, the way it builds makes the tension in the room accumulate quickly. Whilst on record the song sounds more like restraint, live, it is the complete opposite. Once the guitars properly kick in, the room completely changes temperature. And this is where Beartooth shine the most: in their ability to give people something to scream to, or something to punch in the air and make everything else seem irrelevant.
By the time “Bullshit” and “Beaten In Lips” come, it is evident that Beartooth did not come to play. They brought swagger, grandiose moves, massive guitars, big drums and every single bit of attitude they had, and gave it all to their audience. More so, it was extremely satisfying to watch how the band weaved newer material into their older catalogue; whilst “Pure Ecstacy” represents a noticeably different emotional chapter for frontman Caleb Shomo and Beartooth, the live environment strips away a lot of the distinctions between ‘old’ and ‘new’. A breakdown is still a breakdown - be it emotional, musical or both. And a screaming crowd is still a screaming crowd.
The setlist was an absolute treat for the people attending. “Hated” was followed by “Beautiful Again”, then by “Disease”, “Free” and “Sunshine!”, as well as “Eyes Closed”, “Riptide” and “Might Love Myself”. Every song attracted singalongs, crowdsurfers, and a collective vocal assault that made the phrase ‘audience participation’ sound inadequate. Amongst them, “In Between” still remained one of Beartooth’s most enormous songs with the room singing back every word. Arguably, this is one of the band’s most unique talents, the connection they have fostered with their audience. Underneath the production and the riffs, the songs still felt like someone opening the door to maze in their head, just to invite several thousands of strangers into it. Only this time, everyone is screaming along.
If there is one thing Beartooth have mastered, it is the art of making a room full of people shout something at exactly the same time. They are not just playing live to reproduce an album, but their theatrics, riffs and pauses are all orchestrated to make the audience go crazy and show that the band has reached the next level.
