On the sixth night of their 28-city North American tour, headliner JINJER and supporting bands P.O.D., VENDED, and SPACE OF VARIATIONS turned St. Louis’ The Pageant into a night of international hardcore metal.
A press release about JINJER’s tour said that Ukrainian Ministry Of Culture granted a special exemption for JINJER, the progressive groove metal force, to exit Ukraine in order to help their countrymen the best way they can — through music.
And they did just that Wednesday, Nov. 9 to a venue full of hyped-up, captivated fans. The band wasted no time launching into “Sit Stay Roll Over” amid red lights with bright white fills. Vocalist Tatiana Shmailyuk slayed the crowd with every scream, snarl, guttural riff, and occasional smile she delivered during their set.
Other songs included “Copycat,” (fourth time performing live) from their newest album Wallflowers, “Who’s Gonna Be the One,” and “Pisces.” For the encore, they brought the house down with the grinding “Captain Clock.”
Three-time Grammy nominated Payable on Death better known as P.O.D. filled the house with their old and newer Christian nu and reggae-infused metal. Songs included “Rock the Party (Off the Hook)” to “Youth of the Nation,” “When
Angels & Serpents Dance” and “Southtown” (which they teased they wrote backstage). At one point, lead singer Sonny Sandoval asked the crowd for an air hug after sharing how he knew how hard the past couple of years have been.
Bathed mostly in blue and magenta hues, Des Moines-based VENDED took the second opening slot of the night with a 20-minutes of their “ferocious and driving” sound with “soul crushing solos.” With his shock of blond corkscrew hair and painted face and chest, lead vocalist Griffin Taylor, (son of SLIPKNOT and STONE SOUR’s Corey Taylor) mesmerized the crowd with his melodic guttural screams and vocals. Songs included “Ded to Me” and “Overall.” They promised to be back in St. Louis soon.
Opening the night was Ukrainian metalcore SPACE OF VARIATIONS, who just released their album IMAGO in late September. During their short, fast-paced, in-your-face set, lead singer Dima Kozhuhar briefly spoke about the war in Ukraine and a hush fell over the already packed room. He pleaded with fans to contact loved ones after the concert to simply tell them you love them because “nothing is more important than your families and loved ones.” Songs included “Slaughterhouse” and “Fuck This Place Up.”
More photos of each band from the night: https://bit.ly/Jinjer22cz
What’s coming up next at The Pageant: https://www.thepageant.com/calendar/
SPACE OF VARIATIONS,
SPACE OF VARIATIONS,
SPACE OF VARIATIONS,
VENDED
VENDED
VENDED
P.O.D.
P.O.D.
JINJER
JINJER
In my work life, I help nonprofits and small businesses with media and public relations. In my what I love to do life, you can typically find me photographing either wild horses or concerts.
