Douse me in Holywatr because I need an emotional cleanse after last night.
European metalcore masters Architects brought their Broken Mirror tour to St. Louis on Tuesday night, blessing us with their signature heavy riffs, blast beats, and vocalist Sam Carter’s impressive growl range and vocals. Carter is a master quick change artist, blending clean chorus melodies and soundbites into heavy screams so fast you’ll get whiplash.
Opening the tour was a new to me band, Holywatr. Hailing from Los Angeles, Holywatr ended up being one of my favorite parts of the show. Their set opened in near darkness making photography a challenge but setting the scene for the moody set. Vocalist Patrick Middlethon could be the love child of Brett Scallions [Fuel] and Geoff Rickly [Thursday] with his blonde locks and emo-indie-rock vibes. The band engaged the crowd early with a boy band charm that has been lost in modern rock radio, playing through popular tracks including “fade” and “nail polish.” I described them to a friend after the set as a blend of Dead Poet Society and Wage War with a dash of Johnny Stevens of Highly Suspect. Holywatr was an immediate add to playlist following the set.
Architects took the stage shortly after Holywatr with a broody, dark lit rendition of their hit “Elegy” from 2025’s The Sky, the Earth, & All Between. Carter was backed by a single light for the majority of the song with the rest of the band blending into the darkness. The energy picked up after this with “Whiplash” off the same album with the crowd directed to the ground for an epic jump intro into the track chorus. Security attempted to escort us out of the pit following the song (pretty aggressively I’ll add) with my pleas of “that was only two” falling on deaf ears. Mr. Dreadlocks was determined to get me out of there though before Architects crew stepped in and escorted me right back to the pit to photograph “when we were young” which awarded me some of my favorite photos and crowd interaction of the night. A consistent theme through the show was band crew showing up and being extremely helpful and generous, I’ve worked on and with many touring crews and Architects camp was easily one of the most accommodating and kind I’ve experienced, so kudos to them. The fans also showed out for the band, packing into the 1,300 cap venue, proving again and again that people will show out even on a weekday for a band they love.
The energy remained high through the set, mirroring that of their 2024 performance at Louder Than Life, showing whether they are playing to 1,300 or 13,000 they are consistent and want their fans to enjoy the show. Mosh pits were encouraged with an abundance of crowd surfers being carried safely to security who did an amazing job of making sure no one hit the ground. Hearing “Curse” live was a religious experience, and I told a friend in attendance that I’d never seen such a small walkout for the encore- 1,300 people showed up to rock out with the European rockers on a week night and maybe ten left before the end of the show. The ten that left really missed out because Architects closed the night with “Seeing Red” and “Animals,” two of the biggest hits on their roster. The tour wraps up in Indianapolis on Friday ahead of a festival appearance Saturday in Columbus at Sonic Temple before the band heads back overseas.
