Photo of Wage War’s Briton Bond by Erica Vining
Wage War tore through St. Louis on Saturday nearing the midpoint in their US-based Emergency Broadcast tour with support from Cane Hill, Varials, and We Came as Romans. I last caught the heavy hitters at Pointfest 2024 and was stoked to catch them in a venue setting. Festivals are great for the quantity but don’t always allow for the production of a venue tour, and I was not disappointed with the incredible light and fog show the band brought to The Pageant.
Cane Hill took the stage first, a four-piece heavy metal band hailing from New Orleans. I was impressed with the number of fans on the rail who told me they came explicitly to catch the opening set. Vocalist Elijah Witt had the perfect energy to get the crowd riled up early in the night ahead of their successors, they had security putting in work early with crowd surfers. Flanked by guitarist James Barnett, bassist Ryan Henriquez (and his glorious hair), and Devin Clark on drums, the foursome put their lighting director to work with beams of blues and oranges highlighting each member as they worked the stage. A mosh pit formed early on and the energy was electric through the seven-song set, ending with “The Midnight Sun” off their 2024 album A Piece of Me I Never Let You Find.
Varials took the stage next and I was a bit more familiar with the Pennsylvania band as my good friend ran sound for them on previous tours (shout out Carlos!). The band benefited from the energy left by Cane Hill, with a crowd filled with energy and ready to rage. Security were good sports about it all, one telling me he preferred the metal crowds because they keep him so busy the night goes fast. LED light bars behind the band created a tense atmosphere, broken by the opening riff of “Where the Light Leaves.” Although the night started with several in seats, nearly everyone was on their feet by this point. Midway through the set, vocalist Skyler Conder called for cell phone lights and we slowed things down for a bit before picking right back up with the back half of the set, ending their night with “I’ll Find the Dark.”
We Came as Romans brought our final opening act of the night, a band I used to jam back in the broody middle school days. Seeing them live abated some of the existential dread of recent years, with nostalgia stepping in like a big hug wrapped in heavy, screamed lyrics. Hearing the lyrics of “Cold Like War” shouted in your face, spit flying, would heal a lot of us navigating the current political turmoil, let’s be honest. The set consisted of constant motion, with guitar throws and jumps reminiscent of Fit for a King’s high energy sets, and even more glorious hair being whipped around on stage. I’m starting to think it’s a requirement that at least one band member per metal band have luscious locks.
Wage War took the stage promptly at 9:45, with their changeover playlist featuring “Higher” by Creed, which had everyone in the crowd belting “can you take me hiyaaaaa,” a truly marvelous moment. One thing consistent with this band is their production—even in the festival setting they seem to go all out with lighting and fog, setting an ominous scene that perfectly matches their tracks. Sometimes four-band shows can seem long, but the sets for the night were timed so well with quick changeovers and a variety of vocals that it was a perfect melody of what a rock show should be. There was no walkout, and really not many late comers—the show stayed packed from opener to closer.
I knew with the amount of fog pouring out even before the band took the stage that I had exactly five seconds to get decent photos before everyone became a silhouette, and, well, I hope you guys like silhouettes! “NAIL5” was the second song of the night and a crowd favorite. I became a pro at dodging crowd surfers and security in the pit as I chased around co- vocalist Briton Bond, who was high energy and made use of the stage and risers. “BLUR,” a personal favorite, was the sixth song of the night, slowing things down briefly before picking right back up with “Circle the Drain” shortly after, arguably one of the band’s most popular tracks and a crowd favorite. The band chose to forgo an encore (adult peek-a-boo anyone?) and made it clear they were closing the night with “Manic” and “Stitch” to a still-full venue.
The show was a perfect Saturday night reprieve at The Pageant, complete with Nudo and jams. What more could you ask for? The Emergency Broadcast tour continues on through the end of the month with dates in both Indianapolis and Nashville if you missed the St. Louis date. | Erica Vining
