Concert Review: Chiodos with BIG ASS TRUCK I.E., Emmure and Hawthorne Heights at Ritz Ybor Tampa, FL

After a very successful reunion tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of Chiodos “All’s Well That Ends Well” earlier this year, Craig Owens and the band decided to run it back with a second leg to close out 2025 and made a stop early in Tampa Florida early in the tour to play at the Ritz Ybor.

Keeping the same lineup as the first leg of the tour with Hawthorne Heights and Emmure, they didn’t bring along the opening band “The Callous Daoboys” from earlier this year, instead having hardcore upcomers “BIG ASS TRUCK I.E.” in their place. Although not as much as a wild outlier as Daoboys, Truck was still a crazy band to see be put on this lineup but had me so excited to see them again after seeing them perform at Welcome To Rockville earlier this year. Being a newer band their discography isn’t too long so they were able to play 7 of their 9 songs currently put out in the time they had making for an incredible set with lots of energy and getting the crowd and especially mosh pit moving early. 

After the crowd pretty much killed each other to BIG ASS TRUCK I.E., the throttle was still foot to the floor with metalcore legends Emmure taking the stage. The last time I saw Emmure was the first leg of this tour in April and once again they didn’t fail to put on a set that sounded massive and had the crowd engaged the entire time they were on the stage. There’s plenty of reasons why Emmure is considered legends in the metalcore scene and it’s hard to deny how incredible they are every time you catch them perform. 

Finally slowing down a bit is a band that considers themselves not the heaviest music on the bill but the heaviest emotionally, Hawthorne Heights. After really getting into Hawthorne lately I was super stoked to see them live again especially with the return of Warped Tour in Orlando a couple days away and that excitement did not disappoint. They put on an incredible set sounding nearly perfect, bringing lots of energy, and really being the heaviest band emotionally on the bill. Their production seemed even better than it was on the first leg and vocalist J.T. Woodruff saying they have to keep evolving to keep up with these bands like BIG ASS TRUCK. Their set was incredible and set a perfect stage for Chiodos to return to Tampa.

Having been obsessed with Chiodos “All’s Well That Ends Well” I couldn’t describe how excited I was to get the chance to hear the album played through in full again. With the stage set between heavy bands like BIG ASS TRUCK and Emmure, and legends like Hawthorn Heights, it was time for post-hardcore royalty Chiodos led by vocalist Craig Owens to bring the energy only few bands can match. Obviously playing through their album AWTEW they closed out their set with a couple hits including “Bulls Make Money, Bears Make Money, Pigs Get Slaughtered”, “The Only Thing You Talk About” by Craig Ownes other project “Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows” and others. Once again though Chiodos delivered a set that brought some of the most energy to the crowd I’ve seen and sounded phenomenal. Having seen Chiodos four times this year, it’s incredible how the band seems to get better with every show I see and how perfect they are every time, and if I had the opportunity I’d see them another four times in the same year. I couldn’t recommend anyone to see Chiodos more, even making sure friends caught their sets at festivals like Welcome To Rockville and Warped Tour. I can’t wait to see what the band does next and for them to make their return to Florida.