On May 1st, 2024- Fit For A King performed at the Music Farm in Charleston SC with special guests; Kingdom Of Giants, Soulkeeper, and Chelsea Grin! The amount of boundless energy each band provided for their sets is what made this show one of my top shows. Not once did that energy subside and that is what shows are all about! Giving everyone that adrenaline rush!
Fit For A King
Soulkeeper
Opening the night was SoulKeeper! SoulKeeper is currently from Minneoplis, Minnesota consisting of; Eric Roberts (Vocals) , Scott (Guitar) , Thomas Jefson (Drums) , and Edwin Melendez (Bass). I never heard of this band before, but by the looks of how the crowd was; they were very popular! All I noticed throughout their set was this girl singing every song and knowing every single lyric. And everyone in the band noticed her during their set; So at the end of their set; they gave her guitar/bass pics and drum sticks! SoulKeeper currently has 10k spotify listeners with “Holy Design” being the most popular song having over 100k plays! The band released their newest feature “Loxosceles On The Isosceles” with ZOMBIESHARK! They had a very dark set, so taking photos was very difficult, but at the same time; When situations like this happens; I'd rather be able to take in what the band has to offer such as energy; if they engage with the crowd, and if the crowd is interacting back with them!
Kingdom Of Giants!
Next up was one of my favorite bands; Kingdom Of Giants! The last time I saw this band live was at Blue Ridge Rock Festival and yes, I was one of those who stayed at the barricade until they came on no matter how much the sun was burning my skin. I also saw them on tour with Blessthefall and Caskets a month prior in Maryland! Kingdom Of Giants formed in 2010 from Northern California consisting of; Dana Willax (Vocals) , Max Bremer (Guitar) , Red Martin (Guitar) , Truman Berlin (Drums) , and Julian Perez (Guitar). I’ve been a fan of this band since “Abominable” was released back in 2011 and my favorite songs throughout the years are; Two Suns, Burner, Bleach, Wasted Space, Cash Out, and Damaged Goods. The second they went on stage; they brought out this energy that lasted throughout the whole night. Their set gave me such an adrenaline rush that by the end of the show; I was ready to sleep for 8 days straight. The amount of movement Dana had on stage was so hard to wrap my head around because I WISH I could move like that and I’m only 30 years old! Once they started “Cash Out”; I put my camera in the corner where photographers would stand and I went to the crowd and went crazy. That song is one of my favorites and something inside me told me “Go. Have fun! Be an attendee as well!” This band needs to release a new album ASAP, so I can add it to my road trip playlist on spotify because their recent release “Wasted Space” on March 3rd, 2023 was automatically added to my favorites. If that song became one of my top songs that quickly; I could only imagine what they have cooking in the studio!
Chelsea Grin
Chelsea Grin was up next and I haven’t seen this band perform since Vans Warped Tour in 2014 when Alex Koehler was the vocalist at the time. I remember this because my favorite album “Ashes To Ashes” was released a day after the show! It’s crazy to think I haven’t seen this band in 10 years and their performance was extraordinary. I was hoping they would play any songs from “Ashes To Ashes” and they did! “Playing With Fire” is the song they performed and every ounce of control in me almost left my body to not crowd surf. Being able to hear this song live again after 10 years made my whole night. Before I discuss more about the show; the band as of right now consists of; Tom Barber (Vocals) , Josh Miller (Drums) , Stephen Rutishauser (Guitar) , and David Flinn (Bass). Chelsea Grin formed in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2007 which was originally named “Ahaziah” with founding members; Alex Koehler (Vocals) , Chris Kilbourn (Guitar) , Austin Marticorena (Bass) , and Michael Stafford (Guitar). Throughout the years; this band had numerous changes with the musician lineup and doesn’t have anyone that’s original as of 2024
I remember standing near the barricade eating a salad during their set jamming out and Tom noticed me and gestured towards my food; I lifted my salad up to see if he wanted some mid-set! He just smiled and continued the song. I was so hungry, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the set! As I was eating my salad; I had to maneuver so much to avoid all the crowd surfers and every time they would go over the barricade; Tom would actually give them a fist pound! He was one of the most interactive vocalists on stage I’ve seen in a while because he would engage with random attendees in the crowd!
Fit For A King
It was time for Fit For A King and I photographed them earlier this year on their “Metalcore Dropouts 2nd Semester” tour with The Devil Wears Prada, Counterparts, and Avoid! This band is by far one of the best bands to photograph and watch live due to the amount of explosive energy they have on stage to the talent each musician has! Fit For A King formed in Dallas, Texas in 2007 consisting of; Ryan Kirby (Vocals) , Ryan O’Leary (Bass) , Daniel Gailey (Guitar) , Trey Celaya (Drums) , and Bobby Lynge. I was so excited for this show because Fit For A King is one of the top metalcore bands in the scene in my opinion because the music they produce as well as the lyrics to their songs have so much meaning to them and people can relate very easily, which is the reason why Fit For A King is top on my list! They create music that relates to mental health as well as violence and hate in this world. “Keeping Secrets” , “Deathgrip” , “Pissed Off” , and “Backbreaker” were performed during their set and I knew once I heard the beginning of “Pissed Off” the whole venue was about to be demolished. Between “Deathgrip” and “Pissed Off”; I don’t know which song had the biggest mosh pit, but I do know both songs caused outbursts of energy from EVERYONE! If you want to see an energetic band; you need to see Fit For A King because O’Leary will constantly perform kicks in the air and guitar spins! Sometimes I wonder how this man can kick in the air like that, but I give him props because I know If I did any of that; I would end up in the hospital. Very eye-catching band and Kirbys vocals sound exactly like in the studio and that is so rare; so watching him live made me feel like I was jamming out in my car full blast!
The show was finally over and I wish shows like this would last way longer! Each band deserves longer sets because 25 minute sets are not long enough for me. This is the tour you didn’t want to miss out on! Especially If you want to have that nostalgic feeling because I know I did when Chelsea Grin went on stage! If I could’ve gone to every show on this tour; I would because I know the energy will never decrease and each night will get better and better!