ROCK AM RING 2024: Beartooth Play Headline-Worthy Show

It’s time to buckle up and dive headfirst into the world of one of Europe’s biggest celebrations of rock & metal music. Rock Am Ring 2024, where music enthusiasts from all walks of life unite under the banner of rock ‘n’ roll. Join us on this extraordinary journey as we witness the power of rock, metal and everything in between in all its glory. Rock Am Ring 2024 promises to be a monumental chapter in the festival’s storied history and you’ll find all the coverage you need right here at Strife Mag.

Beartooth have been on a steady rise ever since they burst out onto the scene. Due to the steady growth, the band have now entered the era in which they are playing late-night lengthier slots at festivals, and can even be considered to headline on festivals catered to metal and rock audiences. Last year, Beartooth were one of the closing acts on Jera On Air, a privilege which they took very seriously. That night, Beartooth truly brought it all. CO2 cannons, pyro, confetti, everything was present. Little did we know that Beartooth are on a quest to outdo themselves from one year ago, because at Rock Am Ring 2024 that is exactly what they did.

The show started a bit odd, with just frontman Caleb Shomo coming onto the stage with little to no special effect. He looked around in awe at the absolutely massive crowd before the rest of the band came out and they kicked off proceedings with Sunshine!, taken from their 2023 album The Surface. A little into the song, the crowd was sprayed with confetti and the tone was set for the rest of the evening.

Beartooth have garnered an astonishing amount of fans throughout the years really with a steady stream of great music. They haven’t experienced a sudden burst of popularity like, for example, Bad Omens have in recent years. For Beartooth, slow and steady has won the race because the crowd that gathered for their headline-worthy set is exceptional. In return for the huge turnout, Beartooth truly pulled out all the stops for their show. The aforementioned pyro, CO2 cannons and confetti were even joined by fireworks on the stage, as well as behind the stage for the entire festival to see when the last notes of the set closer In-Between were played.

As for the setlist, even with the steady rise, the focus was on the 2023 album The Surface, with the title track even making its live debut. Halfway through the set, Caleb Shomo grabbed his acoustic guitar and played an acoustic rendition of The Killers’ Mr. Brightside. After the first verse and chorus, Shomo quickly returned to original material and started playing Look The Other Way on his own. Not too long into the song, the rest of the band came back on stage to finish the song in full swing.

Beartooth have the festival headliner show figured out, even to the little acoustic interlude in the middle and the fireworks show at the end, this show brought as many gimmicks as a Green Day show. If we count a buttoning or unbuttoning of a shirt as a wardrobe change, Shomo even took inspiration from Taylor Swift and graced the stage in a total of 8 different outfits to compliment the song being played.

Beartooth have truly outdone themselves once again. Here’s to hoping we get the same treatment at their headliner tour in Europe taking place later this year with Polaris and LANDMVRKS!

Check out some of the images of the band’s epic performance right below and let us know if you are going to see Beartooth live during the festival season. Stay tuned to all our Rock Am Ring coverage by following our socials over on X, Instagram and Facebook.

Beartooth:

CONCERT REVIEW: Beartooth, Motionless In White & Stray From The Path Raise The Roof In Tilburg

After Beartooth’s massive set at Jera on Air last summer, Beartooth are back in Europe to play some of the biggest shows of their careers overseas. The tour included a stop in the massive Wembley Arena, but in The Netherlands it ‘merely’ and humbly sold out the Poppodium 013 with a capacity of 3000 fans.

Beartooth’s tour has been on the books for a while, and luckily the openers have remained even after the rescheduling, which meant we got to enjoy Stray From The Path as opener on this fine evening. The band are known for their political lyrics and hardcore music, a blend they deliver extraordinarily well. With their new album Euthanasia under their belt, there was plenty of new material being played this evening, including the popular III, the third in a series of songs surrounding police brutality. Vocalist Drew York does not shy away from speeching mid-set, highlighting the importance of unity and community. Check some of the photos in the gallery right below.

Stray From The Path:

As direct support, Beartooth brought along Motionless In White. Especially in the States, this band is absolutely massive, and the fact that we got to witness both Beartooth and Motionless In White on the same tour is honestly such a treat. MIW’s music combines various elements of metal, gothic rock, and industrial music to create a unique sound. Motionless In White’s music often explores themes of darkness, horror, and the macabre, drawing inspiration from horror movies and literature, in both their music as well as their appearance. The band released their popular most recent album Scoring The End Of The World in 2022, which was heavily featured on the setlist.

Two songs in, Motionless In White performed the heavy track Slaughterhouse off of the aforementioned album. The studio version of the song features Bryan Garris (vocalist of Knocked Loose), and the fans tonight were in for a treat when Beartooth frontman Caleb Shomo came on stage to perform Garris‘ part live. Check out some photos from the band’s performance, as well as the surprise guest feature in the gallery below.

Motionless In White:

I’m a sucker for a great inspirational story so bare with me as I briefly take you back to April of 2014, where I would see Beartooth for the first time, as the opening act for Of Mice & Men in a sweaty 600 capacity room in Amsterdam. Beartooth played songs off of their debut EP, and would release their debut album later that year. Fast forward to 2023, where Beartooth have played absolutely massive venues as headliner and are now taking Motionless In White on tour with them to take on Wembley Arena, and more humble in The Netherlands, the beautiful Poppodium 013 in Tilburg.

At 21:15, the lights went out for the last time, as Beartooth put a huge banner up, blocking the view of the stage from the audience’s perspective. The banner helped to set the tone and atmosphere for the performance and create a memorable experience for the audience. Little did we know, especially after the show at Jera on Air in the summer of 2022, that ‘show’ wise, we would not get much more than that.

Even before the curtain dropped, frontman Caleb Shomo immediately launched into the band’s title track song Below, and the crowd erupted into a frenzy of jumping and headbanging, with a moshpit of epic proportions opening up. Shomo’s powerful vocals echoed through the venues, even if his voice did sound a bit worn out from the packed touring schedule, no doubt.

Beartooth are now 4 albums in, but the setlist catered to the most recent album Below, which released back in 2021. In addition, of course the fan favourites from throughout the years were played, including Beaten In Lips, Hated and the most popular among them: In Between, from the band’s debut album Disgusting. The band sounded great as ever, and Shomo is becoming increasingly comfortable on stage, often chatting with the audience, asking them to participate in sing alongs or open circle pits. It does have to be said that in comparison to the band’s epic Jera on Air performance last summer, the pyro, confetti and fireworks were painfully absent tonight.

Not to worry though, even without the gimmicks, Beartooth are greater than ever with no sign of slowing down. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, Beartooth are on the fast track of becoming a festival headliner. With a strong discography and an ever-growing live presence, Beartooth are rapidly becoming a cornerstone of the alternative music scene. Get a glimpse of what the show looked like in the gallery below.

Beartooth: