Written by Siddharth Gandhi

As my knees and back become less forgiving with age, I find myself going for pit and barricade at shows less and less. However, when Motionless In White announced their first stop of their Sweat and Blood Tour at Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, Connecticut, I knew I had to be right front and center. I started listening to them in high school with the release of Reincarnate and have been a huge fan ever since. Unfortunately, I had never been able to see them live until now as they played alongside Lorna Shore, Fit For A King and Static Dress. 

Of course, I got to the venue nice and early on an incredibly hot day. I was pretty envious of people who had remembered to bring fans. That feeling only grew once I was finally standing in the pit, though the venue staff were all incredibly nice and helpful. Even between sets they would bring water to the front of the barricade. I was a couple people back from the barricade when Static Dress came on and played their song “Nostalgia Kills.” I hadn’t heard much of the English band before checking them out for the concert but they can definitely count me as a new fan. The music was so much fun and they took the stage with so much energy despite the heat, bouncing and dancing all over the stage. 

It was infectious and got everyone in the mood for what was to follow as metalcore band Fit For A King raised their banner and took the stage with “Begin The Sacrifice.” FFAK showed off their mix of melody and intensity quite definitively with an awesome set. The best moments were punctuated by bassist Ryan O’Leary spinning himself and his bass around and landing on beat. 

Next up came New Jersey’s own Lorna Shore, who set the stage with plenty of impressive moody lighting and smoke effects. They delivered an epic set, even bringing on Nick Chance to perform during “War Machine.” The crowd was moshing and surfing despite the heat that remained even after the sun had gone down.

Finally, Motionless in White made their entrance after “OIIA OIIA” played with a spinning cat visual on the screens. They started with "Sign of Life" followed by one of their songs from their new album Decades, “Playing God” (shoutout to the Like a Corndog shirts that were being sold). Needless to say from the moment they stepped on stage they commanded the attention of all of us with their incredible set, pyrotechnics, and various props and costumes. Chris Motionless constantly egged the crowd on, with fans returning it with even heavier moshing and crowd surfing. 

My personal highlight was when he brought on Skylar Grey for the live debut of another recently released song “R.I.P.” Not only were the performances powerful, but surrounding them were dancers as well as fake snow falling across the stage making for a beautiful set piece. Another great moment was the offstage camera showing us Chris’s makeup touchups which led into the band’s cover of Cory Hart’s “Sunglasses at Night.” Those were just a couple of the incredible moments that put together this striking show. All I can say is, if you have the chance to see them live on this tour, absolutely do it!

You can find all of Motionless in White’s upcoming tour dates and ticket information at https://www.motionlessinwhite.net/tour 

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