MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, ATREYU & WILSON Bring Spring Invasion Tour To Minneapolis [Review & Photo Gallery]

The Spring Invasion Tour, featuring Motionless In White, Atreyu, and Wilson has been has been rolling through North American and made a stop at the Skyway Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This tour promised to be high on energy and heavy in the tunes and a packed house experienced a great night of music.

The one band on the bill I had no familiarity with was Wilson. They are a rock outfit out of East Lansing, Michigan led by the charismatic vocalist Chad Nicefield. Wearing a yellow and black-checkered suit he quickly commanded the stage and got people moving. The band released the album ‘Tasty Nasty’ in 2018 and opened the night with the ultra-catchy “Dumptruck.” The short eight-song set would highlight the new record as “Wrong Side Of History,” “Like A Baller,” “Fuck Up My High,” and “House Of Fuckery” all was played. Wilson blends various styles of music that include rock and hip-hop and drench it with grooves and hooks and presented it with a high-octane performance that won over a lot of new fans, including me. I’ve seen a lot of tours where that opening act doesn’t seem to fit or does not resonate with the crowd, and although musically they don’t match up with the other bands on the bill, Wilson lit a fire that ignited the crowd and they had the place jumping throughout their set.

Metalcore veterans, Atreyu, would play second. The band released the album ‘In Our Wake’ in 2018 and the crowd instantly engulfed themselves into the band as they launched into “The Time Is Now.” The adrenaline rush continued with “Right Side Of The Bed” and “Becoming The Bull.” I’ve always enjoyed the dynamic between vocalist Alex Varkatzas and drummer and singer Brandon Saller. It gives the band the opportunity to diversify and branch their sound out. Picking up where Wilson had left off, Atreyu was on fire and the vibe of the building was electric. The band was infectious, fun, and sounded amazing. They played the classics like “Ex’s And Oh’s” to songs off the new album that included the title track and “House Of Gold,” to a bruising cover of Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love A Bad Name.” One of the highlights that had the entire Skyway Theatre singing and moving was “Falling Down.” That song really translates live and it was a really fun moment with the crowd screaming along with them. The fourteen-song set came to end with another song off ‘Lead Sails Paper Anchor’ called “Blow” and Atreyu left the stage with people wanting more. Besides a longer set, I couldn’t ask for anything more from their performance. They are one of the great bands of this genre and prove it every time they step onto the stage.

Scranton, Pennsylvania’s Motionless In White would finish off the night. Led by vocalist Chris “Motionless” Cerulli the band pulverized everything in its sight. I’ve seen them a couple times but this was the best show I’ve seen them do. Opening with “Devil’s Night” and into “Necessary Evil” had the Motionless In White’s legion of fans in a frenzy. Keeping with the ‘Graveyard Shift’ album, they continued with “Soft” and “Queen For Queen.” The song that got the biggest response may have been “Abigail” off the 2010 release ‘Creatures.’ The intensity was already high but things rose to another level as that song cranked in. Circle pits were in constant motion as “570” and the industrial influenced “Generation Lost” kept the crowd in full engagement. The biggest news from the Motionless In White camp came a short time ago with the announcement of an upcoming album and two new singles. Minneapolis got is first taste of the new song “Disguise” and judging from the response from their fans it went over real well. The set delivered by Motionless In White felt like a rapid rocket ride as they ripped through “Immaculate Misconception,” “Voices,” and “Reincarnate” before returning for the encore “Eternally Yours.” It was a masterful set that was as heavy as it was entertaining and it appears that Motionless In White is in top form as they go into this next album cycle.

The Spring Invasion Tour was a tremendous night. Every band, Wilson, Atreyu and Motionless In White turned in great performances and getting all three of them in the same night made this one of the most enjoyable tours of the year thus far. This is well worth your time and should this tour hit your city I would check it out.