Show Review: Hail The Sun Brings The Mental Knife Tour To The Troubadour
WORDS AND PHOTOS BY JAZMIN LEMUS
Being that I live in Los Angeles, and the band is Ventura/Chico based, it was a bit of a shocker to me when I learned about post-hardcore quartet, Hail The Sun almost two years ago since they’ve been around for much longer than that. I gotta thank the Lead Singer Syndrome podcast for that one by the way! The first time I saw the band was on their tour with Circa Survive in April 2018. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Hail The Sun a few times since then, but the Mental Knife Tour would be my first time seeing them headline. On Sunday, September 15th, I found myself at the Troubadour to see them rock the place to what seemed to have sold out day of the show.
To kick things off were Los Angeles natives, VIS. It had been a while since I last saw them, which was with RX Bandits in Long Beach back in 2015. That show was incredible and I was stoked to see they’d be opening up on this tour. With a 30 minute set, they were able to deliver lots of energy and play songs that fans in the crowd were no strangers to such as “Unprepared”. While their set was coming to an end, the crowd was definitely ready to hear and see Royal Coda do their thing.
Composed of all-star musicians from various projects, Royal Coda consists of music vets Kurt Travis, Sergio Medina, Will Swan, Jason Ellis, and Joseph Arrington. The post-hardcore quintet played fan favorites such as “Anything To Save” and “Breathe Correct”. They also managed to throw in a new song titled “Numbing Agent” that they released a few days prior. Although it was my first time seeing them, they instantly won me over. I was pumped up and ready to see Strawberry Girls.
This would be my first time seeing the instrumental post-hardcore trio. The band wasted no time and dropped their energetic tunes. They played fan favorites such as “Agua Verde” and “First Kiss”. They also managed to squeeze in two new songs, which were “Mini Ripper” and “Moonwalker”. Fans were feeling it and throughout their set, the crowdsurfing was in full effect. Sadly, all great things must come to an end. Strawberry Girls delivered an energetic performance and did a great job warming up the crowd for Hail The Sun.
With the release of Mental Knife last September, fans patiently waited for an announcement of a proper headlining tour in support of the album. Say no more. Hail The Sun was ready to give fans what they wanted.
The band kicked off their set with an oldie, “Rolling Out The Red Carpet” followed by “Mental Knife”. Hail The Sun went on to play old fan favorites such as “Falling On Deaf Ears” and “Cosmic Narcissism”. Of course, there was still time to play newer songs off of Mental Knife such as “The Stranger In Our Pictures”, “Glass: Half Empty” and “Devotion Cuts.” The band also played their newest single that was just released recently titled “Devastate and Recalibrate”. Already, a big portion of fans in attendance knew the lyrics. I guess you can say the song has been well received. With the night coming to an end, a Hail The Sun set would not be complete without them playing “Relax/Divide”, a HUGE fan favorite. To cap off the night during the encore, Hail The Sun finished with with “Ow! (Splidao!)[I Like It, Though]” off their debut album, Pow! Right In The Kisser!.
Being my first time seeing Hail The Sun headline, I can honestly say that the Mental Knife era seems to be one that is becoming a big chapter in the band’s history. They have a bright future ahead. I am really excited and look forward to Hail The Sun’s next release.
For photos of the show, you can check out the gallery to your right. You can also check out the latest release from each band below.
