The Devil Wears Prada Unleashes “The Act” On A Sold-Out Crowd In Pomona
Venue: The Glass House on 10/27/19
Ever since I got into The Devil Wears Prada, it has basically become a tradition to see them at least annually each year. From the elaborate lighting, to the engaging sets, The Devil Wears Prada never disappoints when it comes to a live show. For their tour in support of their newest record “The Act”, which was released in 2019 via Solid State Records, the band brought along with them Norma Jean and Gideon for their North American run of the tour. The night was truly amazing to say the least.
First to the stage was Gideon from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. This was my second time seeing this four-piece in a period of 3 months, with the last time being a brief set when they played Ragefest in Los Angeles. Unfortunately at Ragefest, technical difficulties delayed their set, and the venue cut the band off after only playing 3 songs. While their set once again started with technical difficulties, the band made it through, playing their nonstop set of nine-songs. A few weeks after releasing their album “Out of Control”, which was released via Equal Vision Records, the band played a bunch from that release, along with other songs from their discography, including the single “No Love/No One”, which got the crowd going absolutely nuts when they closed out the set with it. The band’s sound perfectly blends together metalcore and hardcore, with some nu metal influences in their newer material as well. When you go see the band live, you will witness just how much control the vocalist Dan McWhorter has over a crowd, making them go absolutely bonkers at the snap of a finger. Guitarist Tyler Riley plays those riffs with ease while also contributing great backing screams. Caleb DeRusha is one of my favorite members, as he is constantly grooving along to the music as he slams his’ bass. Jake Smelley on drums closes out the band’s lineup, keeping the band on track with his’ perfectly syncopated drum patterns and high energy. Gideon is a very high energy band that truly helped warm up the crowd for the bands to come.
SETLIST
- Bite Down
- Cursed
- SLEEP
- Take Me
- 2 CLOSE
- STYLE
- Champions
- Freedom
- No Love/No One
Up next was the all mighty Norma Jean from Douglasville, Georgia. This was my second time seeing the band, with the last time being in March of 2018 when they did a headlining tour for the anniversary of their 2006 album “Redeemer”. This time around, I was seeing the band play the day after their newest record “All Hail” hit the shelves, being released via Solid State Records. The band’s sound is very much in the vein of metalcore, with some inspiration coming from hardcore punk instrumentally speaking. For their setlist, the band played a nine-song set, with only three coming from their newest album. The rest came from the rest of their eight-record discography, which is truly an impressive collection of music. Vocalist Cory Brandan was under the weather, but he pushed through it and poured his’ heart into that set, showing off his’ dynamic contrast in clean vocals and screaming. Guitarists Clay Crenshaw and Grayson Stewart helped keep the energy high with headbangs and riffage. Drummer Matt Marquez kept the music steady with his consistent and dynamic drumming, with high energy faces. Bassist Michael Palmquist closed out the band’s live lineup and played those basslines with ease. Norma Jean proved once again why they are still considered one of the pioneer bands in the genre and are still killing it time and time again whenever they hit the stage.
SETLIST
- The Planet
- [Mind Over Mind]
- The End of All Things Will Be Televised / I Used to Hate Cell Phones But Now I Hate Car Accidents
- 1,000,000 Watts
- Landslide Defeater
- Blueprints for Future Homes
- “The Potter Has No Hands”
- /with_errors
- If You Got It at Five, You Got It at Fifty
The Devil Wears Prada from Dayton, Ohio. For their yearly headliner at The Glass House, the band prepared a seventeen-song setlist, with four songs coming from the new album, and the rest coming from their widespread discography containing a total of seven albums and two EPs. Along with the setlist that pleased new fans and older fans of the band alike, the band brought with them a bright and creative light show with them. The lighting during their set is something The Devil Wears Prada has been known for since they started bringing the intricate lighting with them many years ago. The band opened their set with the opening song from “The Act” titled “Switchblade”, which is debatably the heaviest track on the album. What I enjoyed the most about their setlist choices is that they contrasted heavier songs, like “Dead Throne”, “Danger: Wildman”, with slower and more melodic songs “Please Say No”, “Chemical”, and “Lines of Your Hands”. It was amazing to see the vocal abilities of screamer Mike Hranica and rhythm guitarist and clean vocalist Jeremy DePoyster, who meshed together beautifully with contrasting vocal stylings. Kyle Sipress was on point on guitar, playing those melodies with ease while moving about the stage to hype the crowd. Giuseppe Capolupo slayed it on drums, slamming them with precise timing and power, giving the performance that extra edge. Keyboard player Jonathan Gering played the keys with such passion and truly helped hype up the whole performance. Closing out the band’s lineup, Mason Nagy played those groovy bass tones and really vibed well with the crowd and the music. This was honestly my favorite performance I’ve seen from Th Devil Wears Prada, and I recommend seeing them when they come back out on tour of North America in March/April in support of We Came Is Romans!
SETLIST
- Switchblade
- Danger: Wildman
- Worldwide
- Lines of Your Hands
- Dead Throne
- Assistant to the Regional Manager
- Chemical
- Gloom
- Planet A
- Daughter
- Anatomy
- Please Say No
- Dez Moines
- All My Life (Foo Fighters cover)
- Born to Lose
- Asteroid
ENCORE
17. Hey John, What’s Your Name Again?
The Devil Wears Prada truly went above and beyond for their North American Tour in support of their new album “The Act”. Norma Jean played a big role as direct support and really put their all into their set. Gideon also truly came out and crushed that set, rounding out this show as one of my favorites for 2019. I thoroughly recommend checking out all of these bands live when they hit a city near you!
The Devil Wears Prada | Norma Jean | Gideon
Photos + Review Courtesy of Jamie Kaufman | Instagram
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