Concert Review: Bring Me The Horizon, Motionless In White, The Plot In You in Grand Rapids, Michigan

By Christian Cole, OOTB Publications

On Thursday, Oct. 8, Sheffield, England metal giants Bring Me The Horizon brought the last show of their massive 16 month tour (in total)—POST HUMAN: NeX GEn – The Third Ascension Program—to a close at Grand Rapids, Michigan’s Van Andel Arena.

After a four hour road trip, and loads of anticipation, my wife and I finally found ourselves in a line that wrapped around the block of the venue, and then again around itself. Thousands of eager fans filled the city streets in preparation for the night.

We made our way to our seats, and on the minute at 7 p.m., The Plot in You took to the stage.

The band led us through an absurdly high energy set over the course of 30 minutes. As the venue continued to fill, die hard fans thrashed in the pit, and newcomers looked on in awe.

The Ohio natives focused predominantly on newer material, still lined with incredible growls and screams, but now tinged with an undeniable pop presence; and, it works.

As the short set wound down, the crowd continued to grow as Motionless In White took to the stage.

The band took fans through a setlist of material spanning back to 2017; unfortunately, for long time fans, nothing much earlier found its way into the set.

With that said, the show they put on was still absolutely stellar. As a die hard early fan, I admittedly shied away when the band seemingly leaned into a more dad rock delivery on recent records.

While the new material has not resonated with me, it was incredible to see in a live setting. Chris Motionless’ vocal delivery suits the sound so well, and the joy they carry in playing was incredibly evident.

At the close of the set, Chris stood at the end of the catwalk with a dozen roses in hand, and after a heartfelt thank you to Bring Me The Horizon and fans, he began to toss roses into the crowd as the band finished the set with “Eternally Yours,” bringing an old fan once turned away, back full circle.

Bring Me The Horizon then proceeded to bring to the stage one of the most incredible live productions that I have ever seen.

Surrounded by visuals resembling a crumbling cathedral, and intro visuals reminiscent of a Resident Evil start screen, we immediately knew we were in for more than what we expected.

As the show went on, characters appeared on screen, detailing plots for demonic possessions, world domination and more. We felt fully immersed in this fictional world, which added an entire new level to the music.

The band poured through a set of songs old and new—their old deathcore energy still incredibly present, much to our surprise.

Oli Sykes undoubtedly still holds the power he used to; not just vocally, but also with a crowd—not just encouraging, but demanding circle pits, walls of death and more.

The dynamics of the band are incredibly impressive, being able to infuse pop and EDM elements into their metal roots fits so much better in a live setting than what it does on record.

The band blasted through their massive set with unmatched gusto and power, and the sold out venue ate up every last drop, ourselves included.

Bring Me The Horizon doesn’t just sound incredible, but what they bring to a live setting is simply unmatched in any format.

After two decades of consistent evolution, the band has found themselves somewhere absolutely phenomenal. It goes without saying that these guys have earned their current status, and show no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

If you miss them on any upcoming tours, you’re missing out on something you won’t see replicated anywhere else.

Tour Dates

https://www.bmthofficial.com/live/