Review/Photos: Five Finger Death Punch/Escape the Fate/Miss May I/Gemini Syndrome, The Fillmore, Detroit, 10/8/13

Posted by on October 21, 2013

SONY DSCApproaching The Fillmore Detroit, the line stretched as far as the eye could see, snaking around blocks. All fans eagerly waiting to enter the doors and pack the venue for a show that, for those in attendance, rivaled the Playoff baseball game going on across the street. The Fillmore Detroit is no stranger to heavy hitting rock shows, and on this night in particular Los Angeles-based Five Finger Death Punch delivered another one .

Gemini Syndrome, another group hailing from the L.A. area, spent their time on stage getting the fans warmed up for the night that was about to unfold before them. Even after their set, Brian Medina, the drummer, spent time greeting fans from the photo pit until the lights dimmed for the next artist. Miss May I, ripped right into “Day by Day”, and in no time at all fans were flowing over the barricade like a waterfall. In an attempt to pit one tour stop against another, band member Levi Benton asked for a circle pit to gauge the crowd’s intensity. The ensuing chaos made for a great end to their set. Walking off stage, guitar picks and drumsticks were up for grabs, getting tossed as far into the crowd as they could. Escape the Fate, who was direct support for 5FDP, played a set list that sounded more like a greatest hits album, consisting of songs including “Issues”, “Gorgeous Nightmare” and “You’re Insane.” Mid set front man Craig Mabbitt congratulated the Tigers on their win across the street at Comerica Park setting the crowd into a screaming frenzy for their beloved Detroit Tigers.

Five Finger Death Punch hit the stage opening with “Under and Over It” from their American Capitalist album, sending the already pumped crowd into a mosh frenzy. Lead singer Ivan Moody put on a Lions Jersey part way through the set and made jokes about how his stage hands knew nothing about football, confusing Barry Sanders with Emmett Smith. Moody also took a few moments to bring a young girl up on stage celebrating her 17th birthday to help sing the a capella intro for “Far From Home” The crowd joined in and sang along, and for a moment the only thing to be heard were the 2,000+ voices belting out the chorus.

The band’s set list covered their entire discography. Fans heard old 5FDP songs like, “Never Enough” and “Hard to See,” with the band mixing in a few cover songs, with an older remake of Bad Company’s “Bad Company”, and LL Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out” off their newest album, The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1. They also added in newer hits like “Lift Me Up”, and “Burn M.F.” In true Five Finger fashion, they closed with “The Bleeding” sending the entire main floor into a mosh pit rivaling one you’d see in an arena. The night ended in the tossing of the Detroit Jersey into the crowd, where a fight broke out between fans who each wanted this battle-borne trophy as their own.

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