Thy Art Is Murder with Kublai Khan TX, Undeath, I Am, and Justice For The Damned
Mercury Ballroom
Louisville, KY
March 6th, 2023
On March 6th, Australian deathcore band Thy Art Is Murder brought their Decade of Hate North American Tour to Louisville, KY to a packed house! Fans were ready this evening for a rowdy good time, which was had as soon as the first band played! Opening the night was Australian deathcore band Justice For The Damned. Having released several singles, 3 EPs, and 2 albums since forming in 2011, the band packed a lot of songs into a fairly short set and got the crowd moving. Throughout the set, singer Bobak Raffiee told the crowd to come closer and “I want to see you moshing!”. Thanking the crowd for coming out early, they got the evening off to a great start! Next up was Texas deathcore band I AM. The band has released one EP and 3 full-length albums since forming in 2011, the most recent album being 2022’s Eternal Steel. These guys had the crowd moshing with their fast and heavy sound. Singer Andrew Hileman engaged the crowd throughout the set, often having his fist, or devil horns, in the air! Towards the end of their set, he told the crowd “We’ve been on the road for over a month and have one week left!”, thanking the bands on the bill with them. He continued, “Thy Art Is Murder took us to Europe for the first time, to Australia for the first time, and now to Louisville for the first time! We aren’t finished with you yet! We have two more for you!”. Next up was Rochester death metal band Undeath. Having formed in 2018 and released an EP and 2 full-length albums, they’ve already garnered a growing fanbase! Sadly, singer Alexander Jones wasn’t able to perform this evening with the band, so the other members played an instrumental set, but they still killed it! Although they played a shorter-than-normal set, they got the crowd moving with a fun and upbeat vibe. Next up was Texas hardcore/metalcore band Kublai Khan TX. Having formed in 2009, they have amassed a large and passionate following of fans, as evidenced this evening by the wild mosh pit during their set! Vocalist Matt Honeycutt told the crowd early on, “We’ve been coming to Louisville for a while now and you’ve always been good to us!”. He also talked about opening for Thy Art Is Murder 10 years ago. Whether it was friends of the band or members from the other bands on the bill, there were many people lining the sides of the stage, and on a couple of occasions during the set, the band had guest vocalists come out, one of which was Andrew Hileman from I AM. The band got the crowd hyped throughout their set, with Honeycutt telling the crowd “We’re simple men and don’t ask for much. We just need you to be loud enough for them to hear you from outer space!”. They were the perfect segue into Thy Art Is Murder’s set, with the crowd feeling good and buzzing with energy!
Ending the evening was Thy Art Is Murder! Touring in celebration of the ten year anniversary of their 2013 album Hate, the band had the crowd going wild in no time! As the band came out on stage, bathed in red light, vocalist Chris “CJ” McMahon walked out to his microphone, the mic stand of which was comprised of piled up skeletons, the band proceeded to perform the album in it’s entirety. McMahon chatted a bit with the crowd during the set, at one point talking about how the band was touring in support of the album Hate and how that album changed their lives and allowed them to tour the world hundreds of times. He went onto to say how America is a hard place for foreign bands to to make it but how “all of you supported us from day one, so thank you so much!”. In a fun part of the evening, a couple in attendance got engaged on stage, with everyone cheering for them! It was a lovely moment! The crowd was going wild during their set, moshing and crowd surfing and having a good time! After finishing the album, the band ended the evening with an encore, sending the crowd off with their gratitude for their support and plenty of buzzing energy!
JUSTICE FOR THE DAMNED
I AM
UNDEATH
KUBLAI KHAN TX
THY ART IS MURDER
