The last time No Warning played Canada was a decade ago, in Quebec with Sum 41 and Yellowcard — "the pop punk band with the violin," as vocalist Ben Cook pointed out before insisting that that wrong be righted at this festival of hardcore, the kind of music that made this band.
Their return to their home country was met with intense enthusiasm, with a massive Canadian flag with "Ill Blood" emblazoned on it, waving its way through the mess of stage moshers and divers. The band opened with the first five songs off that classic LP before detouring to play "Modern Eyes" (from Suffer, Survive) and new cut "Resurrection of the Wolf." It was the perfect way to kick things off, and any doubts that time away from hardcore had taken away the band's ability to perform in the genre were washed away in the sweat coming from the stage and soaking the floor.
Cook even made a joke about the group's poorly received last album (at least within the hardcore community), by asking, "You guys fuck with Suffer, Survive at all?" After the question received minimal applause, he informed the crowd that the next song wasn't on it. Instead, they played more off crowd favourite Ill Blood, all of which was represented except for two songs: "Leech" and "Pushing On."
Cook informed the crowd that when they started going to hardcore shows in Canada, there were no good bands and the only ones that came up were Buried Alive and Death Threat. Fortunately, that's not the case anymore, but the void left by No Warning has never and will never be filled.
Their return to their home country was met with intense enthusiasm, with a massive Canadian flag with "Ill Blood" emblazoned on it, waving its way through the mess of stage moshers and divers. The band opened with the first five songs off that classic LP before detouring to play "Modern Eyes" (from Suffer, Survive) and new cut "Resurrection of the Wolf." It was the perfect way to kick things off, and any doubts that time away from hardcore had taken away the band's ability to perform in the genre were washed away in the sweat coming from the stage and soaking the floor.
Cook even made a joke about the group's poorly received last album (at least within the hardcore community), by asking, "You guys fuck with Suffer, Survive at all?" After the question received minimal applause, he informed the crowd that the next song wasn't on it. Instead, they played more off crowd favourite Ill Blood, all of which was represented except for two songs: "Leech" and "Pushing On."
Cook informed the crowd that when they started going to hardcore shows in Canada, there were no good bands and the only ones that came up were Buried Alive and Death Threat. Fortunately, that's not the case anymore, but the void left by No Warning has never and will never be filled.
Heart Fest Day 2, Gatineau QC, 2015 09 05
