Words and photos by Maddie McCabe-Smith

Kicking off the UK leg of their tour at CardiffÔÇÖs Great Hall, Pierce The Veil made their iconic return to the punk rock scene with new music releases for the first time since their 2016 album Misadventures. Even from the queue outside before doors had opened, I could sense just how excited fans, including myself, were to see one of the most legendary emo bands back and better than ever. It was incredible to see such a resurgence of early 2000s and 2010s emo culture.

Upon walking inside the venue, adjacent to the merch stand I spotted the bar which was warmly lit and relaxed area for people to take a seat and have a drink before the show began. A sea of brightly coloured hair and all black clothes quickly filled the sold-out venue for the first opener of the night, 19-year-old, Californian ÔÇÿcarolesdaughter.ÔÇÖ With a big, swooping side fringe, heavy black eyeshadow and a pink Juicy Couture style hoodie, her presence on the stage immediately revived that Y2K emo aesthetic. Her sound was an alternative bedroom pop style, her most popular song being Violent which had previously taken TikTok by storm in 2020.

Next up was Against The Current, a pop-rock band that me along with a good few others in the crowd were already familiar with. Frontwoman Chrissy Costanza entered the stage with a powerful energy that kept the crowd buzzing all throughout the set. Along with their own songs, what really brought the audience to life was their cover of MakeDamnSure by Taking Back Sunday (another well celebrated band within the pop-punk/rock community.)

Then it was finally time for the main act. The lights dropped, the room went black, and a sound of traditional, Mexican Mariachi style music came blasting from the speakers: an homage to the bands Hispanic heritage that they often reference in their own music too. The song that played over whilst the members subtly gathered on stage behind the thick smoke of the fog machines was May These Noises Startle You in Your Sleep Tonight, the first song off their 2012 album Collide With The Sky. The anticipation in the room grew, as those dedicated fans of the band knew that this intro song could only mean one thing it would be followed by Hell Above, one of Pierce The Veils most recognised hits. Heavy drums and guitar riffs alongside frontman Vic Fuentes unmissable scream-singing kicked in. The red strobe lights and confetti shot over the crowd that had already been taken over by a whole lot of crowd surfers and mosh pits. Once the first song had ended, Vic then took some time to introduce himself and the band, expressing how glad they were to be back in Cardiff for the first time in years. They then went on to play their new single Pass the Nirvana from their upcoming album The Jaws of Life, set to be released in February next year. This song, as he described, is an anthem for the youth of today with what has been a tough few years following the COVID-19 pandemic. Another new song from the same unreleased album premiered at the show that night as they played Emergency Contact for the first time ever. As the set went on I found myself moving closer and closer to the stage. This was something I enjoyed about the venue, whilst it is a fairly large room, allowing people to avoid the crows if they so wish, it is also easy to get yourself up towards the barricade for a more up-close experience with the band.

A few songs later and finishing off with A Match Into Water, the band left the stage for the encore. The crowd soon started chanting ÔÇ£one more songÔÇØ after quickly realising they had not yet played arguably their most popular song King For A Day. Unexpectedly, Vic appeared back on stage with an acoustic guitar in hand, explaining that he wanted to switch it up and do something special for us that night. He performed a beautifully slow and emotionally intimate version of Stained Glass Eyes and Colourful Tears on his own with no one else on stage. I could feel just how important this moment was to a lot of people in the crowd as the room became so quiet waiting for him to start playing. For the next song of the encore, the rest of the band came back on stage and continued to play another older song they stated they donÔÇÖt normally do live (IÔÇÖm Low On Gas And You Need A Jacket.)

Then of course, the show had to end with King For A Day; a song released 10 years ago yet was revived on TikTok just a few months ago. This was the moment the whole night had been building up to, as I could tell from the guy stood in front of me dressed in a full suit with sunglasses on just like Vic and Kellin Quinn (of Sleeping With Sirens) were in the music video.

Eventually, the show had come to a bittersweet end and in true rockstar fashion, guitars were being thrown across the stage as bassist Jaime Preciado threw himself over the crowd to say his thank youÔÇÖs. After many failed attempts at catching guitar picks and drumsticks, I made my way to the merch stand trudging through the layers of yellow, white, and red confetti cemented to the floor. I really took a liking to the style of their merchandise: the artwork on the t-shirts and hoodies was simple yet artistically unique and captured the vibe of Pierce The VeilÔÇÖs new era perfectly.

As a frequent concert goer myself, I can confidently say that Pierce The Veil are one of the most talented and captivating bands I have ever seen live and would encourage anyone to see them if they have the opportunity.