Two years ago, I didn't know very much about this band but here I am covering In This Moment's show for the third time. Yes, this band is freaking unstoppable and they keep producing pure gold along the way. February 9th, the hard rock/metal band outta Los Angeles beguiled the sold-out crowd at the House of Blues in Cleveland with dazzling theatrics that left an exclamation on the entire show.
In This Moment never gets tiresome to cover. Their stagecraft is merely untouchable compared to other bands today. You're always getting something new and something old. A twist and an unexpectable turn. Beauty and horror all intertwined to produce something you don't dare turn your head away. This show was the successor of the "Half God, Half Devil Tour" entitled "The Witching Hour Tour". Now that the band's sixth studio release dubbed, "Ritual" which was released this past summer, we got a more heavily tracked setlist from the album including, "Roots", "River of Fire", "Oh Lord", "Lay Your Gun Down", and "In The Air Tonight" a cover from the great Phil Colins. Also, much of the visuals massively played a role in how the appearance and sound shaped this album. And sadly, no Murder Dolls in appearance. *sad face*
Showtime! The lights dim in the venue. All you see is a storm approaching projected onto a white screen (which happens to be the dressing room used for Maria's costume changes) center stage. Two female hooded figures draped in black cloaks walk out of the tent wearing lifeless masks with a marked black cross. Frontwoman Maria Brink enters into view through the white tent wearing her signature power halo illustrating her as the Witch or Goddess she has become. The band launched the night into "Blood", a forceful testimony off the band's 2012 album of the same name. Throughout the night, In This Moment hammered off hits, many fans came to love. Each song illustrating something visually new. After each number, Maria retreats back to the white tent to transform herself into a new wardrobe to visualizes the story of the next song.
This was the hardest In This Moment show I had to cover. Nothing on their part. The stage was different, smaller than what they're usually playing on, and the lights were a little more menacing than usual. None-the-less, any In This Moment is pure gold for any photographer and I was thoroughly enjoying what was in front of me. Not only do you get a wide arrange of costume and stage changes, but the band allows the media to cover their whole show where a lot of national bands are restricted to just the first three songs of the night.
The small take away was the "Monster Jam" section where each musician solo'd their instrument which was followed by a lengthy sermon from Maria as she eventually introduced the band. I found myself impatiently waiting for the next song around the 10-minute mark. Also, I'm not sure if Maria wasn't feeling 100% or has toned down her signature screams from over the years, but "Big Bad Wolf" fell flat that night. These were just minuscule observations I noted, but couldn't compete with the petri dish of amoebas floating around the venue which happened to find my girlfriend and her friend to put them out the rest of the week. Oh, did anyone else skip over the vomit that laid in the walkways of the downstair general standing area? Note to self, "remember to take your Airborne before the next show."
In This Moment Setlist (House of Blues-Cleveland)
1. Blood
2. River of Fire
3. Adrenalize
4. Roots
5. Burn
6. Lay Your Gun Down
7. Monster Jam
8. Big Bad Wolf
9. In The Air Tonight (Phil Collins cover)
10. Sick Like Me
11. Oh Lord
Encore:
12. Whore