Live Review: Atria (Album Release Party) w/ Solarus, We Are Human, Aquila | Rum Runners, London ON, Canada | 17/08/23
London, Ontario's Atria know how to party. With fellow Canadian metal acts Solarus, We Are Human, and Aquila ready to join in; the city couldn't have popped any better for their hometown "antiheroes" with fellow London talent River Christie-White behind the camera ready to capture it all.
Aquila
First up on the docket for the evening, we have Southern Ontario metal act Aquila. Founded in Windsor in 2006, Aquila know a thing or two about bringing the heat. Doing just that, they brandish a style of heavy metal influenced by death-metal titans of the past like Cannibal Corpse and Dying Fetus. While there were a few obvious fans in attendance, only a few people were banging their heads in the crowd, though there were a few slammed shoulders in the pit as the group blasted through their set. It’s clear Aquila have a dedicated audience in London that showed up for them; not surprising as the group’s live performance was still quite the sight to see opening up for the night.
Photo Credit: River Christie-White
Score: 6/10
We Are Human
We are indeed human, like the band’s name states. But what is not human, however, is how good We Are Human are in a live setting. Slipping in a little bit more death-metal influence on the bill while pulling some djentier elements from Meshuggah, We Are Human absolutely rip from start to finish. Each band member seem perfectly synced with the other, barely stopping between songs to breathe let alone attempt crowd engagement. That didn’t seem to matter though because they made up for it with some of the heaviest breakdowns of the night. More hair than any person had expected to see that night was flying around as the line of fans along the monitors gave themselves whiplash, headbanging to their monstrous sound and delivery.
Photo Credit: River Christie-White
Score: 6/10
Solarus
Third on the docket for the night is the always entertaining Solarus. Bringing forth a heavy metal style with hints of power-metal influence, Solarus really bring all the energy to the table. From feeling like we’re at an Iron Maiden show to then feeling like Dragonforce took over the stage, Solarus are an absolute class act live. Not to mention how wonderful vocalist Sarah Dee is. From crowd engagement to the way she treats her fellow band mates, it’s a heartwarming sight to see. Throughout the set, it was clearly obvious the crowd in London had a soft spot for Solarus and it shows with each passing track, pulling in probably the most energetic crowd all show. An amazing display from all involved, it couldn’t possibly get better; that is until Atria vocalist Tom Emmans joins the group for a cover of Evanescence’s hit Bring Me To Life. The combination of Sarah and Tom is a sight to see, bringing forth a pop from the crowd that this writer has never witnessed within Rum Runners walls.
Photo Credit: River Christie-White
Score: 7/10
Atria
Headlining this epic night is Atria. The hometown heroes started out strong and finished even stronger. Releasing their new EP Ground Zero at midnight, the 5 piece metalcore act smashed through 4 of the 5 tracks before delivering some oldies for the rabid crowd in London Ontario. Literally half the crowd showed up just to pour over these guys with every bit of love the city could bring. There’s a reason Atria are award winners and it showed in not only their performance as a group but also as individuals. Each member from drums and guitars, to bass and vocals all added a little bit of spice to the night. Not only is the music amazing to see live but the theatrics they manage to display are just as phenomenal with a light show to compliment the chaos on stage. Somehow they manage to make their own music sound soft on record compared to the live thing, it was quite something to be marvelled at. Atria really know how to bring it in a live setting.
Photo Credit: river christie-white
Score: 8/10
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London Music Hall, #
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We Are Human