American Christian metal band Skillet return to Manchester to deliver a kickass performance centred around positivity, love and inclusivity and all the other things that Christianity should stand for all while delivering a solid dose of heavy metal. Eva Under Fire and Like A Storm would support.
Eva Under Fire had a shaky start, the inclusion of ‘Separate Ways’ by Journey was odd and seemed to overshadow a lot of their own music and the inclusion of a ‘We Will Rock You’ break was just agonising but the rest of their set was solid. They’re by no means a revolutionary band that set out to reinvent the wheel but that’s okay. Their set was short enough to get people amped and it was full of enough rock star machismo to get people invested and pumped for the rest of the night.
Like A Storm were next and they were one of the strongest parts of the show. They had fantastic stage presence and variety throughout their songs, they even boasted a didgeridoo solo performed by frontman Chris Brooks. It’s unfortunate that their set had some technical problems, perhaps caused by a faulty cable, that caused some crackling sounds in the earlier parts of their set but they carried themselves like professionals and powered through.
Skillet took to the stage to rapturous applause as frontman John Cooper bellowed “Do you feel Invincible?” before slamming face-first into the massive drop-tuned riffs. It’s an incredibly strong start that is super engaging and powerful and this energy carried on for quite a while as they blazed through the empowering ‘Rise’ and life-affirming ‘Surviving the Game’.
‘Hero’ was an introduction to Skillet for many people and it’s clear why people fell in love with Skillet based on this song. It sounds intense but it’s still melodic and it’s clear why it was used in so many early YouTube AMVs (Anime Music Videos) and Spider Man music video edits. It’s a really malleable song and you can imply whatever meaning you want to it even though it has a very specific meaning to the band. Good music transcends meaning and many of Skillet’s songs are like that.
The religious elements of the band have been talked about for a very long time and they’re a prominent part of the live show but they’re easy to get past if you just enjoy the music as ultra-positive and life-affirming. The Christian rock aspect is as important as you make it and that’s a really positive part of this band and more people would benefit from living that way. John does a fantastic job explaining that living to make people happy is important and that it’s important to love each other regardless of identity.
Towards the halfway mark of the set, it becomes harder and harder to tell tracks apart, this review was not written by a die-hard Skillet fan but a casual enjoyer and therein lies the biggest problem. Skillet are a great live presence and their stage show matches that perfectly with the huge video screens and anthemic tracks but the novelty starts to wear off and when it does, you’re just left with drop C chugs and over the top positivity.
There are still a number of solid tracks throughout like ‘Not Gonna Die’ and ‘Psycho In My Head’, the latter of which bears a striking resemblance to ‘Remedy’ by Little Boots. For most people Skillet would be best enjoyed as an opener or a coheadline, their shows with Theory Of A Deadman seemed like a great opportunity. ‘Monster’ is still a massive song that gets people pumped and full of energy but it’s a slog to get to it at times, particularly with some of the newer tracks that lack staying power.
Skillet are a great band to see live but your enjoyment is based on how well you know their music because if you only know the big singles, you will get lost in between. There’s plenty to enjoy from Skillet and to those who have accepted them into their lives, I wish you well but I’m very much agnostic when it comes to Skillet.
