The first time I had the chance to see In This Moment live was back in 2011 when they opened up for As I Lay Dying at the Sound Academy. At the time, I wasn’t familiar with their music but I remember their set vividly as vocalist, Maria Brink, had this way of just captivating the crowd with her stage presence. Half way through the set she decided she wanted to go into the middle of the crowd to sing, and then asked for fans to start a circle pit around her. To this day, I’ve yet to see any other artist attempt to do something like that.
Fast forward 6 years, and now In This Moment has grown into this massive stage production. I haven’t had the chance to see them again after my first experience (they unfortunately couldn’t cross the border for the Return Of The Dreads Tour last year), and needless to say, I was over the moon when I saw that they were bringing their Half God Half Devil Tour to the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto. From seeing videos and tour photos of previous In This Moment shows over the past few years, I knew it was going to be a fantastic show. What I wasn’t expecting was how grand the show really was – it totally blew my expectations out of the water!
The Danforth filled up with thick theatrical smoke as the fans eagerly waited for the band to hit the stage. As the curtains dropped, the band appeared on the stage through the smoke and vibrant lights. Opening up their set, the band performed ‘Blood’, ‘Black Widow’, & ‘River of Fire’. You could tell Toronto was excited to have them finally return as the crowd screamed every single word back to them. At some points it felt like I could hear some of the fans singing along louder than the actual band.
Through out the night, In This Moment was constantly met with roars of approval from the crowd as songs such as ‘Adrenalize’ and ‘Sick Like Me’ made an appearance.
What was really neat about the band’s stage production is that each song on the set list was treated like it’s own music video. I’m pretty sure Brink didn’t wear the same costume twice throughout the night. When one song was done, she would go into the little tent that was part of the stage, and then re-appear in a new outfit while the band’s crew transformed the stage.
Half way through the set, Brink took the time to come down to the front of the stage to make eye contact with as many fans as she could. She then thanked everyone for coming to the show and supporting the band. After that, she proceeded to introduce herself and her fellow band mates to the crowd. It’s always very humbling to see bands do this as they begin to grow, and I’m glad to see that even with big stage show plus some line up changes, they are in a sense, still the same band I remember seeing years ago.
Closing out the night the band performed a cover of Phil Collins’ ‘In The Air Tonight’, and their crowd-favourite ‘Whore’.
If you were ever on the fence about seeing In This Moment, please do yourself a favour and catch this tour! They are the total package as you get to hear some spectacular live music on top of getting to see an unforgettable show. It truly felt like an intimate metal version of a Lady Gaga concert, and I loved every bit of it.
