Celebrating Their Latest EP: Northlane Unveils Mirror’s Edge North American Tour at Irving Plaza in New York City

Hailing from Melbourne, Australia, Windwaker was the first band to take the stage at Irving Plaza for the Mirror’s Edge North American Tour. Windwaker, formed in 2014, consists of Liam Guinane on vocals, Jesse Crofts on guitar, Indey Salvestro on bass, Chris Lilac on drums and Connor Robins on keyboards and synthesizers. Windwaker gives fans a dynamic force of modern metalcore tied in with aggressive but catchy instrumentals along with vocals. Throughout their career, they have released their first EP in 2017 titled “Fade” and evolved their sound with their record “Empire” which was released in 2020. Recently, the band has released a brand new album titled “HYPERVIOLENCE” via Fearless Records, which features tracks such as “Break the Rules”, “Get Out”, “SIRENS”, and many other fan favorites.

Even though the lineup was absolutely insane as is, I was mostly excited to see Windwaker live. According to the band, the Mirror’s Edge tour was their FIRST ever tour in the United States and in all honesty, I am so proud of them; not only does it give them more exposure to areas outside of their hometown, but fans who are unable to travel to Australia are finally able to catch these talented individuals live. After I was finished photographing the first three songs from the photo pit, you know I had to step into that mosh pit. When they were making their way towards the end of the set, they performed “Break The Rules” (2024) from their latest album “HYPERVIOLENCE” and all I could say was “OH MY GOD???” because everybody outside of the pit was hyping those in the pit to show off their dance moves. During the pre breakdown in the beginning of the song, it felt like I was back in school in a gymnasium because all I heard was everybody hyping not just (vocalist) dancing, but everybody’s sneakers were squeaking in the pit and I didn’t realize it until I went back in my videos on my phone and all I heard was shoes squeaking. Overall, I would definitely catch these guys again and it was definitely a fun experience. If you have not yet seen Windwaker live, please give these guys support and stream their latest album “HYPERVIOLENCE”.

Up next was Thornhill. Thornhill is a metalcore band from Melbourne, Australia, The band currently consists of vocalist Jacob Charlton, guitarist Ethan McCann, bassist Nick Sjorgen and drummer Ben Maida. This is their second time touring the USA this year. They supported American metalcore band Silent Planet earlier this year. They have also supported other notable bands such as ERRA, The Plot In You and Polaris. Thornhill always draws a big crowd regardless of position on the lineup. Fans sporting their merch and chanting their name as the group took the stage. Fans had their phones out to record the moment as the band walked out to a room that glowed red with yellow beams of light that showered the room. The opening riff to “Views From The Sun” from their 2019 The Dark Pool. McCann led the charge with the groovy yet heavy riff. Charlton complemented with his soothing vocals then soon flipped to screams. Charlton has clearly put in the work as his vocals got even better from the last time I saw them. He is fluent in hitting high and low screams that add a new dynamic to Thornhill’s live performance. Charlton asked for a circle pit for the final riff and the pit was too chaotic for one to form. I saw people trying to run in a circle but the karate moves of the pit were much too powerful for the circle pit.

Thornhill played their latest single “Obsession” which was released this last February. Charlton asked for everyone to bang their heads, Not only did they bang their heads but they flung crowd surfers in the air. I was taking photos in the photo pit and next thing I knew there was a barrage of crowd surfers coming my way. I escaped the onslaught of concert goers having the time of their lives. What stood out the most was their performance during “Casanova”. Casanova is a song from their 2022 album Heroine. The show turned up a notch when McCann unleashed an unreal guitar solo that took the form of a breakdown but with nasty circus sounding riffs. The riffs led into a slow chugging breakdown that ended with a sudden pause. This was the time for a wall of death. The band called for it and the room split in half. Charlton counted down from 5 and all hell broke loose. This was all accompanied by Charlton by unleashing some of the most brutal screams I've ever heard. He ranged from high to low screams and did a near pig squeal scream you would normally hear from a deathcore vocalist. The talent of Thornhill is unmatched. The band finished their set and their devoted fans stormed to the merch to go meet the band. Up next was a band that fans have come to know and love.

Taking the stage next was progressive metalcore band Invent Animate. Invent Animate formed in 2011 in Port Neches Texas. The band incorporates progressive metal, metalcore, and post-hardcore into their unique sound.The band consists of members Marcus Vik (Vocals), Caleb Sherradan (Bass), Keaton Goldwire (Guitar), and Brody Taylor Smith (Drums). Trey Celaya is currently the drummer of Fit For a King but has previously worked for Invent Animate as their guitarist and drummer before leaving in 2021. Currently he works behind the scenes when it comes to terms with recording future tracks for Invent Animate. Invent Animate recently released the deluxe version of their 2023 album Heavener. The band entered the stage wearing all white with rhinestones as blue glowing lights along with eerie ambient sounds filled the room creating high anticipation. Smith dropped bombs on the kit as they opened up with “Sleepless Deathbed”, a song from the deluxe version of Heavener. The booming sound of the snare bombarded the room as the mosh pit was absolute insanity. The venue vibrated from the hurricane of melodies and breakdowns.

Sherradan called for crowd surfers when it was time to play “How We Used To Say Goodbye” the other new track from Heavener Deluxe. It was a blast lifting up crowd surfers but also incredibly difficult handling my equipment while lifting people into the air. While all this was happening I saw karate moves in the pit from the corner of my eye and could feel the intensity the crowd was giving back to the band. At one point a crowd surfer knocked my glasses off my face after kicking me in the head. It was absolute chaos, but everyone was safe while causing chaos. The thing I noticed the most was the crowd singing along. Every chorus of each song was driven by the crowd deafening the venue with their voices especially during “Without A Whisper”. The crowd sang the post chorus as the venue disco ball glistened. Vik was letting the crowd show off their voices as he absorbed the passion of the fans. Speaking of Vik, his ability to transition between harsh screams to graceful cleans is some of the best in the scene. Invent Animate closed out their set with their hit song “Immolation Of Night” the lead single for Heavener. The band called for a wall of death for the final breakdown and I have never seen so much space open up in a mosh pit at Irving Plaza. Sherradan gave the signal and the two sides of the wall collapsed on each other and one last massive mosh pit ended an iconic performance. Up next was our final set of the night.

Taking the stage for our main event was Australian progressive metalcore band Northlane. Northlane originated in Blacktown, New South Wales forming in 2009. The band currently consists of Marcus Bridge on vocals, John Deiley on lead guitar, Josh Smith on rhythm guitar and Nic Pettersen on drums. Deiley is the only founding member left and met the other founding members through the internet and shared their common interest for the love of the genre. They found inspiration for a band name from the Architects track called “North Lane”. The band is now signed to UNFD and is fresh off the release of Mirror’s Edge, their latest EP. The EP released on April 12th and features Winston McCall the vocalist of Parkway Drive along with the bands Karnivool and Structures. Mirror’s Edge has gained plenty of praise as not only fans, but plenty of other artists have recognized Northlane for their latest masterpiece. Northlane has supported plenty of big time artists such as Parkway Drive, Bring Me The Horizon and Fit For A King.

Northlane is known for their iconic blend of multiple sub genres of metal. Northlane is generally known as progressive metalcore, but early Northlane was considered just metalcore and comparable to bands like After The Burial. But in classic Northlane fashion they evolved their sound, By their 5th album called Alien, they shifted into a blend of sub genres such as progressive, nu-metal and even electronic. This is apparent as the band kicked off their set with “Carbonized” from their 2022 album Obsidian. The whole room had a blue glow to it. The band took the stage and they kicked off the song. The light show was mesmerizing as it followed the kicks of the drums. Flashing in all sorts of colors from the rainbow along with plenty of brought white lights. “Carbonized” offers a groovy funky riff to start the song that led into a loud booming chorus that had the whole crowd singing along. During their song “Intuition” from their 2017 album, Bridge grabbed a fan's phone and recorded himself performing in front of the crowd and handed it back to the fan. Bridge created a wholesome connection that the fan will never forget. One thing that left me speechless was the insane talent of Deiley and Smith. They are both wizards on the strings. The absolute might of the riffs performed are complimented by their stage presence. They keep the energy at the highest level possible by jumping, spinning and kicking their way around the stage. Passion such as that create lifelong memories to the thousands of fans they reach each show.

When Northlane kicked off their fan favorite song “Echo Chamber”, Bridge got the whole crowd to have a dance party. The lights and screens in the back displayed cryptic coding with red and white flashing lights. Deiley also whipped out the drum pad creating a groovy beat that had the whole room dancing. Another staple of Northlane’s performance. I saw tons of crowd surfers and moshers during the song “Nova” that made me feel the high energy of the show. It had me moving along with the rest of the crowd and it was undeniably a fantastic time. Northlane would exit the stage after, but we all knew it was time for an encore. The whole room chanted “ENCORE, ENCORE”. I even saw security joining in on the chant. Everyone was having a blast. To commemorate the moment the band posed for a picture with the packed crowd. Northlane closed out with “Citizen” and the pit grooved as the rainbow flashing lights shimmered and dazzled one last time. Bridge and the rest of the band thanked and saluted the crowd for an incredible night. It left the fans craving more, but they will have to wait until the next time Northlane comes around. Northlane will finish out the rest of the Mirror’s Edge tour heading towards the west coast by the end of July. Northlane will bring the tour to Europe and Japan as that rounds out their touring schedule for the rest of 2024. Be on the lookout for more Northlane in the future as they continue to inspire and create memories.