Fit For An Autopsy delivered a night of moshing, head banging and screaming for fans at Irving Plaza on Oct. 19. The deathcore band made their first show at the venue a memorable one. The intimate environment felt like an arena with their thundering guitar riffs and low growled vocals filling the space.
“The Nothing That Is” tour is a celebration of the band’s newest album of the same name, which was released on Oct. 25. The band said the album is filled with “anger, frustration and crushing despair.” The album is meant to be listened to in its entirety in a single sitting for the best listening experience.
With four openers it was a long night for fans, but they kept the energy going for each band. Fans would grab a cup of water from the bar and quickly make their way back to the mosh pit before the end of a song.
The lead vocalist Joe Badolato and Tim Howley, the guitarist, grew up in New York City going to shows at Irving Plaza. Before the show they posted on Instagram stories about how cool it was that they have the opportunity to take the same stage as some of their favorite bands. During their set, Badolato said that it felt like a full circle moment for the band, getting to play a venue they grew up going to.
Although this tour is to promote the new album, the majority of the setlist is made up of songs from previous albums.
The set kicked off with some songs from “The Nothing That Is,” including the at the time unreleased song, “Red Horizon.” The set cleverly ended with “Two Towers,” a tune from their sixth album “Oh What the Future Holds.”
“Two Towers” is an abstract story about the journey of your past and future self, and the forces that pull the two apart. I’m not sure if Fit For An Autopsy ended with this song intentionally, but it sums up what you can expect to hear on the tour. The band packs in lots of their old songs while offering a peek into the future sound of the band.
Security was kept busy catching the steady flow of crowd surfers sent their way the whole night. The energy could be felt from the front to the back of the venue. At the front of the crowd, people were moshing and screaming along to the lyrics. Like any other metal show people moved to where they were most comfortable, and the back was filled with people banging their heads to the music.
With four openers it was a long night for fans, but they kept the energy going for each band. Fans would grab a cup of water from the bar and quickly make their way back to the mosh pit before the end of a song.
The moshing and crowd surfing started to pickup when they played “Hostage,” a track off the new album. The stage was flooded with dark blue lights as Badolato screamed the chorus into the microphone. The song is about the trauma and grief a person carries through life. But you would never be able to tell what the song is about from watching the crowd as they pushed each other during the breakdown.
My favorite part of the night was when Fit For An Autopsy played the title track from their 2019 album, “The Sea of Tragic Beasts.” It has such a catchy chorus that even if you have not heard it before it will make you get off your feet. The song is a little over four minutes with three heavy breakdowns, allowing plenty of time for screaming and moshing.
The night was as enjoyable for the band as it was for fans. Looking at the smiles on the bass and guitar players’ faces you could tell they were feeding off the energy from the crowd and enjoying themselves.
“The Nothing That Is” tour will make its way across the U.S. now through Nov. 17.
