Special guests, live debuts, and more went down at a monumental show at Arlington's Globe Life Field,

With their next pair of albums just around the corner, both bands are debuting new songs on this run that are getting the pits moving.

The progressive metalheads are delivering two albums in full across two nights in each city, with backup from The Acacia Strain delivering their own special sets. I had the honor of attending the tour kickoff in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The hard-hitting moshers open up about the jump from being a supporting band to a headlining band, fostering community, and what Taylor Swift song they might consider covering.

Whatever the next Hootenanny ends up looking like, it’s sure to be another momentous occasion - though they’ve got their work cut out for them if they plan on outdoing this first one.

The rise of an artist like this - who can light up excited young audiences with empowering sex positive lyrics and have a unique image all their own - has been thrilling to see from afar. In person, it’s obvious from the fans that Scene Queen is here to stay, smashing every hater at a time and having a hell of a lot of fun doing it.

I remember thinking ‘Get to the Gone’ was the heaviest song in the world when I listened to it back in the day, and I was very happy to see this crowd treat it as such when it got played.

A recent sold out night in North Carolina showed just how wild the tour - featuring The Devil Wears Prada, Fit for a King, Counterparts, and LANDMVRKS - has been every single show.

Looking around at or talking to any fans in the building that night, it becomes clear that Strauss has more than earned the adoration and devotion that’s evident on all of their faces.

The TrivTooth experiment was clearly a success, with well over a thousand people in attendance at Raleigh leaving very satisfied and probably very bruised.

The stamina from everyone in the audience was impressive indeed considering the numerous circle pits and walls of death the bands had put them all through. Viciously fast drums, soul-crushingly heavy bass and blistering guitar solos were in abundant supply. 

“Hey uh, my mom is here.” frontman Jake Luhrs shared with the crowd.It was time for the wall of death in honor of Mama Luhrs.

The pain, rage and determination of the city was felt throughout the building and channeled into the songs of the night, making an already memorable and important show a truly unforgettable one. 

For many in attendance that night in Charlotte, this was far more than just their first show of the year, this was their chance to finally see their favorite band back in action. For plenty of others, it was their first time seeing the band ever.

“All the stress and all the industry bullshit aside, and all the being away from home that comes with this, there is no greater job on the face of the Earth than the one that we have.”

The Ukrainian ambassadors bring a difficult year to an end with headlining tour that has been as triumphant as it has been necessary.

26 sold out shows in a row. Evidently, the people like it heavy.

I’ve seen dozens if not hundreds of musicians play that venue. Not one of them ever whipped the crowd into the kind of magical stage-diving, stunt-performing frenzy that I experienced with Turnstile that night. I’m not sure I’ll ever see something like it again.

The Nine scorched Music City to the ground for the tour kickoff of their final domestic run of the year.