Palaye Royale – Chicago, Illinois – The Metro – November 18, 2018
Palaye Royale is finishing the year with their last performances of 2018 via “The Final Boom Tour” that kicked off in Anaheim, CA. and concluded in San Francisco, CA. For this healthy run of shows they brought special guests The Haunt, Dead Posey and BONES.
Their tour stopped in Chicago, IL. for my hometown show. This was a special one for Palaye Royale as it was their biggest show in the city since they started touring there. The venue held roughly 1200 people and it was nearly sold out. I was thankful enough to be able to go. The Haunt, from south Florida, started off the night running around the stage and trying to get the audience hyped up for the next bands. Their most notable songs currently are “Brat” and “Dirty”, each containing a diverse blend of guitars, drums and vocals with none overpowering the other.
The blending of the two vocalists, Max and Anastasia, made me appreciate their performance more, complimenting well with the instrumentals. Both were all over the stage, Max interacting with the crowd while playing his instruments and Anastasia while she was singing her parts. Even when she wasn’t, she was on amps and running from one end of the stage to the other.
Next up, and bringing more of a grungier-feel, was Dead Posey. To kick off their performance they had a recording of young children singing the old nursery rhyme, “Ring Around the Rosie”. Vocalist Danyell Souza came on stage and immediately the energy changed. The songs were upbeat and fun to dance to and Souza was all over the stage, interacting with the crowd and other musicians.
BONES came out dressed in matching outfits, polka dot shirts and black pants. They had a completely different presence than the previous two bands. Their tones were darker and their songs were more about problems women face, such as being told they’re not beautiful and that girls can’t do something better than a guy can. Their stage presence blew me away as much as their songs. At the end of the night Cameron Vandenberg gave her guitar to the crowd to touch and carry around before collecting it to go backstage.
When Bones exited and the crew pulled off the cloth covering the Palaye Royale sign a wave of emotions hit me. I wanted to cry, I was so proud. The band came out to “Don’t Feel Quite Right” and the energy was high. Everyone in the venue was screaming and singing along with Remington Leith. A moment during their performance that almost had me in tears was when they stopped playing all their upbeat, fast songs and switched to playing “Ma Chérie,” performed acoustically with Danzig, Barrett and Leith near the front of the stage. For most of the song Leith wore a LGBTQ flag around his shoulders.
By the end of their set you could tell they were tired but never once stopped putting all their energy into the songs they played. This concert made me reflect – 25 concerts over three years, and though I’ve heard the same songs over and over again this one was different. Their performance was outstanding and knowing the crowd was there for them sparked something I’d never seen. There was a fire in their hearts that showed through with each note played and every word sung. To be simple, it was the most fun concert I’d been to in a while.
Palaye Royale can only do bigger and better things, and as they do, I’ll continue to see them at sold out shows across the country.
TAGS: Palaye Royale | The Haunt | Dead Posey | BONES
Email: sammi.spinningthoughts@outlook.com
Twitter: @SammiMika
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