Third album lucky for the Brighton metalcore group
The room may be only about half as full as for their predecessors, but Architects intend to make the most of their time on the main stage. It is, after all, well earned. Singer Sam Carter introduces them with a brief “Hey, what’s up? We’re Architects.” Before bursting into a ringing aural assault of pop metalcore. Carter seems to be everywhere at once, as the moshpit below starts up (and then inexplicably turns into a cartwheel competition). Having just released their third album, ‘Hollow Crown’, they test the new material out here. And it turns out to be the highlights of their set, showing maturity to their work, along with some downright awesome melodies. Possible single ‘Left With A Last Minute’ gets a pretty good reception, but the band seem to be suffering from comparisons with the more established HammerFall, who played before them.
Carter seems acutely aware of this. “I know we don’t necessarily fit on this bill today… but thank you.” Sure, they look terribly young in comparison to some of the other acts, and they’re actually wearing colours, but there’s no doubt that Architects deserve their place with this line-up. Their set warms up considerably as they draw material from all three albums, and all the way through they draw more people into the audience. There’s something irresistible about their performance, the riffs, and their enthusiasm for what they’re doing.
They play another newie ‘Follow The Water’, and the popular ‘Always’. But it’s still a tough crowd, and Architects are visibly out of their comfort zone at times. But HammerFest is all about contrasts, and while the bigger bands have their audience, Architects definitely have theirs. Plus a few new admirers.