Botch / Great Falls / Bad Breeding @ Electric Ballroom, London 23rd March 2024

Metalcore was a word that meant a lot to a very few selected teenagers and young adults between 1997 and 2009, before it got tarnished by cringy bands from the Sumerian and Roadrunner Records rosters.

At the time, there was one band that we were all hoping to see one day but never got the chance to do for various reasons: you were either too young to attend shows or by the time you heard about Botch, they have already broken up and started to play in different bands like Minus The Bear, Narrows and Russian Circles. And yet, in 2022, Botch reunited and gave us the single One Twenty Two.

Then, in 2023, they played North America and a couple of places in mainland Europe, including last year’s Hellfest. And last month, after embarking into a final world tour that included mainland Europe, the Tacoma boys decided to grace us with their presence with some UK shows including Manchester, Bristol and London. The overwhelming feeling as I travelled northward is that Thameslink sucks ass and also that everyone who bagged themselves a ticket thought that this was a dream coming true. I could hear everyone in Camden saying how excited they were to see Botch, at last.

The opening act, Bad Breeding from Stevenage, started hostilities with a high-energy short set where their anarcho-punk hardcore gelled really well with the audience. Their set wasn’t much different from when they played Roadburn and Desertfest London last year, but they seemed to really enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by making the most of it. As their new album is due to be released on 14th June, they played two songs from it as a teaser. Rest assured, I truly feel we’re going to hear a great deal about Bad Breeding in the near future.

The second opening act wasn’t as known as the other headliners but apparently, well according to my mate Matt, are legends amongst the metalcore/noise US scene. After seeing these lovely geezers gush about how honoured they are to share the stage with Botch, it became very clear to me that they know exactly what they are doing and know where to hit the right heartstrings.

Their set was way too short for my liking but damn, were they amazing! Their set was mainly made of songs out of their latest release called Objects Without Pain, and they were also accompanied by Australian jazz singer Lillian Albazi who provided vocals on a couple of tracks. Their performance was as cacophonous as it was intriguing, especially considering how much of a beast Demian Johnston (vox/guitar) sounded on that night. Great Falls was a pleasant surprise to many who had not heard of them before and – again according to my mate Matt – it was a ‘fucking amazing show’. I cannot recommend them enough, you HAVE to see them whenever they play near you.

And now the main event, Botch, who started their set with a few classics off their album We Are The Romans, released twenty-five years ago. The crowd was already out of control by the time the photographers in the crash pit were kindly wrapping their three-songs-and-out slot, everybody was either moshing or being moshed out. It was also really fun to hear Dave Verellen joking about those who saw them twenty years ago before asking them next ‘how are your kids doing?’, I couldn’t help but giggle until I remembered that my nephew just finished high school.

Talking about blasts from the past, Botch delivered an incredible show where the audience got to live (or relive) the greatest period in metalcore history with Oma, John Woo, Saint Matthew Returns To The Womb and everything they played from An Anthology Of Dead Ends, which was my gateway to the band in 2002. I think the piano break from Afghamistam got me a bit emotional because I knew that I would probably never hear them play Man The Ramparts and also, that I might never see Botch again, which they unfortunately confirmed on stage.

But for what it’s worth, seeing Brian Cook at his prime was a privilege as he oozed charisma on stage, and it was such an incredible moment to hear their one-shot song One Twenty Two as it was intended: loud, clear, live and with a dozen dudes pushing their way out of the moshpit. This evening was, for many in attendance, one of the most important evenings of their music lover lives and I can’t blame them, I would also classify this one as one of the best shows I’ve seen as a grown-ass adult. I wish we get to see more of Tim Latona or Dave Knudson in the future but damn, it was spectacular to witness this.

Botch got to end things on their terms and we, the fans, got to have the best possible form of closure after over twenty years of wondering why stopped all of a sudden. Australasians will be lucky getting to see them next month for their farewell tour and to those who were privileged enough to have seen them live in 2023 and 2024, all that is left to say is ‘Good night sweet Susan, oh don’t worry I still drive by’…

Botch

Great Falls

Bad Breeding

Scribed by: Nessie Spencer
Photos by: Gemma Shaw