Almost two years after their Skeletons tour left Tempe awestruck, Pop Evil returned to the Valley’s Marquee Theater hot on the heels of What Remains and ready to bring the house down once again. “This tour isn’t just a lineup,” frontman Leigh Kakaty said ahead of hitting the road, “it’s a sonic onslaught. A reckoning. A test of endurance for those who crave something more.”
A perfect example of something more: Four bands on the bill, including Oni, Return to Dust, and Devour the Day (featuring Joey Walser and Blake Allison from Pop Evil) as support. Each group upped the ante leading up to the headlining set, and the crowd roared their approval. The spectrum of heavy rock to metal always attracts enthusiastic and appreciative fans, and this show was no different.
All the excitement created the perfect welcome for Pop Evil, who, true to their word, took the stage with a vengeance. And although this live show scaled back some of the production, it delivered in sound — another something more. No acoustic renditions this time around, just ground-shaking tracks from What Remains (“Deathwalk,” “Criminal”) alongside fan favorites (“Let the Chaos Reign,” “Trenches”).
Watching the group rip through their set, it’s easy to forget they’re coming up on 25 years as a band. They still perform like they’re proving why they deserve to be on stage, and there’s no complacency to be found. Even after some shuffling of band members and label representation, what remains (pun intended) is rock solid music and proof that they’re not slowing down. Consider this your reminder to keep watching to see what they do next.
