april 17 — CONCERTS & EVENTS

After years of fans pleading for their return to Vancouver, BC, Slipknot did not disappoint on their last night with accompanying acts In This Moment and Wage War on part I of the Knotfest Roadshow.

A sea of leather and band tees could be seen surrounding the arena on Sunday night as fans of all ages anticipated the opening of the gates, those with floor tickets rushing towards their section to be first on the floor against the barricade, whilst others waited in line for merch. I asked one gentleman later in the arena how long he had waited as I noticed the line was beginning to wrap around the arena, to which he replied, “I missed the opening act and half of the second, so roughly and hour.” A dedicated, hardcore fan.

At 6:30 the lights surrounding the arena fell, the crowd erupting in screams and cheers as opening act Wage War took to the stage under the bright red lights, starting the show with “Relapse” off their most recent studio album Manic, released in 2021. Following their performance, several people in the crowd shared their thoughts with those they were enjoying the show with, uttering, “they’ve gained a new fan!” or, “awesome start to the show,” as crew worked both back and on-stage to prepare for Los Angeles-based In This Moment. The speakers were overpowered by the crowd as they erupted in song to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” before the curtain fell and vocalist Maria Brink hit the stage in a theatrical, engaging performance. Before leaving us for the evening, Brink explained the importance of their last song, titled “Whore,” her entire life she was told she would never amount to anything and that people always had something negative to say about her or to her. I really resonated with this as I believe most of us have been called a negative word, or been told that our dreams are useless to have and that we should just fall in line with everyone else. Work a 9-5, be secure. If I’m a whore, then so be it!

The moment we’d all been waiting for was moments from happening as fans anxiously awaited the final curtain drop. As I stood in the photo pit between the barricade and the stage, I spun slowly on my heel, taking in the energy and excitement of the crowd. The moment came full circle as I remembered sitting in this exact arena 18 years ago to see my very first concert. The curtain rose and the crowd behind me screamed as vocalist Corey Taylor took to the stage, the intro to “Disasterpiece” filling the arena. The floor turned into a mosh pit, crowd surfers floating toward the front of the stage one after the other.

Slipknot took the arena by surprise halfway through their 20 song set as Taylor informed the crowd that he’s been waiting “13 years to play this next song live” requesting that the crowd sing “Snuff” with him if they knew the words.

Taylor emphasized throughout the night, that “regardless of if you’ve been with Slipknot since 1999, or 20 minutes ago, regardless of your age, or skin color, religion, or how you identify, or who you love, we are all family!”

Thank you to Wage War, In This Moment, and Slipknot for an amazing Knotfest and truly unforgettable experience for myself and so many others. We hope to see you soon.

Words and photos by Emma-Jane Dotchuk