Shadow of Intent
Special Guests: Enterprise Earth, Angelmaker & To The Grave.
Venue: The Joiners, Southampton.
Date: 15th January 2023.
Review By: Ryan Payne
After nearly 2 and a half years from being first announced, 2 postponements and a line-up change, the symphonic deathcore legends Shadow of Intent finally get to embark on their UK/EU tour, alongside Enterprise Earth, Angelmaker and To The Grave. The band originally announced this tour to support the release of their album “Melancholy”, which came out back in 2019, but due to the covid pandemic, the tour was ultimately postponed. In early 2022, the band released another album “Elegy” which then became the focus for the subsequent tour, while still playing several new tracks from the 2019 release.
To The Grave
First up, we have To The Grave: a hardcore/deathcore powerhouse from Australia. For the bands first appearance in the UK, they left a lasting impression on anyone who didn’t know who they were. From the first note to the last, they had the crowd gripped and, in their control, as frontman Dane Evans commanded the crowd and owned the stage with his presence and technique. Even with a couple of issues with the mixing of the bands sound, To The Grave had everyone head banging and moshing, as well as featuring one of the first wall of deaths of the night. This is a band to keep an eye on, and they deserved to be higher up on the bill 
(4 / 5)
Angelmaker
The dual fronted deathcore group from Canada took the stage next. The band played through a solid 30-minute set, covering material from all throughout their career. Vocalists Mike Greenwood and Casey Tyson-Pearce displayed their incredible range as they powered through every track, never faltering in their delivery. But where they strive in technique and performance, the interaction with the crowd was left to be desired, and it was very noticeable with the crowd itself. A couple of fans bobbing their heads along to the tracks, but there was no real control from the vocalists or drive to get people motivated. With that being said, when Angelmaker played their most well-known song “Leech”, the crowd erupted into a frenzy and was really a sight to behold. Again, there were a couple of sound issues but nothing that major that took away from the bands performance 
(3 / 5)
Enterprise Earth
After only being announced on the line-up in October 2022 as a replacement for Aversions Crown, the Washington deathcore quartet were up next. This was probably one of the softer bands on the line-up, primarily because they feature a more melodic element, but make no mistake, they still brought the heat. The technical precision from the guitarist and bassist was a sight to behold, being able to play such intricate riffs and keeping it so clean. Vocalist Travis Worland started off the set with a stand-up mic stand which very much hindered his stage performance, but once the first song was out of the way and the stand was removed, the real showman came out, and he acted like he owned the stage. Travis interaction with the crowd bought the audience out of their shell a bit more as every song got more intense as the set went on, with the crowd moshing and headbanging along from start to finish. This was definitely an enjoyable band to watch and a great act to have before the headliner (4 / 5)
Shadow Of Intent
The main event was up next, and they lived up to expectation. The fans have been waiting over 2 years to be in a room with this band, and the energy coming from both the band and the crowd was more than evidence enough. The intensity and precision from the bands playing, mixed with the demonic vocals from Ben Duerr, created a recipe for absolute chaos. The presence from Ben and the control he had over the crowd really made everyone feel united, making this a very enjoyable experience from a spectator’s point of view. The mix of everyone on stage was clear, making everyone so easy to hear rather than a giant mess of guttural noise. Shadow Of Intent are one of the pioneers of the new age of deathcore and after seeing them on stage, it is easy to see why 
(5 / 5)
