NORTH AMERICA 2025

In Flames, Swedish pioneers of 90s melodic death metal, played a rare headlining show in London, Ontario, Canada—one of four dates across North America. Longtime visitors to the city, the band delivered an extended set alongside labelmates Teeth, making for an unforgettable night at the London Music Hall.

TEETH

A five-piece metalcore band from Hamilton, Ontario, whose performance tonight was, surprisingly, my first introduction to them. This short but intense 30-minute set had absolutely no slow or soft spots; it was full-throttle intensity, “beat down music.” The band brought an energy drink-like craziness to their performance, which was palpable and instantly made me feel like I could take over the world. Blake, one of the founding members of the band, didn’t just restrict himself to the stage (which venue security certainly wasn’t ready for). Almost immediately, he jumped off the stage to stand on the security barricade to get as close to the crowd as possible while giving it his all from behind the mic. The rest of the band also exuded the same level of energy, even though they were restricted to the stage. Towards the end of the set, Blake positioned himself on the crowd barrier, then jumped headfirst into the crowd to do a little surfing of his own. The crowd was absolutely receptive to this, with the fully packed floor going apeshit in the pit. I’m glad everything lined up for me to catch this band, as they definitely left a positive impression on me. I will most certainly watch for any future performances by Teeth.

Setlist
‘Voodoo (intro), ‘Deathrace’, ‘Let It In’, ‘Destroyer’, ‘Writhe’, ‘Filth’, ‘B+C’, ‘Hate Me’, ‘EHM’

IN FLAMES

As my favourite band of all time (which also happens to be a band that was part of my first ever concert experience), In Flames has been touring the world consistently for what seems like forever. So, to have a headlining stop in London, Ontario, was a truly magical thing. It’s very hard for a band with a tenure of now thirty-five years to play something from each and every one of their fourteen studio albums, but this setlist was a nice balance of old and new with an intense cut that, according to online sources, hasn’t been played since 2010 (‘Sober And Irrelevant’).

Before the band hit the stage, the near-sold-out venue erupted in an “IN FLAMES!”, which was loud enough to drown out the house music. When they hit the stage, the crowd was nearly deafening with cheers of approval for each band member as they sauntered out to the classic song ‘Cloud Connected’ (which was played as an extended and slow intro). It was immediately apparent that there is a level of cohesiveness to this lineup (which has been together now for a couple of years). In Flames bring a seriousness to the stage, but as serious as they are about their performance, each member looked as though they were having the time of their lives, which could be seen in the form of Chris flexing his muscles between songs and pointing out select diehard fans who were giving it their all on the floor. Vocalist Anders brought forward his classic between-song banter to rally the crowd in an effort to amp up the already insane energy and intensity of the fans. His funniest line of the night was the intro to the classic song “This song is going to make you lose pants”. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the incredible little moments between Björn and Chris, both trading solos effortlessly, with Björn nodding and smiling at Chris’ flawless performance. Tanner will forever be flawless in performance, hitting all the right notes of previous drummers on albums past, while also bringing his very own flair. And lastly, Liam just absolutely looks like a madman playing the bass while stomping all over the stage.

Some highlights throughout the performance included a crazy heaviness that was brought to the live performance of ‘Deliver Us’ (when compared to the studio version). This turned out to be one of the better songs of the night. ‘Sober And Irrelevant’ was the deepest cut of the night, especially considering how much time has elapsed since the band last played this song live. The guys ended their set with ‘My Sweet Shadow’, which will forever remain the perfect ending to any In Flames performance, regardless of where they are placed on a lineup/billing. One of the last messages from Anders to the crowd was, “Without you, we couldn’t do this!”, with the rest of his banter throughout the performance equally as engaging. At one point, he commanded that London bring out the crowd surfers, which London was not shy in delivering. In the middle of the performance, Anders pounded his chest in approval of the rabid London crowd, which, I’m all but certain, reassured the band that making this trip across the border to London was the right choice.


Setlist
‘Cloud Connected (with extended intro)’, ‘The Quiet Place’, ‘Take This Life’, ‘Deliver Us’, ‘Paralyzed’, ‘In The Dark’, Voices’, ‘Food For The Gods’, ‘Coerced Coexistence’, ‘Bullet Ride’, Trigger’, ‘Sober And Irrelevant’, ‘Meet Your Maker’, ‘State Of Slow Decay’, ‘The Mirror’s Truth’, ‘I Am Above’, ‘My Sweet Shadow’