For Joe Laclair, sharing the stage with Soulfly is surreal. He said it’s an honor for him to play with such a strong band in the metal community. The lead guitarist of Cleansed In Embers will experience this honor tomorrow night.

Tomorrow, heavy metal band Soulfly will be performing at the Westcott Theater, bringing their “Blood On The Street” tour to Syracuse. The show starts at 5 p.m. with a lineup of seven bands.

“Audiences should be able to expect some solid ‘in your face’ metal with an excellent stage presence that displays the amount of time, effort and passion we put into each note we play,” Laclair said.

Unearth, INCITE, Prison, Arrival Of Autumn, along with local acts, Cleansed In Embers, WHEN SKIES DECIDE and Bushido Code are all expected to perform.

Co-headliners Unearth released their seventh studio album in 2018 entitled “Extinction(s).” The band has been part of the metal community for nearly two decades.

“It’s a game-changer for us to play in such a strong lineup,” said Laclair. “We were offered to play the show after we had played the Westcott Theater in June, but we weren’t officially added to the lineup until August.”

Cleansed In Embers is from Mexico, New York and Laclair said it is excited to show Syracuse what it has to offer.

Formed in Phoenix in the late 1990s, Soulfly consists of four members, one being founding member Max Cavalera, while the others have resulted in multiple lineup changes.

Cavalera is also known for creating the band Sepultura, which was known for their metal run in the late 1980s. He has gone on to develop multiple other bands, all focusing on themes like spirituality and among other ideals, according to Louder.

The band’s 2017 album “Ritual” was showcased a Native American on the cover shooting an arrow into the sky, and included indigenous musicians.

The tour started last Tuesday in Dallas and will continue through September, making their last stop in Los Angeles.

Promoter for Westcott Theater Dan Mastronardi said that he expects a good turnout for tomorrow’s show.

“They played for us some years back,” Mastronardi said. “It’s always great to have them here… It should be a nice turnout with a night of metal.”

He also added that he and his team are thrilled to have national acts such as Soulfly and Unearth play the venue.

Another local act on the lineup is WHEN SKIES DECIDE, whose guitarist, Shawn Hermann said it is thrilled to be playing for the metal community.

“We had seen this show advertised for Westcott, and we wanted to open for the show,” Hermann said. “Luckily, we heard back from them, and the rest is history.”

Based out of the town of Volney, Hermann and other band member Will Hart said WHEN SKIES DECIDE’s genre is a mix of death-core and metal-core with themes of tragedies, emotional issues in life and the ignorance of other human beings.

“Heavy metal is our life, and our hearts are poured out with this music,” said Hermann. “We want people to feel music again and we are prepared to do so tomorrow night.”

twdeer@syr.edu

Published on September 10, 2019 at 12:17 am