On December 5th The Queen in Wilmington, Delaware held the last stop of the band Grayscale's headlining tour Umbra. They were joined on tour by their amazing openers, Young Culture, Cemetery Sun and The Wldlfe who got everyone pumped and warmed up as the show progressed.
If you don’t know who this band is, Grayscale is made up of five people, Collin Walsh (lead singer), Nick Veno (drummer), Andrew Kyne (guitarist), Nick Ventimiglia (bassist) and Dallas Molster (guitarist/vocals). The band performed the Umbra album in its entirety opening the show with the first song off the album Without You. A beautiful song that I believe sets the tone for the show in the most incredible way, the lights flicker on and a killer riff starts playing with these beautiful horns in the background. The audience went wild and with no hesitation at all the crowd surfing immediately began as the boys walked out on stage.
Photo by Alexis Marzo
The fans began a mosh pit as they played their most streamed song on the album called Dirty Bombs, the song that I believe gives off the most kick ass attitude. Everything about that song is electric, the chorus had the room singing at the top of their lungs in the most carefree way. The way the instruments came into the chorus had every person in the room dancing like crazy, jumping around as if it was a friday night. Truly a song you can let go and lose yourself in. From then on, the night carried that same energy even during the slower songs such as Live Again, Carolina Skies and King of Everything.
Live Again is a heavier song emotionally but that song stuck out to me the most for a lot of reasons. It was an experience to watch a room full of people coming together and singing this song. Seeing some people tearing up, and fans comforting one another as they could relate to this song. Though every song has some sort of story behind it I believe this song took it to the next level, it was so raw and honest. Sharing such a personal experience like this within a song only makes fans feel closer to the musicians. The lighting of the show emulated the colors of the ambulance lights that you would see in the music video which made it that much more immersive. The second half of their show started with their single Diamond that leans closer to this EDM vibe. They also fit in the fan favorites on their setlist from previous albums such as In Violet, Painkiller Weather, Forever Yours, Fever Dream, and Atlantic. They closed out the show with their song Atlantic and were joined by all their openers on stage as they celebrated and took in being on stage one last time. There was honestly no better way to end the show.
This was the closest show they had from where they reside from so not only was the room filled with their devoted fans but with their families and friends as well. There was so much love in the room that night, not just because of the amount of love people had for this band but due to the proposal between two friends of the band that was happening in the middle of the crowd when they dedicated their song Forever Yours to them, it was truly a fairy tale moment and the look on the girl's face as he got down on one knee was something I’ll never forget. Even Collin's 11th grade teacher Mrs. Owen was there, he told everyone how it was because of the writing exercise she provided in class every Friday that he learned to express his emotions through writing. He also expressed how much it meant to him that kids come up to him saying how his lyrics inspire them to write as well. He encouraged his supporters by saying “don’t be afraid to start small, take three minutes to write about how you feel with no distractions, no phones, put that away, do what you love. Try different things for three minutes unimpeded and you’ll be surprised at what you find.”
On that note, Grayscale is one of the best bands right now and has such a phenomenal community supporting them at their shows. Each album they have put out is so unique from one another when it comes to sound, they do not box themselves into just one genre of music. They have a song for any emotion you are feeling and leave just enough room for you to interpret the songs to your own life. Their lyrics are some of the most captivating and powerful stuff I have heard in a long time. I advise everyone to add these guys to your playlists.
GRAYSCALE
The Queen in Wilmington, DE
December 5, 2021
Photographed by Alexis Marzo
by Alexis Marzo
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