In early December 2021, three of the biggest names in modern metalcore surprised fans with an early unholy-day gift: the chance to see all three bands on the same stage. For the first time, Motionless In White, Black Veil Brides and Ice Nine Kills would be embarking on a triple co-headlining tour, spanning North America from coast to coast. The aptly named “Trinity of Terror” tour would see the bands sharing the stage every night in alternating order so that a different band had the closing set at each show. Beginning in March 2022, the highly anticipated tour started in Arizona and included stops in Alberta, Kentucky, New York and Florida.
Exactly two months after the final show of the sold-out tour, the bands had another announcement: in the fall of 2022, they would be embarking on the “Trinity of Terror Part II.” This second leg would include the same headlining bands with the same rotating order every night. The tour’s first show was set for Aug. 30 in Denver, Colo. The schedule included several new stops, including hometown shows for Motionless In White and Black Veil Brides in Scranton, Pa., and Cincinnati, Ohio, respectively.
To the delight of fans, the headliners took to social media just weeks before their second stint around the U.S. to announce a third leg of the “Trinity of Terror” tour in the fall of 2022 to follow the second one. Like the second announcement, the third included new stops in highly requested, not-yet-visited locations like Texas, Oregon and two other Canadian provinces.
Despite three different legs of the same tour and 66 scheduled stops, several states still had yet to see a performance. The seeming exclusion led to social media speculation as to why the bands had settled on not appearing in states such as Georgia and Tennessee. However, several weeks following a vague tweet from Motionless In White frontman Chris “Motionless” Cerulli, the bands were back on social media only weeks prior to the Trinity’s final run to announce the addition of eight new stops, finally including a show in Atlanta.
Located in The Battery Atlanta across the street from Truist Park, the Coca-Cola Roxy is a multi-story venue with a reported capacity of around 3,000. Given the area’s more trendy, polished and mainstream appearance, it is not usually the first place people think of when they envision “hard rock music.”
However, by the time Nov. 25 — ironically (though unrelatedly) named “Black Friday” — arrived, the first and only “Trinity of Terror” show in Georgia had completely sold out the venue.
Hours before the doors would open, a line was growing rapidly, wrapping around the block and past the “3rd Base Gate” of the Braves Stadium. The sidewalks were packed with people of all ages decked out in band merch, spiked accessories and hair dye. The buzz of many conversations at once blended, creating an evident excitement.
Many fans had been waiting for this tour for nearly a year, with some coming from different states to see the Black Friday gig.
When the time came to finally begin letting people into the venue, the number of people became much more daunting, as only one side of the Roxy was open for general admission security. The staff did their best to quickly and efficiently get people inside while going through the necessary venue security process. Despite this, many people were still waiting to get inside by the time the opening band, Atreyu, began their set.
The longest-running band of the “Trinity of Terror Part III” lineup, Atreyu knew how to get the crowd fired up. Throughout their set, concert-goers were still filing into the venue, making their way to the merch line before the headliners started or trying to find a decent spot on the main floor.
After Atreyu, the crew and band members worked to flip the stage for the first headliner. Because the order of the bands rotated nightly, the audience did not know who would be walking onstage first until a bright white “BVB” appeared on the stage backdrop, and fog began rolling across the stage and over the crowd. The crowd erupted as the silhouettes of Black Veil Brides members strode out onstage, lights illuminating the group as they began their song “Crimson Skies” off the 2021 album “The Phantom Tomorrow.”
Guitarists “Jinxx” and Jake Pitts and bass player Lonny Eagleton were all dressed similarly in studded vests and black jeans. At the same time, drummer Christian “CC” Coma forwent a shirt and lead vocalist Andy Biersack wore a simple black suit complete with eye makeup and lipstick mimicking blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. The band played a wide range of songs from seven different albums, including their first studio album, “We Stitch These Wounds,” and their newest EP, “The Mourning.” Parts of their set featured Jinxx playing violin instead of guitar, as he has done in several recorded songs.
Towards the middle of their song “Knives and Pens,” Biersack noticed a fan in distress and stopped the band, calling security and medical personnel over to assist, not turning away until he knew the fan was receiving care. Some other members gently tossed water bottles to the front during this time. Once more, during their set, Biersack stopped the show so an audience member could get medical attention, restarting the song he had cut off after the event staff situation had addressed the problem.
At the end of Black Veil Brides’ set, a portion of the crowd filed out, going to merch if they had not already or simply leaving, having seen the band they were there to see. Fans who stayed took the opportunity to shuffle forward slightly; those who had only been able to find spots towards the back of the room were happy to be able to move closer.
The second of the headliners to take the stage was Ice
Nine Kills (INK). Known best for their albums, “The Silver Scream” and “Welcome to Horrorwood: The Silver Scream 2,” based on famous horror movies, the band’s drum kit was painted to look like popcorn buckets, and the microphone contains elements of horror memorabilia. The “Clown Cafe” theme song from “Terrifier 2” played cheerfully as the crowd waited eagerly, some even singing the words to the music.
As the jingle stopped, the members of Ice Nine Kills appeared, each wearing their signature tuxedo-bowtie combination, faces hidden by the masks unique to their opening song “Funeral Derangements,” which Stephen King’s “Pet Sematary” inspired. Their entire performance was true to INK fashion in its theatricality, complete with props and homages to classic horror movies. References ranged from lead singer Spencer Charnas donning Candyman’s coat and hook during “Farewell II Flesh” to a reenactment of the Hip to Be Square scene from “American Psycho” during the song “Hip To Be Scared,” complete with an actor to play the character of Paul. At the point where the character met his unfortunate onstage demise, the audience yelled two words that came straight from the original movie: “Hey Paul!”
Ice Nine Kills truly put on a show unlike any other; their performance quality never dwindled throughout their show.
After their final song, similar to the conclusion of Black Veil
Brides before, a portion of members of the audience left the main floor after Ice Nine Kills’s final song, making room for those remaining to move forward more for the last band of the night.
Closing the show for Atlanta was Motionless In White, receiving thunderous cheering as the members appeared, despite the slightly lessened size of the crowd. While their stage outfits did not match as closely as the two bands before them, Motionless In White had an overall cyberpunk theme. Elements of each member’s outfit highlighted the aesthetic, like bassist Justin Morrow’s elaborate makeup, the mask covering the lower half of guitarist Ryan Sitkowski’s face and lead singer Chris “Motionless”’s long-sleeve undershirt, printed to look like cyborg parts.
In addition, guitarist Ricky Olson surprised the crowd by walking onstage with a new haircut. The longtime member has consistently worn his hair long and therefore caused a stir by appearing in Georgia with a cropped short style.
The band started their set with one of their most well-known songs, “Disguise,” off their 2019 album by the same name. After that, they continued to play songs from several different albums, especially their newest one, “Scoring The End Of The World.” They were also sure to include their cover of “Somebody Told Me” by The Killers. This song has been a constant on Motionless In White’s setlists over the years, the band explaining that they want to include a song that even those who do not know their music can sing.
There were many memorable parts to the night’s closing set, such as the band inviting Ice Nine Kills’s touring makeup artist, Shevy Marie, onstage between songs to wish her a happy birthday. Also, the appearance of a pride flag and rainbow visuals during “Voices,” a song that the band has said many LGTBQ+ fans have connected with.
The crowd had not lost any energy, even given how late it was in the night. Said energy did, however, unfortunately, lead to Motionless needing to stop the show several times, as Biersack had during Black Veil Brides’s set earlier, to ensure fans’ safety towards the front of the venue.
After the third occurrence, the singer politely asked for no crowd-surfing during the next few songs of their set, saying he wanted “to give the folks up at the front a bit of a break.”
The concert concluded with “Eternally Yours,” Motionless In White’s signature finale, which involves roses being thrown from the stage and into the audience.
In conclusion, Atlanta’s stop on the third “Trinity of Terror” tour was a success. While there were some concerns regarding crowding within the venue, the crowd looked out for one another while still having a great night.
All three bands remained attuned to any needs of the audience, never once hesitating to pause the show to ensure the safety of their fans.
The final leg of the “Trinity of Terror” tour concluded in December 2022, over a year after the first announcement. With 70+ stops, thousands of tickets sold and three ultimate co-headliners, it is undoubtedly a year hard rock fans will never forget.