Papa Roach with Nothing More and Escape The Fate
The Fillmore – Charlotte, NC – 08 April 2018
I’m probably going to date myself a little bit with the following statement but during my high school era, Papa Roach was one of the bands that everyone was a fan of. It didn’t matter the genre of music that you liked, country, hip-hop, or pop, everyone had at least one Papa Roach song that they had on any mixed CD they owned. Ah, the glorious age of burning mixtapes and infecting your computer with who knows how many viruses from LimeWire. Back in my day kids…but, I digress. 
The sold-out crowd lined up outside The Fillmore in Charlotte, NC for the chance to see metal heavyweights Papa Roach hit the stage as the Crooked Teeth World Tour touched down in the city. Fans of all ages converged on the venue, forming a line that wrapped around the building just before doors opened on Sunday evening. When the doors finally opened, the crowd packed the venue to capacity to witness one of the best shows so far this year.
The first band to hit the stage was Las Vegas natives, Escape The Fate. Now even though I walked into this show not knowing much about this band and their music, I do have to give them credit for their stage energy. Their crowd interaction was very impressive, helping to engage their fans and give them a memorable show. They also interacted with the few photographers in the photo pit, giving us some great and pretty hilarious images to walk away with. Escape The Fate delivered a short 8-song set before their time on stage came to an end. 
After a short break down, the crew helped prep the stage for the next band on the bill, Nothing More. I have heard nothing but great things about this band, and their music is a bit of an acquired taste, but their showmanship is something that will sell the band to anyone. From their high energy to their strange metal drum kit creations, Nothing More has really dedicated time and effort into their performance. Bands like this score major points in my book, they focus on the overall concert experience instead of just delivering their songs live and trust me they deliver their songs very well live, with energy and emotion that creates an entire package for concert goers.
After Nothing More cleared the stage, the crew raised a Crooked Teeth curtain to help hide the stage while the transition happened. Eager fans began chanting as they awaited the moment the curtain dropped for their first glimpse at Papa Roach. When the curtain did fall, the crowd erupted as the band broke out into a setlist full of newer songs and beloved classics. The mix of their greatest hits collection was a perfect format for the setlist and the crowd in attendance. I do have to give Papa Roach huge credit on their lighting rig, I have photographed many bands and as you can tell in many of my photos, some bands invest more into their lighting presentation than others. Papa Roach’s lighting setup was fantastic, probably one of the top 10 that I have had the pleasure to photograph. It was around the 3rd song in the set that the crowd surfers began to make their way up to the front of the venue. Concert photojournalists talk and one of the things we have talked about throughout this tour so far is the sheer amount of crowd surfing that takes place during this show, it is absolutely insane.
Overall, this is probably one of those shows that you will not want to miss, whether you are a fan of old Papa Roach or new, you will get your fix during this tour. The Crooked Teeth World Tour is currently making its way around the US and Canada until the middle of May when the band takes their show overseas for some of the European Festivals in the summer.
All photos © James Geiser
Papa Roach
Nothing More
Escape The Fate
