Carnifex and Chelsea Grin in Worcester, MA at The Palladium – April 28, 2023

Carnifex and Chelsea Grin’s co-headlined “Suffer In Heaven/Suffer In Hell Tour” made a stop at the Worcester Palladium. The Atlanta-based nu-deathcore band Left to Suffer and Vegas-based blackened deathcore band Ov Sulfur supported this tour for majority of the month long duration.

Carnifex

Hailing from San Diego County, Carnifex gave the Nor’east one hell of a show from beginning to end. Carnifex is a deathcore band that formed back in 2005, which a whopping 8 full length albums and 3 EPs. I was particularly excited to see Carnifex as they were part of the set of bands that really jumpstarted my interest in deathcore back in the late 2000s.

Starting with “Dark Heart Ceremony”, the crowd reflected their delight with roars that filled the room. Fans could expect to hear deep cuts such as “Slit Wrist Savior” and “Lie to My Face” (I remember having these burned on a CD in high school), as well as more recent songs like “Cursed”. With every song that was announced, Scott Lewis, the lead vocalist, was met with the cheers of approving fans in the crowd. The band even surprised fans with a brand new song dubbed “Torn in Two”, which received much love from the audience and their approval. Closing their set with “Hell Chose Me”, it was a fitting wrap to their stop in Worcester, Mass. and even more fitting transition into their co-headliner, Chelsea Grin.

Chelsea Grin

Chelsea Grin, a deathcore band from Salt Lake City Utah, effortlessly took the energy that Carnifex riled up from the room and ignited it. Their current line up consists of lead vocalist Tom Barber, David Flinn on bass, Pablo Viveros on drums, and Stephen Rutishauser on guitar. Another band that I would give credit to piquing my interest in deathcore, they absolutely did not disappoint as they started their set with “Suffer in Hell, Suffer in Heaven”, the same name as the tour and their 2022 album.

While they played mostly their newer hits, fans were treated to relatively earlier songs such as “My Damnation” and “Sonnet of the Wretched”. Some of their newer songs, off of the album tilted after the tour, such as “The Isnis”, and “Crystal Casket” were received with excitement from the crowd. The band also treated fans to their much newer song “Leave With Us”, which was released earlier this year. If you are looking forward to hearing Chelsea Grin with Tom Barber’s lead vocals, you wouldn’t want to miss the chance to see them next time they are in the New England area.