LIVE FROM THE PIT: ALT BLK ERA and Crae Wolf

There are shows where you go to hear music. Then there are shows like this one—where you leave feeling like you’ve been inside a vision. Alt Blk Era’s latest tour stop was one of those rare nights that felt less like a concert and more like a statement. Every beat, lyric, and movement carried weight, and from the moment the lights dimmed to the final defiant note, it was clear: this wasn’t just performance, it was declaration.

Opening the night was Crae Wolf, delivering her sole appearance on the tour, and it quickly became obvious that she wasn’t here to play warm-up act in any traditional sense. Shrouded in theatrical flair, dark glam, and an undeniable sense of command, Crae Wolf stalked the stage like it belonged to her—and for the length of her set, it truly did.

Her sound — a fierce blend of gothic pop, UK rap, and experimental theatre—felt at once unplaceable and exactly right. You could hear gasps ripple through the crowd as she shifted from venomous verses to vulnerable croons. Between tracks, her presence never dimmed; she locked eyes, leaned into the crowd, and never once broke character. For many in the room, this was an introduction. By the end, it felt more like an initiation.

When Alt Blk Era took the stage, the energy shifted again—this time toward full-scale immersion. The sister duo, who’ve built their name on unflinching self-expression and genre-crushing sound, turned the venue into their own world. Kicking off with “Freak Show”, they didn’t ease the crowd in, throwing us straight into the heart of their chaos-pop universe. Sirens blared, lights strobed, and the air was electric with that rare kind of anticipation: the sense that anything could happen next.

“Straight To Heart” followed in their Rave Immortal set, a track that hit with both sonic intensity and lyrical vulnerability. It was emblematic of what Alt Blk Era does best — melding raw emotion with futuristic production, punk venom with rave euphoria. The duo performed with such synergy, it often felt like they were a single organism moving to the pulse of something much bigger than the stage they stood on.

“Come On Outside” and “Crashing Parties” brought a more anthemic energy, their choruses shouted back by an audience clearly ready to rage and release. There’s something deeply cathartic about watching Alt Blk Era live — the way they move, scream, laugh, and convulse is its own language, a dance of liberation and defiance. “My Drummer’s Girlfriend” was a standout moment, fusing chaotic fun with chaotic truth. It’s the kind of track that breaks rules simply by existing.

Then came “Come Fight Me For It”, a track that felt like a line drawn in the sand. It’s bold, it’s brash, it’s challenging—and live, it felt like a dare hurled into the face of anyone still unsure of the duo’s place in the alternative scene. The ferocity of “Run Rabbit” and “Catch Me If You Can” pushed the night into even wilder territory, fusing glitchy breakdowns with almost folklore-level storytelling. Somehow, between all the digital noise and distortion, you could still feel the heartbeat behind it.

The night climaxed with the arrival of “Rave Immortal”, reappearing as a standalone moment of raw power. It was explosive, euphoric, and transcendent. And yet, Alt Blk Era didn’t leave on a massive, bombastic final note. Instead, they closed with “I’m Normally Like This”, a quieter, self-aware outro that felt as intimate as it did unsettling. The lights dimmed not in triumph, but in reflection — like waking from a vivid dream you’re still trying to understand.

Alt Blk Era’s live show doesn’t offer escapism. It offers confrontation. Beauty and brutality exist in the same breath. And for anyone lucky enough to be in the crowd that night, one thing was clear: the future of alt is already here, and it's wearing fangs.

Words: Jason De Medonca

Cover Photo: Simon Arinze