LIVE FROM THE PIT: Thrice and Lysistrata
- Lou Viner-Flood
- Mar 23
- 4 min read
THRICE are one of the most enduring and creatively restless bands to come out of the late 90s post‑hardcore scene, and are known for constantly reinventing their sound while keeping a core emotional and philosophical intensity.
After being a band of almost thirty years, forming in 1998 in Irvine, California, watching them take to the stage of Rock City on St Patrick's Day was a special moment; getting to watch a band who are still bringing the crowds together, with fans from their more melodic post hardcore years of the late nineties to early noughties, all the way to their reformation and reinvention of a more melodic, atmospheric experimentation of the more recent years.
Support for the evening was just a single band, French post-rock/noise band LYSISTRATA. Opening with Death by Embarrassment, the band blew away the crowd. From the first note, the band delivered a sharp, focused set, blending math-rock, post hardcore and grunge-leaning heaviness, which created a sound that felt energetic, but not chaotic. The momentum of the drumming from Ben Amos Cooper, along with him also delivering the main vocals of the band, built up an incredible atmosphere.
Guitar from Theo Guéneau and bass from Max Roy solidified the atmosphere on stage, and down on the floor. The shared vocals across the trio worked impeccably and held everything together. Despite only playing an eight song set list, which closed with Mourn, a track that came in at just under seven minutes long, LYSISTRATA not only warmed up the crowd for the impending arrival of THRICE, but they imprinted such an energy on us all, that everyone in the room was more alert and engaged than usual for watching a single support band, showing just how effective a line up with genre aligned bands can be.
THRICE are a band who occupy a rare space; they have been a band for almost thirty years, are incredibly technically skilled but also emotionally grounded. They have a way of being experimental yet accessible, their influence runs deep within the post-hardcore scene, and though they are a constantly evolving quartet, they are still as relevant as they were when they formed back in 1998.
They opened the set with Blackout and Gnash, two tracks from their 2025 album Horizons / West, before wasting no time bringing out the big guns and performing fan favourite, The Artist in the Ambulance, from the 2003 album of the same name. The room erupted into a singalong with lead vocalist Dustin Kensrue at its helm; when just a few notes of a song are played, and the crowd are already moving around, cheering and getting ready to sing every word, after only two songs, you just know that the night is going to be a good one.
What followed was a steady journey through the back catalogue of THRICE; Hurricane and The Window from their 2016 album To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere, Holding On, Crooked Shadows and The Dark Glow from the 2025 album Horizons / West and then, throwing it back in time for some nostalgia, Paper Tigers and Stare at the Sun from The Artist in the Ambulance. Next came some love for the 2005 album Vheissu, in the form of In Exile and Of Dust and Nations.
Though the crowd were full of energy and from early on, the pit opened up and the crowd wasted no time in getting stuck in, the vibe was not as chaotic as you would come to expect from a post hardcore band. This is far from a criticism; it felt like a unified association of people, enjoying the moment and getting from it exactly what they needed. Teppei Teranishi delivered lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals with a calm sensibility, alongside Eddie Breckenridge, on bass guitar, synthesizer and backing vocals, and Riley Breckenridge on drums.
The final stretch of the evening, which was one filled with strong guitar solos and even more enlivened singing from the crowd. THRICE returned to the 2016 album To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere with Black Honey, which was one of the biggest tracks of the night for the crowd singing along, following up with Albatross and Beyond the Pines, the only song of the set from 2018 album Palms. Rounding off the set was Robot Soft Exorcism and The Earth Will Shake, with a return to Vheissu.
THRICE had played a set of almost two hours, taking fans on an epic odyssey through their back catalogue, filling the crowd with a nostalgic warmth and longing. They returned to the stage for a two track encore; performing Vesper Light and finally, Deadbolt from the 2022 album The Illusion of Safety. Ending with this track had a clear intention: a final surge of energy that left fans wanting more while underscoring a simple truth - THRICE may have been around the block a few times and reshaped their sound with each journey, but at their core, they remain the band who took what they had and made it unmistakably their own. The scene will see many bands come and go, but it looks like THRICE is forever.
Words: Lou Viner-Flood
Photos: Kelsey Tomlinson
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