7-29 This is Hardcore, E Town Concrete, Arkangel, District 9, Wisdom in Chains, Carnivore AD, Twitching Tongues, Jesus Piece, Agents of Man, Sworn Enemy, Queensway, Lionheart, Mindforce, Sanction, Three Knee Deep, Vamachara, Philly @Electric Factory

The obvious bummer of the day is that Sick of It All dropped because of a medical issue or something. I don't know. They didn't seem to miss any other days on their tour. Either way, this day had a killer lineup with or without Sick of It All. In the end, where they played in the lineup, I wouldn't have seen them anyway. More on that later. We wanted to get there in time for Sanction. Played it out pretty perfectly.

Vamachara - Missed them. But I like their style of heaviness.

Three Knee Deep - Wasn't into them on recordings at all. Didn't see.

Sanction - Killer band from Long Island. They were added last minute when Sick of It All dropped off. Younger guys playing fast and heavy shit. We saw them a few times earlier in the year and they were just as good this time.

Mindforce - I really like the singer's voice. Perfect voice for their style of thrash hardcore stuff. I'd like them to come to Pittsburgh.

Queensway - Didn't watch them. I was out at the merch superstore.

Sworn Enemy - Good set. What I really wanted to see was a ton of songs from As Real As It Gets. We got a little bit of that, a few songs off the first release Negative Outlook, and a handful of new and newer songs. I guess they're becoming obscure enough that most people don't know Negative Outlook anymore, which was once their forte. So the crowd response was better than I thought it might be all in all, but the newer songs suck. Especially the last song, it's called something like Your Music Sucks. It's awful. Though, the brand new song was pretty good.

Agents of Man - Wasn't much interested in this. It was real weak, as anticipated. Crowd response equally as weak. I don't hate the band, it's just not that good.

Lionheart - They were way better than I anticipated. I guess I don't listen to them too much because I get tired of how many songs are about LHHC being awesome. The live show was very good. Good to see, especially since they've been playing out for a long time.

Jesus Piece - Super good and heavy band. They brought the mosh more ignorant than anyone else pretty much. That's not necessarily a good thing, but it's a thing. I like the energy of the vocalist and the bang your head parts.

Twitching Tongues - Missed them. Not a fan. After this was dinner break.

Carnivore AD - We caught the back end of the set. They were very professional metal. Having a shtick on stage. I didn't hate it. Still not sure how I feel about them as a band. I don't know them well enough to say for sure, but I heard some people grumbling that they didn't play their best songs. I don't know. I'm glad I caught the last 4 songs.

Wisdom in Chains - They pretty much killed it, just like every time. They played a good assortment of songs from their full catalogue. Ending with Land of Kings of course. They got a very good response from the crowd. A good time every time. They had a fill in on guitar, but he was pretty good. They didn't play Someday. That was suprising. Best set of the day.

District 9 - This band was good. I don't love their music, but a couple songs are bangers. They played them all. They even fucked up one song. But that doesn't matter so much. All about the Bronx. They don't have any new music in 20 years or so I think. Maybe longer.

Arkangel - I was super excited to see this band. Arkangel never plays in the US. Belgium heavy hardcore. They didn't disappoint. The first 6 or 7 songs killed it. Then a random fist that I never saw hit me in the head and I don't remember anything for about an hour. Fuuuuck.

E Town Concrete - welp...

Best Bands of Sunday:
1. Wisdom in Chains
2. Arkangel
3. Mindforce
4. Sworn Enemy

Best Bands of This is Hardcore 2018:
1. Incendiary
2. Wisdom in Chains
3. Regulate
4. Arkangel
5. Ten Yard Fight