The “Do You Feel Love Tour” might be the most fitting tour name of the year. Because man, San Antonio felt it for Bad Omens again.
This was my second time seeing the band after their last show here in 2024 at the Boeing Center at Tech Port. That sold-out night had the crowd fully locked in, and now two years later, with even more popularity in the metal genre, their command of the Frost Bank Center was undeniable.
The tour name comes from a line in their song, “Specter,” which has got to be my favorite of theirs at this point, so I loved that it was the one they opened the show with. Noah Sebastian’s vocal range on the track is unreal and he somehow pushes his range even higher when he takes on this song live; the emotions in his voice chilled me to my core.
The concert was divided into tapes: cinematic interludes that set the tone for each part of the setlist and tied directly into the story unfolding on screen. There was a creature shown in the very first video that was also named Specter. I’m admittedly out of touch when it comes to all the Bad Omens lore and mythology, but hearing how loud the fans cheered when he appeared on the screen had me excited to check it all out. The visuals in each tape were memorably chilling, with off-kilter camera angles and dark color grading.
It’s definitely a lot of lore to get into but I’m even more excited to check it all out now.
Pyrotechnics fired off right when guitars and drums kicked back in after brief moments of silence, sending the crowd into absolute chaos. Alongside constant changes in lighting and color that shifted the mood, Bad Omens turned the arena into a true spectacle.
With these tapes and stage designs in play, this hour-and-a-half set didn’t drag for a second. The tapes helped to break up the setlist with clear intention and the stage design visually gave the show different feelings to take the audience on a journey; it was all well-thought out by the band.
The performance by the band was full of confidence, and they kept that going consistently all night. I loved hearing the industrial sounds of “The Drain” early on in the set. They took the intensity even further with lead singer Caleb Shomo of Beartooth joining the band for “Nowhere to Go.” One of their breakthrough songs, “Just Pretend,” was saved toward the end with the entire Frost Bank Center singing every single word.
Each of those three songs had a completely different shift in momentum, with the band showing restraint with certain songs but then fully unleashing in others.
Whatever energy they were bringing to a certain song, the arena was captivated. I felt it with the thousands of fans in attendance around me, but I really saw it by looking at all the ones on the floor. One section towards the back had the pits going the entire night, followed by even more people in the front constantly crowdsurfing.
It was pure chaos to witness all night, but especially during their encore, “Dethrone.” The entire arena had their phones lit up, excited for the band to return to the stage. When they came out, the heaviness of the song echoed throughout the arena, with the pits exploding into a massive surge of aggression.
I loved that even on the large-scale arena level that Bad Omens is on right now, their fanbase is showing the same passion they had when they were playing smaller venues just a few years back.
The band had absolute command over the crowd, and after having seen Bad Omens take over San Antonio twice now, I can confidently say their best fans in the world are right here in the Alamo City.
