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Concert Review – Signs of the Swarm (The Mod Club, Toronto, ON, 10/03/2025)

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***Review by Kevin Ibbitson and photos by Keith Ibbitson of Metal Paparazzi***

OPENING ACTS: Face Yourself, Carcosa, Ten56 and Mental Cruelty

Friday October the 3rd, 2025 The Mod Club located in Toronto’s Little Italy neighborhood played host to a night of pure deathcore delight, with such bands as FACE YOURSELF, CARCOSA, TEN56, MENTAL CRUELTY and headlining act SIGNS OF THE SWARM, another amazing event organized by our metal hero Noel Peters of Inertia Entertainment. Headbangers from across the Greater Toronto Area enjoyed a night of self-inflicted whiplash and bodily torment as they moshed their brains out to some kick ass, heavy and hard as fuck deathcore from start to finish. I was also pleased to see that the venue now had a photo pit/barrier as well as a newly remodeled stage.

From the onset, New York band FACE YOURSELF, who has just released an amazing new EP titled Fury, had the crowd moshing in circle pits for the entire duration of their incredible and energetic first set. I could barely look away from the drummer the whole time as he was clad in a shirt with the face of Bubbles from Trailer Park Boys on it and couldn’t shake the image of Bubbs slaying on the drum kit out of head to my own personal delight. Lead vocalist Yasmin Liverneaux Belkhodja has quite a set of pipes on her that could strip the paint off the walls and could curdle blood with her guttural screams. Face Yourself totally kicked ass to open up the show. 10/10

Band members
Yasmin Liverneaux Belkhodja – vocals
Dave Ricco – lead guitar
Thomas Cardone – guitar
Corey Doremus – guitar, backing vocals
Kyle Muenzner – bass, backing vocals
Eric DiCarlo – drums

Next up was CARCOSA, a band created by Viral TikTokers Andrew Baena and Johnny Ciardullo out of Vancouver, British Columbia. They were absolutely brutal and didn’t let the crowd slack up, not even for a second. These guys crushed it on stage with their blend of doom & gloom, brutality, sick breakdowns, low end bass drops and humour. I also caught Andrew’s pick at the end of their set. The last album released by those guys was the EP Wrath of the Tyrant, back in 2022, which means I don’t think it will take long for them to attack us all again with their undisputed blend of death metal and hardcore. C’mon, Carcosa! WE need new music from you guys asap!  10/10

Band members
Johnny Ciardullo – vocals
Andrew Baena – guitar, backing vocals
Cooper Lagace – guitar
David Hicks – drums

French deathcore outfit TEN56 came on next and delivered a fantastic set which kept the crowd frantic and buzzing with energy. Non-stop moshing was the theme of the night. I found their drummer Arnaud Verrier to be quite impressive and he reminded me a lot of Dave Grohl mixed with Mario Duplantier. I kept getting blasted in the face with puffs of air from the bass drum as it was directly in line with me in the front row, and as I left the venue towards the end of the show I ran into Arnaud on the street outside of the club and he told me he was looking at me the whole set, and noticed that he was not exactly set up perfectly straight on to which I let him know that I felt the percussive air puffs hitting my face and thanked him for the air conditioning. I let him know that he is a hell of a drummer. Ten56 were seriously good. 10/10

Band members
Aaron Matts – vocals
Quentin Godet – guitar
Luka Garotin – guitar
Steeves Hostin – bass
Arnaud Verrier – drums

Germany’s MENTAL CRUELTY was up next and they proceeded to absolutely destroy. The crowd ratcheted up even more and exploded into wave after wave of crowd surfers and lead vocalist Lukas Nicolai eventually made his way closer to the crowd and braced by fans and balanced on top of the barrier where he continued to melt faces. The audience was losing its collective mind for Mental Cruelty. This band is pretty fuckin’ sick! Thier new song Helheim, which features the guys from Signs of the Swarm in its studio version, was a nice addition to their setlist, and a great indication of what to expect from those Germans after their 2023 masterpiece Zwielicht.  10/10

Setlist
The Venerable One
King ov Fire
Helheim
Forgotten Kings
Obsessis a Daemonio
Ultima Hypocrita
Nordlys
Zwielicht
Symphony of a Dying Star

Band members
Lukas Nicolai – vocals
Nahuel Lozano – guitars
Marvin Kessler – guitars
Viktor Dick – bass
Danny Straßer – drums

SIGNS OF THE SWARM

Pittsburgh Pennsylvania deathcore gods SIGNS OF THE SWARM headlined the show with a intensely killer set. Having just released their new album To Rid Myself of Truth, SOTS are always awesome to see live as they are one of those bands that burn with such intensity, brutality and raw aggression. Vocalist David Simonich blew me away with his brutal gutturals and sheer power. His vocals cutting straight through all of the brutally intense instrumentation to deliver a sonic assault not unlike a shotgun blast to the chest. The audience was in a frenzy with moshing in the circle pit when I decided my body couldn’t take any more of the brutality. My neck and back were sore from all of my non-stop headbanging and I regret that I couldn’t stay until the very end. I ended up out front of the club where my brother Keith and I ran into Members of Carcosa and Ten56. We shot the shit and got out of there as soon as possible while thanking them for a great show. I have no doubt in my mind that the crowd had an amazing time. 10/10

Setlist
Borrowed Time
Pray for Death
To Rid Myself of Truth
HELLMUSTFEARME
Natural Selection
Scars Upon Scars
Chariot
IWONTLETYOUDIE
Between Fire & Stone
Revelations Ov a Silent King
Creator
Pernicious
Amongst the Low & Empty

Band members
David Simonich – vocals
Carl Schulz – guitars
Michael Cassese – bass
Bobby Crow – drums

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Album Review – Signs of the Swarm / To Rid Myself of Truth (2025)

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Continuing to molt their slamming Deathcore exoskeleton, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s own beast is unleashing upon us their strongest and most violent album to date.

Continuing to molt their slamming Deathcore exoskeleton, with their metal metamorphosis revealing a band now as indebted to Meshuggah, Gojira and Fear Factory as any of the Deathcore bands they grew up on, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s own beast Signs of the Swarm is unleashing upon humanity their new offering, titled To Rid Myself of Truth, following up on their 2023 slab of brutality Amongst the Low & Empty. Produced by Josh Schroeder at Random Awesome! Recording Studio, and featuring guest appearances by Will Ramos (Lorna Shore), Phil Bozeman (Whitechapel), Jack Murray (156/Silence) and Johnny Crowder (Prison), the new album by David Simonich on vocals, Carl Schulz on the guitars, Michael Cassese on bass, and Bobby Crow on drums carries a title that exudes confidence while the band’s pursuit of substance over style of the month is as refreshing as it could be surprising.

The title-track To Rid Myself of Truth already showcases the band’s ruthless welcome card, with the bludgeoning riffs and bass lines by Carl and Michael, respectively, bringing absolute heaviness and violence to the atmosphere; followed by Hell Must Fear Me, also stylized as HELLMUSTFEARME, a lesson in modern-day Deathcore with the inhumane, deep growling by David haunting our souls for all eternity, not to mention how demented Bobby sounds on drums. Natural Selection reminds me of some of the darkest creations by Thy Art Is Murder, with David once again stealing the show with his creature from the abyss-like roars; and the way they managed to match David’s growls with the pulverizing drums by Bobby is outstanding in Scars Upon Scars, as if they were a two-headed beast of violence and Deathcore, sounding very progressive and multi-layered as well. Chariot keeps the album as demented and aggressive as possible, with Carl’s visceral riffs cutting our skin deep mercilessly; and David is joined by the one and only Will Ramos for a demented display of Deathcore in Clouded Retinas, showcasing the most Stygian form of vociferations imaginable, and the final result is insanely good.

Iron Sacrament is another song that reeks of violence and dementia just the way we like it in Deathcore, featuring guest vocals by Phil Bozeman, and of course the sick riffs by Carl will inspire you to bang your head nonstop when those guys take your city by storm; whereas Forcing to Forget is a bit too modern or alternative for my personal taste, lacking the same level of aggressiveness from all previous songs. Then back to a more visceral, headbanging sound we have Sarkazein, with Bobby once again providing David with exactly what he needs to scream like a bestial entity nonstop. Needless to day, it should also work really well if played live. Then guest vocalists Jack Murray and Johnny Crowder bring an endless amount of stamina and rage to their already infernal music in Fear & Judgment, turning it into a must-listen for fans of the genre, whereas closing such an incandescent album of Deathcore we’re treated to Creator, where their core essence is infused with the Djent sounds blasted by their idols Meshuggah, and the final result couldn’t have been heavier.

To Rid Myself of Truth is clearly the band’s strongest, darkest and most diverse album to date, showcasing a healthy evolution in their undisputed sound while remaining loyal to their foundations, becoming therefore a must-listen for both old school, diehard fans of the band, and newcomers to their reign of violence and heaviness. You can keep in touch with the boys from Signs of the Swarm by following them on Facebook and on Instagram, including their demented live performances, stream their full discography on most platforms like Spotify, and of course add the caustic, harsh To Rid Myself of Truth to your devilish collection by purchasing it from BandCamp or by clicking HERE. In our chaotic world where truth and lies walk hand in hand, there’s nothing better than the savage Deathcore by Signs of the Swarm to give us strength to keep on moving forward no matter what, with their newborn beast definitely representing the most important step in their already solid and thrilling career.

Best moments of the album: Hell Must Fear Me, Scars Upon Scars, Clouded Retinas and Fear & Judgment.

Worst moments of the album: Forcing to Forget.

Released in 2025 Century Media Records

Track listing
1. To Rid Myself of Truth 3:38
2. Hell Must Fear Me 3:07
3. Natural Selection 3:56
4. Scars Upon Scars 3:00
5. Chariot 3:31
6. Clouded Retinas 3:12
7. Iron Sacrament 3:24
8. Forcing to Forget 3:36
9. Sarkazein 4:26
10. Fear & Judgment 4:19
11. Creator 3:47

Band members
David Simonich – vocals
Carl Schulz – guitars
Michael Cassese – bass
Bobby Crow – drums

Guest musicians
Johnny Crowder – vocals on “Fear & Judgment”
Jack Murray – vocals on “Fear & Judgment”
Will Ramos – vocals on “Clouded Retinas”
Phil Bozeman – vocals on “Iron Sacrament”