British punk legend Frank Carter, backed by his new touring band The Rattlesnakes, came through Toronto’s Hard Luck Bar on Wednesday night. Playing Toronto for the first time ever in this iteration of his career, Carter was extremely thankful for audiences enthusiasm, and returned it with a ferocious enthusiasm. A surprise came in the form of a speech before the third song: Carter invited the women of the crowd to crowd surf, and noted that their show would be a safe space while promising immense pain for anyone who dared violate that.

Carter is a ferocious live performer and spent the set on the lip of the stage singing into the wild crowd. Midway through the set he demanded the largest possible circle pit the venue could accommodate, and it proceeded to fill the entire floor space of the venue. It may not have been a sold out crowd, but it was certainly a wild one that returned all the energy coming off the stage.

Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes

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Royal Republic