Author: Kevin O'Bryant

Posted: Nov 10, 2024

On Saturday 9 November, over 1500 hardcore fans flooded the Riverside Municipal Auditorium entrances, congregating to see COSMIC JOKE, AWOL, TORENA, INGROWN, KILLING TIME, TWITCHING TONGUES and SUNAMI.

Furiously closing out the night, and for the first time playing the Inland Empire, San Jose’s own SUNAMI gave the crowd absolutely no second to breathe between each gut-pounding track. Don’t let these guys fool you - their presence, tight performance and strong connection with the audience would make you think you’re seeing them at the beginning of their Monster Outbreak US tour –which they headline–, but in reality they’re wrapping it up, with 2 dates left to go. Their energy is contagious and the crowd feels it, all the way to forming multiple circle pits at vocalist Josef Alfonso’s call.

Besides their usual sound, the band also unveiled a new track, guitarist Mike Durt gives us a hair-jerking riff reminiscent of death metal.

As the sampler kicks in for the last track, there’s not a soul in that room not kicking, moshing, screaming or singing the words at the stage. 

The 3-piece juggernaut from Boise, Idaho known as INGROWN hits the stage. The second Ross Hansen hits us with the first note of their intro track, you can both hear and see it – the veins on his neck pop profusely, reminding you this is hardcore we’re talking about.

Also a part of the Monster Outbreak tour, they take the opportunity to showcase their lightning-fast two-minute teaser from their upcoming 2025 album –through Closed Casket Activities– with the track Enemy. The music video just hit YouTube, with what could be considered a wild tribute to the Second Amendment, motorbikes—and, more importantly… camo gear.

One thing is for sure: this trio delivers. The crowd knows it, with the 2 pits formed through the whole set and the major two-stepping during Waste that had everyone going from the front all the way to the back of the room. By the end of their performance, the pits concentrated into a single one with that hard-hitting stomp riff during Hard Time.