Violent Vira earned the keys to the alt-metal kingdom at her Van Buren show

An army of fans adorned in a mix of heavy metal t-shirts, black leather skirts and faux fur boots over ironically distressed fishnets lined up around the block at the Van Buren to catch the last stop of rising metalcore star Violent Vira’s “Chasing Ghosts” tour. 

The awaiting crowd perked up as the first drum beat of the evening hit from inside, and the roaring cheer of those already on the floor echoed out into the parking lot. All glimmers of impatience were edged out by excitement as the line continued to move and all finally made it through the doors, leaving spiked bracelets and chains at security as they were welcomed into the nearly capacity venue. Almost 1,800 strong came to see Violent Vira as she caps off the second half of her US tour, the final and largest of 26 shows that have taken her to nearly every corner of the country in a span of less than five weeks. 

This touring pace is a perfect parallel to the energy she brings to the stage. When the second of two openers, IVRI, bade farewell to the crowd and thanked Violent Vira for taking her on tour, the roar of the crowd peaked, knowing they were just a moment away from the headliner. 30 minutes later, the smiles of the devout who had lined the front barricade didn’t fade, knowing their patience would pay off.

The lights dropped, the oozy atmospheric synth ended, and we got rewarded with the opening chords to “Saccharine.” Vira sprinted to the centre of the stage, pin strobes flashing as she jumped from side to side and riled the already riled-up crowd with an infectious smile between headbangs. 

Moving into the first single from her debut album “Lover of a Ghost,” she beckons the crowd to sing along to the chorus of “Burn Me With a Bible,” an earwormy track that unabashedly speaks to religious trauma. Every step seems intentional, a choreographed yet chaotic ballet of headbanging and perfectly timed pauses that blend seamlessly with the melodic chorus. They hit a fevered pitch just before she crescendos across the stage, whipping her coiffed waves in and away from the crowd, teasing them to push just a bit more against the barricade. 

Two songs later, she stops to take a breath and coyly segues with a shout, “Phoenix, Arizona, we love you so much, it’s only human decency to play a love song, right?” 

Her guitarist and backing vocalist raises his hands to clap out the beat, leading the masses in unison to the bass drum of “Common Decency.” If the opening third of her set is an introduction to Violent Vira’s ascendency to the metalcore scene, the next is a reminder of how she will stay there. 

Transitioning from a series of love songs to the anger of unrequited crushes, she paid equal homage to the roles of metal vocalist and pop star, with clean, precise vocals and an emotional delivery that has drawn comparisons to Paramore’s Hayley Williams. And yet a note later, she followed her dreamy melodies with a guttural scream that could be easily at home at a dark metal basement show. 

Hopefully, those unfamiliar with Vira didn’t make musical assumptions based on her outfit. However, you would be forgiven if you mistook her all-denim miniskirt outfit for that of a factory-trained K-pop star. But the moment Vira’s feral vocals belt out the chorus to “Sex Narcissist,” it is clear that she operates on a completely different plane. And this is the beauty of this paradox. Violent Vira addresses identity, loss, trauma and crises head-on with a confidence and stage presence that belies her age. 

The show closes out with an encore, a trio of early songs that brought her TikTok fame and paved the way for the tour. These are songs the crowd has been waiting for, as a sea of phones rises to record.

From “Luka” into “God Complex,” Vira popped her shoulders with the low, sharp hits of the bass drum, pumping the mic to the audience on beat with the kicks that punch between pauses of her dreamy vocals.

The lights fire off in chorus, flashing silhouettes of crowd surfers and heart-shaped hands. As the song ends, the sea of fans erupts in applause, and she steps forward again, wielding a devious smile to deliver her final thanks and a request:

“Phoenix, Arizona, before we do this last song, open up that motherfucking circle pit!”

Lest we forget, Violent Vira is metal, through and through.