Live Review: Corey Taylor – UK Tour 2023 – The Eventim Apollo, London

One of the biggest names in Metal has to be Corey Taylor, so it comes as no surprise that his solo tour around the UK sold out every single date! Bringing the exciting Oxymorrons along for the ride, these shows promised to be full of entertainment. Here’s what went down when Corey Taylor took over the Eventim Apollo.

Fusing Hip Hop and Alternative Music, Oxymorrons quickly raised the energy levels of the venue. The sold-out crowd seemed to get into what the band was dishing out quickly and within a matter of moments, the room was bouncing. Full of charisma and passion, Oxymorrons dominated the famous venue trying to leave a lasting impression on the London faithful. Constantly encouraging movement and overall giving off nothing but good vibes, the band did a stellar job of capturing the hearts and minds of all who witnessed the performance.

The sound of ‘The Box’ echoed around the sold-out venue and as the lights turned on, Corey Taylor hit the stage with ‘Post Traumatic Blues’ which received a positive reaction from the crowd. London had their singing voices on and ‘Tumult’ showed just how loud this crowd could be. ‘Black Eyes Blue’ saw the first set of crowd surfers brave the harsh London seas while ‘We Are The Rest’ was what really kickstarted the mosh pit crew.

With one of the most impressive discographies in alternative music to choose from, this set was always going to be jam-packed with bangers from start to finish and I think ‘Song #3’ really took the show to the next level. London had their best dancing shoes on and this track really put them to the test! ‘Beyond’ served as the calm before the hellish storm that is known as ‘Before I Forget’. Understandably, this track may have been one of the loudest of the night so why not follow that up with the heaviest song known to man… ‘SpongeBob SquarePants Theme’!

All jokes aside, the set took an emotional turn as Corey delivered a heartfelt performance of the cult classic ‘Snuff’ before introducing ‘30/30-150’ as Sam Mattlock’s (Wargasm) favourite Stone Sour song. Returning back to his own solo material went down exceptionally well as he blasted through ‘Talk Sick’ and ‘Midnight’. Despite being put through the wringer, London lent their voices beautifully to ‘Through Glass’ to close out the main portion of the set.

Encores have become a tradition for live shows and this show was not an exception to that rule. Opening up again with the ferocious ‘Duality’ meant the crowd would erupt into pure pandemonium. Incredibly high levels of energy were on display from both the band and the crowd so when Corey Taylor announced the final song of the show to be the classic Black Sabbath number ‘Fairies Wear Boots’, the die-hard crowd gave their all and left nothing behind!

Corey Taylor is one of the most well-known frontmen of the metal scene and this performance helped to solidify why. His charisma and on-stage energy are unrivalled and this kind of set that shows just how diverse his sound can be really helps to solidify him as more than just “The singer of Slipknot”. These solo shows only seem to be getting bigger and I cannot wait to see what is in store the next time CMFT comes around!