There’s something wonderfully strange about a BABYMETAL concert. You can walk into a giant outdoor amphitheater expecting a rock show and walk out wondering exactly how someone managed to combine heavy metal, Japanese pop, choreography, giant stage production, and thousands of people shouting along to songs they may not even be able to translate.
On Sept. 12, Jiffy Lube Live got the full treatment.
BABYMETAL headlined a stacked night with Halestorm and Violent Vira, giving the crowd three very different takes on heavy music. Halestorm brought the muscle. Violent Vira brought something darker and more personal. Then BABYMETAL arrived and turned the whole place into a glowing, pounding, headbanging carnival.
It was a strange mix on paper, but it worked.
Violent Vira, a rising star in the alternative rock and metal scene, opened the show with “Burn Me With a Bible,” setting a mood that felt worlds away from the polished spectacle that would come later.
Her set leaned into darker textures and a sense of unease. “False Reaction,” “Eat,” “Missing Posters,” and “Trap Nest” kept things moving without sanding off the rough edges. There was something intimate about the performance, even on a stage built for thousands of people.
“Saccharine” and “I Don’t Care” finished the seven-song set, leaving the audience with a taste of an artist who isn’t afraid to let things get uncomfortable.
Watch the official music video for “Saccharine” by Violent Vira on YouTube:
And then the volume went up another notch.
Halestorm doesn’t need much introduction around these parts. Lzzy Hale and her brother, Arejay, are from nearby Pennsylvania, and Lzzy even had local legend Steve Whiteman of Kix as a vocal coach when she was starting out.
So when Lzzy Hale walked onto the stage, she immediately assumed control of the crowd. The band opened with “Fallen Star” before moving into “Love Bites (So Do I)” and “Mz. Hyde.”
That’s a pretty good way to announce yourself.
Halestorm has always had that powerful combination of hard-rock muscle and big melodic hooks. The songs are heavy enough to shake the seats, but they’re built to be sung back by a crowd.
“Freak Like Me” kept that momentum rolling before the band pulled out a surprising choice with its version of “Bad Romance.”
Yes, that “Bad Romance.”
And somehow, it makes perfect sense coming from Halestorm.
The set then moved through “Familiar Taste of Poison,” “Rain Your Blood on Me,” “Darkness Always Wins,” and “Amen” before closing with “I Miss the Misery.”
That last song practically demanded a loud response from the crowd, and Bristow was happy to provide one.
Watch the official music video for “I Miss the Misery” by Halestorm on YouTube:
Halestorm’s set had the feel of a band that knows how to make an outdoor amphitheater feel smaller. There was plenty of volume, plenty of attitude, and no shortage of guitar riffs. It was a solid bridge between Violent Vira’s darker atmosphere and the completely different universe waiting behind the curtain.
The lights dropped as the crowd’s anticipation rose to another level.
BABYMETAL doesn’t ease into a show. The band hits the stage with a combination of precision, movement, and sheer visual energy that makes it nearly impossible to look anywhere else.
They opened with “BABYMETAL DEATH,” announcing their agenda for the evening immediately.
“from me to u” followed, then “Megitsune,” and by that point, the audience was fully locked in.
There’s an interesting thing about BABYMETAL live. The music can be brutally heavy, but the performance itself has an almost playful sense of motion. One moment, you’re hearing crushing guitar and pounding drums; the next, the choreography shifts the entire mood.
It’s metal with a pulse that refuses to stand still.
“Song 3” and “BxMxC” kept the pace moving before “My Queen” and “Monochrome” brought different shades to the set. “Monochrome,” in particular, gives BABYMETAL room to show that there’s more to the band than speed, spectacle, and sugar-coated mayhem.
Then the guitars came roaring back.
“Syncopation” led into “METALI!!” and “iine!,” followed by “RATATATA.”
That song has become one of those tracks that seems almost tailor-made for a massive live audience. It’s catchy, loud, and completely unapologetic about being fun.
Watch the official music video for “Ratatata” by Babymetal and Electric Callboy on YouTube:
And that’s the thing: BABYMETAL is fun.
Heavy metal doesn’t always have to look angry. Sometimes, it can wear a grin, throw some choreography at the audience, and still hit hard enough to rattle your rib cage.
“Gimme Chocolate!!” brought the main set to a close, and there was no chance the crowd was going to accept that as the end of the show.
The encore began with “Headbangeeeeerrrrr!!!!!”
The title pretty much tells you what happened next, as the crowd responded accordingly, turning the amphitheater into one enormous mass of moving heads, raised arms, and people having a very good time.
Then came “Road of Resistance.”
It’s an appropriately huge way to finish the night. The song carries the grand, heroic side of BABYMETAL, and live, it becomes a giant surge of energy.
Watch Babymetal perform “Road of Resistance” live in Japan on YouTube:
The cool, rainy September night in Bristow was a reminder that heavy music has never been particularly interested in staying inside one box.
Violent Vira pushed into darker territory, Halestorm delivered straight-ahead rock power, and BABYMETAL took the whole thing apart and rebuilt it with Japanese pop, metal, choreography, and a stage show that never seemed to run out of fuel.
That’s what made the bill work.
Three bands, three very different personalities. One very loud night.
And somewhere in the middle of all that noise, thousands of people at Jiffy Lube Live discovered that there are plenty of ways to headbang.
BABYMETAL Setlist
BABYMETAL DEATH
from me to u
Megitsune
Song 3
BxMxC
My Queen
Monochrome
Syncopation
METALI!!
iine!
RATATATA
Gimme Chocolate!!
Encore:
13. Headbangeeeeerrrrr!!!!!
14. Road of Resistance
Halestorm Setlist
Fallen Star
Love Bites (So Do I)
Mz. Hyde
Freak Like Me
Bad Romance
Familiar Taste of Poison
Rain Your Blood on Me
Darkness Always Wins
Amen
I Miss the Misery
Violent Vira Setlist
Burn Me With a Bible
False Reaction
Eat
Missing Posters
Trap Nest
Saccharine
I Don’t Care
