NOTE: All photos are copyright of Howard Shiau Photography 2025
In 2017, Ukrainian metalcore band Jinjer was just another act trying to make it after complete lineup changes and had just released their second studio album “King of Everything” in 2016, a make it or break it moment for the band. Then they uploaded a “live” performance of “Pisces” that went viral and everything changed. People went nuts over lead vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk’s smooth transitions from sweet vocals to deep throated screams from hell. But the more things change, the more they remain the same. Yes, they’ve gotten much more notice but, no, they’re not making money hand over fist like some twenty year old pop stars.
But it has been an interesting few years for Jinjer. After releasing their third album “Macro” in 2019, they had to cancel their North American tour due to Covid. Then after they released their fourth album “Wallflowers” in 2021, Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Jinjer received special dispensation from the Ukraine Ministry of Culture to tour and represent the country. Now, the band is on the brink of releasing their fifth studio album and have embarked on a headlining tour of North America with Hanabie and Born of Osiris. On Monday, September 25th, metal fans descended on the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto to see their favorite bands.
The first opener was Born of Osiris from Illinois. While they haven’t released an album since 2021, they have released two standalone singles this year, “A Mind Short Circuiting” and “Elevate”. The mood and visuals were very dark with strobes flashing from the back with the rhythm of the drums. As a fan, this was perfect. As a photographer, it was difficult and I wasn’t able to capture a good photo of lead vocalist Ronnie Canizaro. At least I was able to enjoy the set!
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Next up was Hanabie (translation is “chilly spring weather”) from Japan, who was just in Toronto back in May at the Opera House! Japanese metal acts are always a bit of a surprise, especially with their attire (thus the term “Harajuku-core”) which lulls you into thinking they’re a cutesy band before they come out and rock your ass off! Lead vocalist Yukina provides the harsh vocals while she and guitarist Matsuri share the “non-harsh” vocals. Since their songs are in Japanese, I didn’t know what I was listening to but I knew that I loved it! The crowd obviously did as well and they were going absolutely insane as crowd surfer after crowd surfer headed towards the stage! What a banging fifteen song set! If Jinjer wasn’t Jinjer, I’d say that Hanabie stole the show!
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Jinjer opened their set with the powerful “Just Another” from 2016’s “King of Everything”. The song talks about pain and suffering and it makes you wonder if the situation in Ukraine might have impact on them mentally. It has obviously been a stressful time and if we know anything about writing music, it seems that stress and angst inspire great songwriting. The two new singles that the band released this year are heavier, with Tati staying in her harsh voice the whole time. I can totally understand if the ongoing war makes the band angry and that reflects in the music. The set itself was a great mix of songs from their current discography plus a few new songs from their upcoming album! The energy in the venue was out of control and, although the band members didn’t engage with the crowd much, the music, and Tatiana’s voice spoke volumes. Guitarist Roman Ibramkhalilov and bassist Eugene Abdukhanov blew our minds from the shadows and drummer Vladislav Ulisevich rocking our socks off from the back of the stage. As with Hanabie, the crowd was high energy, head-banging and crowdsurfing non-stop. While incredible, the set was too short for such an epic band and, as usual, they didn’t play their breakout hit “Pisces”. Besides the most casual fan, they don’t necessarily need to play that but, for another five minutes, it would make for a great finale. I’m very much looking forward to the release of their record and perhaps another tour to support that album!
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Seen jinjer in concert totally amazing show and became a big Hanabie fan would love to see jinjer and Hanabie again had and amazing time