The Rise of the Roach: Papa Roach’s Electrifying Domination of Wembley! [Show Review]

It has been 25 years in the making, 25 years since the release of Papa Roach’s iconic record Infest. On February 7, 2024, the influential metalers brought their “Rise of the Roach” tour to Wembley with Wage War in tow.

Wage War delivered an intense opening set! Their closing tunes saw the hypnotic notes of “Magnetic” echo around the venue as strobe lights lit up the stage whilst yellow floods shone over the crowd! As the tune reached its most intense moment, flashes of the floods went into overdrive, creating a sensory experience.

“Manic” went heavy following an eerie intro. As before, the lights worked overtime and the crowd erupted into pits whilst other sections of Wembley head-banged, raising their devil horns as Wage War went out with a bang on their last tune.

Wage War did an outstanding job warming up the crowd from the freezing rainy conditions outside.

Following Wage War, a white banner with a silhouette of the recognizable dead roach on it dropped in front of the stage, signalling the countdown to the Rise of the Roach. Even this simple visual drew a massive cheer from the crowd. This only begged the question, what was the crowd going to be like when Papa Roach actually took to the stage?

With a thunderous bang and flashing lights behind the banner, an orchestral score was built as Jacoby Shaddix, Jerry Horton, and Tobin Esperance’s silhouettes appeared on the banner. As the first notes of “Even If It Kills Me” emanated from behind the banner and the first lyrics of the tune began, the banner dropped, revealing an extravagant stage set-up. Flames, smoke and intense lighting created an immersive, sensory experience for the already roaring fans. The roach has well and truly risen!

It wasn’t just a strong start; it was a declaration by Papa Roach that this was going to be one hell of a show filled with hit after hit. Shaddix was in outstanding form, working the crowd like a true master at every step of the way.

“Even If It Kills Me” was followed by the Infest classic, “Blood Brothers.” From the very first note, older fans were brought back to their early PlayStation days of playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater. For some, this may have been their first introduction to Papa Roach when living out their extreme sports fantasies. The stage lit up in red, and flames continued blasting at every available space.

“Put your fists in the air,” Shaddix commanded, leading the crowd in a chant, building the anticipation for “Dead Cell.” The tune was followed by “…To Be Loved,” alongside disco-esque lights filling up the light boxes. Shaddix, like a champion of the people, even took a moment to acknowledge a birthday taking place that night. “Everybody say happy birthday, fucker,” to which the crowd responded as directed. Honestly, what more could a fan ask for? During the tune, Shaddix even made his way down to the barrier to greet fans. The reaction was that of pure admiration from those who got the chance to reach out to meet him.

For a moment, the stage went dark to build anticipation for an already riled-up crowd. “Nothing’s wrong, we just wanted to hear you cunts scream,” announced Shaddix as a spotlight lit him up. This was followed by “Kill The Noise,” and Wembley became a sea of moshing bodies whilst Papa Roach continued to deliver like a well-oiled machine, all whilst more flames engulfed the stage. “Open that motherfucking pit up,” Shaddix yelled, encouraging the crowd as the bridge of the tune dropped.

Transitioning straight into “Getting Away With Murder” via another orchestral score, Horton and Esperance took up positions on the catwalk, taking the spotlight for a moment.

Having ensured that those with standing tickets were well and truly moving, Shaddix turned his attention to those in the seated areas, commanding them to get on their feet as the groove-laden beat of 2Pac’s “California Love” consumed Wembley, during which Shaddix introduced his fellow members of Papa Roach.

This was followed by the flawlessly delivered “Swerve” and “Liar” that kept the energy high and those in the seated areas on their feet. Shaddix then gave a heartfelt dedication to the late great Chester Bennington via “Forever,” which also included a snippet from Linkin Park’s “In The End” masterfully sewn into it, swiftly followed by ”Falling Apart,” accompanied by more fire and smoke effects, enticing fans to crowd surf forward whilst pockets of circle pits opened throughout Wembley.

It was at this point Papa Roach made time for a PSA to be delivered via a recorded message on the screens. The PSA addressed Shaddix’s personal struggles and how mental health is a big part of many of Papa Roach’s songs. The audience let out a tremendous cheer when it was confirmed that some of the proceeds from tonight’s show would go to various mental health charities. This moment signposted the part of the show where Papa Roach were to take us into the more sombre part of the show with “Leave A Light On (Talk Away The Dark).” Collectively, Papa Roach gathered at the front of the stage, with even Tony Palermo utilizing a smaller bass drum alongside his fellow bandmates. Phone lights lit up Wembley as tear drops fell from the top to the bottom of the stage. It was an emotional moment for everyone as all became unified in our need to fight against negativity. The more sombre part of the show continued as Shaddix dedicated “Roses On My Grave“ to his grandfather.

We were now in the endgame of the evening’s outstanding show, and Papa Roach led us back to the high-octane metal with “No Apologies,” followed by an outstanding, yet not overdone, drum solo courtesy of Palermo. This was bookended by “Scars,” “Help,” and “Born For Greatness.”

The show was not yet over, though; Shaddix and co were to give us not one, not two, not even three, but five additional tunes for one last chance to shake Wembley to its core.

Returning to the stage, introduced by a transcendent light and soundscape including the ’50s classic, Hank Williams’ “Hey Good Lookin,” Papa Roach stormed into “Between Angels And Insects,” followed by “Infest” and “Broken Home” (with a little bit of “Lose Yourself” by Eminem mixed in for fun, all whilst home videos of Papa Roach’s younger days gave fans a glimpse of what they got up to during the Infest era of the band.

Shaddix then spoke of his love for nu-metal and the bands that influenced them. This was embodied by the incredible medley of Korn’s “Blind,” Deftones’ “My Own Summer (Shove It),” “Break Stuff” by Limp Bizkit and closing this segment out with the System Of A Down classic, “Chop Suey.” Shaddix, at all times, pushed the crowd to take on vocal duties.

Before Papa Roach’s final bow, they ensured the biggest hit of the Infest era, “Last Resort,” gave fans that last chance to relive their youth. As soon as Shaddix uttered those iconic first lyrics, fans knew that this was it; it was time to go out with a bang.

It cannot be overstated that Papa Roach has become one of the most important metal bands of the era and as we see the torch gradually pass down from the likes of Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and AC/DC (to name a few), we can but hope that bands like Papa Roach will carry it forward, ready for the next generation to pick up. Here’s to another 25 years of Papa Roach and to the Rise of the Roach!

Wage War Setlist:

THE SHOW’S ABOUT TO START
Godspeed
Low
Circle the Drain
NAIL5
BLUR
TOMBSTONE
HAPPY HUNTING
MAGNETIC
Manic

Papa Roach Setlist:

Even If It Kills Me
Blood Brothers
Dead Cell
…To Be Loved
Kill the Noise
Getting Away With Murder
California Love (2Pac cover)
Swerve
Liar
Forever (with Linkin Park’s “In The End” snippet)
Falling Apart
PSA
Leave a Light On (Talk Away the Dark)
Roses on My Grave
No Apologies
Drum Solo
Scars
Help
Born for Greatness
Encore:
Between Angels and Insects
Infest
Broken Home (with Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” snippet)
Blind / My Own Summer (Shove It) / Break Stuff / Chop Suey
Last Resort

Papa Roach (w/ Wage War) @ M&S Bank Arena (Liverpool, UK) on February 9th, 2025

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