Architects rise to the moment in Manchester — their biggest, boldest show yet
- HARRY K
- 16 minutes ago
- 2 min read
CO - 0P Live - 10th October 2025
WORDS HARRY K / GOSIA CZYZNIEWSKA
Architects take on Manchester’s biggest stage — and make it feel personal
It’s hard to overstate the scale of tonight. Co-op Live — Europe’s biggest indoor arena — packed to the rafters for Architects, Brighton’s golden sons of British metal, taking on the biggest show of their lives. From the opening lights, it’s clear this is more than just another tour date. It’s a statement.
The night kicks off with House of Protection, the new electronic-hardcore duo from Los Angeles made up of Stephen Harrison and Aric Improta. It’s their first ever Manchester show, but you wouldn’t know it — they tear through thirty minutes of glitchy beats, frantic riffs and unrelenting energy. By the end, the entire arena’s on its feet, already drenched in sweat and adrenaline.
When Architects step out, the roar is deafening. Sam Carter, in an Oasis T Shirt (later swapped for a vintage Man United shirt), looks visibly taken aback by the sheer size of it all. At one point, he tells us this might be the biggest show they’ve ever played — and you can feel that.
The set is a perfect blend of chaos and catharsis. “Elegy,” “Black Lungs,” “deep fake,” and “Impermanence” hit with surgical precision, the sound immense but somehow intimate. Later, “Everything Ends” and “Doomsday” are dedicated to the band’s late guitar tech Miles Kent, who recently passed away. It’s a raw, emotional moment, and as Sam slips briefly into lines from Gone With the Wind, the crowd falls completely silent before erupting in applause.
Visually, it’s stunning — strobes slicing through fog, screens pulsing with light and texture. The band sound absolutely colossal, bolstered by two additional guitarists who give the new material a heavier, sharper edge.
By the encore — “Seeing Red” and “Animals” — the place feels like it could lift off its foundations. Thousands of voices scream every word, arms raised, the floor literally trembling beneath our feet.
Tonight, Architects didn’t just play their biggest ever show — they owned it. It’s the sound of a band who’ve turned loss, rage and survival into something vast and alive.
Verdict: Their most powerful statement yet — Architects are no longer just flying the flag for British metal; they are the flag.
SET LIST
Elegy
Whiplash
when we were young
Black Lungs
Curse
A Match Made in Heaven
deep fake
Impermanence
Red Hypergiant
Gravedigger
Brain Dead (feat. House of Protection)
Meteor
Everything Ends
Royal Beggars
Gone With the Wind (snippet)
Doomsday
Blackhole
Encore
Seeing Red
Animals
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