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Oli Sykes explains why Bring Me The Horizon bring fans on stage to sing
Oli Sykes says Bring Me The Horizon invite fans on stage because a teenage gig with Funeral For A Friend changed him.
Oli Sykes has explained why Bring Me The Horizon keep bringing fans on stage to sing with them, saying the idea comes from a moment he had as a teenager.
The Sheffield band have made a regular habit of pulling someone from the crowd up during shows, often to sing Antivist halfway through the set. In a new interview with SiriusXM, Sykes said the practice is tied to an experience he had when he was about 15 and went to see Welsh post-hardcore band Funeral For A Friend.
According to Sykes, the band’s singer fell ill during the set and the show briefly stopped after he passed out. That was when Sykes, who described himself as a shy kid, offered to sing.
“The singer was really sick and he passed out halfway through the show. They all left the stage and came back saying ‘We can’t play,’” he said. “I don’t know what I was thinking because I was the most shy kid, but I went, ‘I’ll sing’.”
He said the band let him on stage and that the moment stayed with him. “I sang a song, and it was the greatest moment of my life,” he said, adding that he still remembers people coming up to him afterwards. “I think I cried after. My mum was waiting outside in the car, and I was like, ‘Mum, I just sang with Funeral For A Friend!’ It was so sick… so if we can do that for another kid, it’s just cool,” he said. “And I get a break during the show too which is great!”
Funeral For A Friend responded in the comments, calling it “a fun one” and saying “Oli nailed it.” They also identified the song as The Art Of American Football from their 2003 EP Seven Ways to Scream Your Name.
Bring Me The Horizon kicked off their Ascension Program 2 North American tour last month. On opening night, they played Youtopia live for the first time and brought The House Of Wolves back into the setlist.
The band have also been revisiting earlier material. They recently announced two special Manchester shows for Outbreak, marking the 20th anniversary of their 2006 debut album Count Your Blessings. They are also set to release a “reactivated” re-recording of the album in July, which they said will make it “sharper, heavier, and more vital than ever.” They also shared a video of Sykes recording deathcore vocals in the studio.
Before that, Bring Me The Horizon took their “immersive” L.I.V.E. In São Paulo concert film to cinemas worldwide, followed by a 48-hour digital broadcast. They also released Slave To The Rithim with Illenium, and Sykes launched a new live production company, Patient Zero, after unveiling visuals at the Las Vegas Sphere.
Last summer, Sykes told NME at Reading that 12 more songs could still arrive as part of the Director’s Cut of …Nex Gen, though he said that may take time now that he is the father of twins.
“The music will come, but it’s just not the be-all and end-all,” Sykes said. “We’re realising that we don’t have to put another record out; we just put one out. Most bands would go away for two years, have an actual break. You don’t have to do this, but I want to and I enjoy it. If it doesn’t happen, then it doesn’t happen.”
As for Funeral For A Friend, the band were confirmed earlier this year for an exclusive headline set at this year’s 2000Trees. They join a bill that also includes Alkaline Trio, Glassjaw, PUP, Sprints, Lambrini Girls, Cancer Bats, Dinosaur Pile-Up, High Vis, Ho99o9, Pinkshift, Superheaven and more.
