A few minutes after 9 p.m., the lights went dark inside of the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood and it seemed evident that the Black Veil Brides were testing their instruments as a drum rhythm was played, followed by a bassline and then a guitar riff. The “Black Veil Brides!” chant could be heard and the stage then opened up to reveal lead guitarist Jake Pitts along with rhythm guitarist Jinxx, with drummer CC behind them on the drum kit.

Upon seeing the three on the stage, it was clear that something was different on this night. The band had been playing at the venue for the past two days, with this night, Oct. 20, being the final show. The band members were wearing face paint, commonly dubbed warpaint, something that they did not wear on the two prior nights and had not worn since their earlier years.

Once Jake and Jinxx began playing the intro riff to “Faithless,” bassist Ashley Purdy got on the stage, soon followed by vocalist Andy Biersack. Two growls by Andy led to excited cheers by the audience, and the band performed the song with a heavy breakdown and a great guitar solo by Jake.

The introductory riff on “Heart of Fire” was a pleasure to hear due to its distortion, and seeing Jake and Jinxx headbang while playing it only made it a better sound to experience. “Set the World on Fire” was a song which had not been played live in six years, making it even more of a joy to hear.

Drummer CC stole the spotlight in the middle of the show by performing a drum solo that featured quite a bit of variety. What began as rock drum beats turned into the type of music that one would hear at an EDM show, thus providing a bit of an intermission of simply hearing rock music.

Positive messages were not absent from the show, which is to be expected due to the band’s emphasis on being yourself and not letting anyone bring you down. Before performing songs such as “When They Call My Name,” “Lost It All” and “Sweet Blasphemy,” vocalist Andy Biersack discussed how much the band has improved not only his life but also that of the fanbase, and how he has become a better person by being sober from alcohol for two years.

“Perfect Weapon” was the first song from the band that I ever heard, and hearing it played live was an experience that I will never forget. The second I heard the bassline and drums kick in, I knew that I was going to hear the song that greatly changed my taste in music from rap to rock.

After playing “Fallen Angels,” the band left to go backstage and, as is custom at virtually every concert, pretended to have ended the show. A chant of the word “encore” lead to the band coming back to play their final song, “In The End.” The song’s second guitar solo, a duo by Jake and Jinxx, showed the two’s musical abilities and proved to be a great final solo to hear live.

Once the song had ended, Andy thanked everyone for coming to the show and the band got together on the front of the stage to say their goodbyes. Guitar picks used by the band’s two guitarists and bassist were thrown to the audience and served as souvenirs to those who got them. The band then left the stage and the venue lights turned on, with cheers and adoration from the audience ending the night.