The group, which features ex-Five Finger Death Punch guitarist Jason Hook, is touring Godsmack this summer
Flat Black have announced a string of U.S. headlining shows. The exclusive run begins on July 27 at The Palladium on Worcester, Massachusetts and runs through August 4 at The Atlantis in Washington, DC. Both before and after their headlining shows, Flat Black are serving as special guests for Godsmack on a string of dates throughout the country.
Check out the band’s full tour itinerary below.
“We are stoked to get into some intimate venues and show a select few of you what Flat Black is capable of in a headline show,” Hook states. “We are going to dig deep into the full album and make sure every night is truly special.”
After Jason Hook introduced Flat Black last year, the group revealed a new single back in March – “Nothing to Some,“ which features a special guest appearance by Slipknot and Stone Sour Corey Taylor. The former Five Finger Death Punch guitarist Hook teamed up with a trio of young and talented musicians and signed with Fearless Records for a forthcoming album. The album, produced by Hook and Chris Collier (Korn), was recorded at both Hook’s home studio and The Hideout. The band has released three singles – “Halo,” “It’s Your Lack of Respect,” and “Justice Will Be Done.”
“‘Nothing to Some’ features the brutal and unapologetic Corey Taylor,” Hook says. “This guy is a bottomless pit of creativity and delivered a vocal that perfectly matched what I wanted for this track. The guitar solo is unique on the album in the way that I let it rip with no rhythm guitars underneath. Now that I’m in a one-guitar band, I could strip it down and let it be as raw as Corey is on the vocal track. I remember hammering out live takes with Rob pounding away next to me. It was inspiring.”
“I feel like Flat Black is a secret I’ve been keeping for three years,” Hook continues. “It’s finally time to unleash this band on the world. I’m grateful to Sully from Godsmack for giving us the chance to get out on the road and play for such an amazing group of fans.”
Despite having reached a commercial summit with his prior band, thanks to multiple platinum certifications, sold-out arena shows, and a string of No. 1 singles, Hook remains as hungry for musical blood and thunder as the day he first picked up a guitar at the age of six. He is eager to not only replicate but to surpass his past successes with his new band.
Having left his prior band in February 2020, which was right before COVID-19 put the entire world on pause, Hook wanted to assume creative control and let his musical free spirit soar in a project that was truly his. He opted to gamble on himself. With great risk comes great reward and the decision to form Flat Black clearly worked out in his favor.
“As a musician, I crave freedom and I wasn’t ready to stop creating,” Hook shares.
“Life is short,” he continues. “We all want to feel satisfied and happy with what we are trying to accomplish in life.”
The pandemic shutdown allowed him the opportunity to assemble the right musicians and carefully craft their debut album. Flat Black are armed with an arsenal of riffs that’ll rattle your teeth loose from your gums, stadium-sized hooks, arena-ready anthems, and choruses that are guaranteed to touch a nerve. All of those factors combined make Flat Black poised for success. The origin stories of the rest of the players are indicative of a lifelong love of music and plenty of road-worn experience. The desire to play courses through their veins and propels them forward, which is why they all meshed so well with Hook.
Singer Wes Horton was introduced to music at age 13, thanks to his sister and Guitar Hero. He honed his vocal chops by playing in local bands and making online videos. Various music industry friends and acquaintances would become the connective tissue between himself and Hook. Horton knew he wanted to be a frontman, and Flat Black afforded him that opportunity. Wes loves the fact that his bandmates prioritize songcraft — and that allows him to be the singer he has always wanted to be.
Bassist Nick Diltz, who was born and raised in Los Angeles, is the son of a legendary rock music photographer who brought him to concerts during his formative years. He recalls being inspired by watching a VHS video of U2 performing at legendary venue Red Rocks. Seeing fans clamoring for a piece of Bono in the footage is a vision that never left his head. This first exposure to the power of a true rock icon solidified Nick’s destiny as a live performer.
Drummer Rob Pierce hails from Nashville, aka Music City. His dad was a race car driver and his grandfather was a pastor. He grew up racing go karts and at first, wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps until he joined the fourth grade band and was bitten by the music bug. He chose the snare drum over the saxophone and from that moment on, music was the only thing that mattered. Rob got his first drum kit at age 11, which he set up in his dad’s car shop. He learned to play his instrument next to 1,000 horsepower engines, which influences his highly energetic style to this day.The chemistry between the players in Flat Black is palpable. And while Flat Black’s songs are built to take up real estate in the brains of fans for weeks at a time, the true nature of the band’s material is meant to be experienced live. Flat Black are now ready to hit the road and bring these brutal bangers to the masses live and in the flesh.
July 21 – Verona, NY – Turning Stone Resort Casino^
July 23 – Johnstown, PA – 1st Summit Arena*
July 25 – Gilford, NH – BankNH Pavilion*
July 26 – Bangor, ME – Maine Savings Amphitheater*
July 27 —Worcester, MA — Palladium Upstairs
July 28 —Philadelphia, PA — Underground Arts
July 30 — Mechanicsburg, PA — Lovedraft’s Brewing Co
July 31 — New York, NY — Gramercy Theatre
August 2 — Sayreville, NJ — Starland Ballroom
August 3 — Hamden, CT — Space Ballroom
August 4 —Washington, DC — The Atlantis
October 1 — Simmons Bank Arena — North Little Rock, AR*
October 2 — Texas Trust CU Theatre — Grand Prairie, TX*
October 4 — Isleta Amphitheater — Albuquerque, NM*
October 5 — AVA Amphitheater at Casino Del Sol — Tucson, AZ*
October 10 — Grand Sierra Resort and Casino — Reno, NV*
October 12 — Moda Center — Portland, OR*
October 16 — Blue FCU Arena — Loveland, CO^
October 17 — Sunset Amphitheatre — Colorado Springs, CO^
October 19 — Hartman Arena — Park City, KS^
October 20 — The Family Arena — Saint Charles, MO^
October 22 — Appalachian Wireless Arena — Pikeville, KY^
October 23 — Wesbanco Arena — Wheeling, WV^
October 25 — PPL Center — Allentown, PA^
October 26 — Mohegan Sun Arena — Uncasville, CT^
*with Godsmack
^with Godsmack and Nothing More