Beloved English goth rock band The Mission U.K. kicked off their West Coast trek this week, and on Saturday night, the band had a special secret performance at The Viper Room in Los Angeles under the name Blood Brothers U.K. The moniker has been connected to smaller-scale shows for the band over in their home country, but this was the U.S. debut for this special performance.

The Mission U.K. walked through the excited crowd to take the stage and kick off their set with "Beyond The Pale," which had the packed crowd raising their hands to the sky while howling along to its chorus. The band previously played Los Angeles back in September, so they wanted to change things up for this special occasion. "We haven't played this song in decades," stated vocalist Wayne Hussey before going into "Child's Play" from The Mission's 1988 sophomore album Children. This wasn't the only time the band brought some deep cuts to the stage; "Can't See The Ocean For The Rain," which was written about a trek to Los Angeles, was a delight for the local crowd while "Wake (RSV)," which has been trickling in past setlists over the years, crept through the tiny venue with haunting guitars.

As expected, "Blood Brother" was destined to make it on the setlist. As the inspiration for The Mission's alias, the song is all about looking out for each other in tough times. The song's message became stronger during the pandemic when everyone was stuck in the same dilemma with uncertainty at an all-time high.

"Deliverance" brought the house down with the crowd chanting the chorus well after the band stopped playing. After seeing the crowd continue with the chants, Hussey joked, "And they keep going." Following "Deliverance," The Mission U.K. were stuck in a situation; the band wanted to hop off stage for a break before returning for the encore, but it meant having to traverse through the audience two more times. Instead, they took a quick breather and kicked off the encore with "Butterfly On A Wheel," which had the lively VIP section leading the crowd into the chorus. The Mission U.K. dove into their cover of Depeche Mode's "Never Let Me Down Again," which was a staple in their sets back in the early 2000s.

"Wasteland" had the crowd tossing confetti in the air like the old days before The Mission U.K. concluded their nearly two-hour set with "Tower of Strength," which is a love letter for fans of the band whether they've been following the band since their inception or stumbled upon their music a decade ago. The Mission U.K. will be back in the area for a performance at Pasadena's Cruel World Festival on Saturday, May 11. More information about the festival can be found here. More information about The Mission U.K.’s forthcoming shows can be found here.

Kicking off the night was 22-year-old indie rock artist Devon Thompson, who recently unveiled their new Skin EP. For some folks in attendance, it was somewhat perplexing seeing someone on stage who was born at the start of this century opening for such a veteran act like The Mission U.K. Thompson wondered that as well and simply stated, "That's how music flows" during their 45-minute set.

For this evening, Thompson only came with an acoustic guitar in hand, but even without their live band present, the artist still managed to showcase grit as the sole person on stage. Thompson's songs ranged from an intriguing line of topics including love turned violent ("So Close"), an inappropriate relationship between a mental patient and their nurse ("Straitjacket"), and the mythical witch Jenny Greenteeth ("Jenny").

Blood Brothers U.K. (The Mission U.K.) setlist

Beyond the Pale

Tomorrow Never Knows (The Beatles cover)

Child's Play

Met-Amor-Phosis

Naked and Savage

Severina

Can't See the Ocean for the Rain

Wake (RSV)

Grotesque

Sacrilege

Blood Brother