JINJER are in the final stretch of their Duél album cycle, and they’re closing it out in style — a 37-city North American headline run that hits the Aztec Theatre in San Antonio on Thursday, June 25. Crystal Lake and Entheos are along for most of the run, and this is one of those three-band lineups where arriving early actually pays off.
The Ukrainian progressive metal quartet — Tatiana Shmayluk (vocals), Eugene Abdukhanov (bass), Roman Ibramkhalilov (guitars), Vlad Ulasevich (drums) — released Duél in February 2025 on Napalm Records. Their fifth album, it takes a harder, more aggressive turn than 2021’s Wallflowers: heavier breakdowns, more technical grooves, less breathing room. “Rogue,” “Green Serpent,” and “Dark Bile” are where the record lives, and “Pisces” — the track that’s been a set anchor for years now — is still on the list. Abdukhanov described this as the band’s most intensive songwriting process to date, nearly two years in the making.
The live case for JINJER is largely the case for Tatiana Shmayluk. Her ability to shift between clean, precise melodic singing and full-register growls — sometimes mid-phrase — is the thing that’s driven the band’s global reach, over 250 million streams across platforms. Seeing it in a room like the Aztec, at the volume these shows run, makes the ticket make sense in a way a YouTube clip doesn’t quite capture.
The support bill is worth the early arrival. Crystal Lake are Japanese metalcore — tight, internationally road-tested, with a following that shows up for them specifically. Entheos run a progressive metal approach, technically demanding and a smart contrast in texture. Abdukhanov said of the touring package: “Having Crystal Lake and Entheos joining us makes this lineup even stronger.” The 7 PM doors make it logistically reasonable to catch both.
The Aztec Theatre is one of the more distinctive rooms in the San Antonio market — a 1926 former movie palace listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1992, running at 1,477 capacity as a live venue. For a metal show, the combination of ornate architecture and punishing volume is a particular kind of experience. At JINJER’s current scale, this room is a reasonable match.
VIP upgrades are available — Fast Lane Access and VIP Club Access — for those who want to navigate entry outside the general admission flow. Tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster.