Tag Archives: Aleida La Llave

Mastodon – Gojira – Kvelertak: Live at Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel, Providence, RI

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I recently had the opportunity to catch the second leg of the Mastodon/Gojira/Kveletak tour at Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel in Providence, RI. I had seen the tour in the spring when they stopped by Worcester, MA and was just as excited to see this line up again as I was the first time that they came to town.

Kvelertak

First up were Norway’s own, Kvelertak, who played a crushing and energetic set. After having seen them about a half dozen times before this show, I was surprised that they only played for half an hour, but, I’ll be damned if they didn’t make the most of it with songs such as ‘Blodtørst’ and ‘Ulvetid’ off of their self titled Kvelertak (Indie Recordings), ‘Åpenbaring’ and the ever popular ‘Bruane Brenn’ from 2013’s Meir (Roadrunner Records). I’ll be waiting on ‘Nekrokosmos’ and ‘Sultans of Satan’ for next time. If you haven’t seen Kvelertak live yet, you really need to get on that. These are some really talented guys and they’re only going to continue getting better and better just like Bjarte Lund Rolland’s shirts; he was sporting High on Fire this time around and everyone knows how I feel about them.

Gojira

Hailing from France, Gojira took the stage next and opened their set with ‘Ocean Planet’ to the deafening roar of an excited crowd. A Gojira show is always an experience in the art being as heavy as possible. I was a giddy little girl thanks to being treated to two more tracks off of From Mars to Sirius (Prosthetic Records); ‘Backbone’ and “The Heaviest Matter in the Universe’. ‘Vacuity’ provided the finishing touch to an already flawless set. I would really like to see Gojira headline another tour. While they never disappoint live and tour with other incredible acts, eight songs just aren’t enough and I’m always left wanting more. Maybe we can add ‘World to Come’ next time?

Mastodon

Headliners Mastodon took the stage last and treated us to an eighteen song set. Once More Round the Sun (Reprise Records) had not been released when I saw them last and about half of the set list for this evening consisted of songs off of the new album. This was really the Mastodon Sing-A-Long Tour as there wasn’t a time when the crowd wasn’t belting out every single song. The crowd was the loudest for ‘The Motherload’ and screamed their lungs out although there was no twerking. ‘Oblivion’ and ‘Divinations’ garnered a similar response and the chant at the end of ‘Aunt Lisa’ will quickly become a crowd favorite. ‘Halloween’ was also appropriately included in the mix for a show the day before the holiday of the same name. Everyone’s favorite new break up song, ‘Ember City’, made its live debut as well and was met with applause. It was phenomenal. These southern sweethearts brought the evening to a close with the powerful ‘Blood and Thunder’ and the venue went insane. I may or may not have grabbed my friend to shake him violently in my excitement. He seemed fine. Even if a good chunk of the set was dedicated to material off of OMRS, it’s a solid album and Mastodon are always excellent live.

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I try not gush, but, sometimes it just can’t be helped. It really doesn’t matter how many times I’ve seen any of these bands, I’ll continue to seek them out and you should too. They’re fantastic performers and

I look forward to seeing them for many years to come. I’d also like to thank Erika Kristen for being a friend and a wonderful human being in general.

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Mastodon on Facebook

Gojira on Facebook

Kvelertak on Facebook

WORDS: ALEIDA LA LLAVE

PHOTOS: HILLARIE JASON PHOTOGRAPHY


Puya – Bloodline Theory – Zombie Frogs: Live at the Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, MA

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I’ve been to some pretty spectacular shows this year, but I don’t think I looked forward to them anywhere near as much as I looked forward to finally seeing my hometown heroes in Puya. I don’t mean to get sentimental, but it’s not every day that my Puerto Rican heritage and love of metal come together.

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The first act to take the stage was a local group known as Zombie Frogs. They played a few instrumental numbers that were saturated in keyboards. I personally have a very low tolerance for that sort of thing but apart from keyboard overkill, the music was pretty good and they have the potential to make some interesting songs.

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Another local band, Bloodline Theory, was up next. Their sound was reminiscent of nu-metal at the turn of the new millennium. Twelve year old me would have loved them and, to be honest, they weren’t half bad. One of the highlights of their set was a cover of Eminem’s ‘Lose Yourself’ simply because of how unexpected it was. However, the true peak of their performance was when the guitarist’s fly went down and our own Keefy got an eyeful of another man’s junk. That’s just one of the hazards that come with the job.

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Headlining band Puya opened their set with fan favorite ‘Ride’ and had the entire room singing along. I was pleasantly surprised with how heavy they are live, even the lighter parts of songs still had a good kick behind them. Vocalist Sergio Curbelo loved showing off his inner salsero and occasionally assisted percussionist Oscar Santiago with a number of different instruments. Ramon Ortiz’s versatile guitar playing shone through all of the Latin, jazz, funk, and metal influences present in the band’s music. That being said, anyone who knows anything about me knows that I love a good bassist so you can bet that I was firmly parked in front of Harold Hopkins Miranda in the front row and he did not disappoint. I had expected a set that focused more on their heavier music but there was a fantastic mix of everything. Puya is a perfect example of Latin metal and Latin fusion done right. It was easy and natural to jump from something like ‘Solo’ to ‘Tirale’ without batting an eyelash. The Latin fusion juggernaut wrapped their performance with an encore of one of their most well-known and well-loved tracks, ‘Oasis’.

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Puya was every bit as incredible as I had hoped they would be. I can cross them off of my bucket list for the time being but I’ll be waiting for them to come back to town. Come to think of it, heading back to the homeland to see one of my favorite bands sounds like a pretty good idea to me. Check out their impressive set list below.

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Puya Set List

Ride

Erizo

Areyto

Ni Antes Ni Despues

Sal Pa’ Fuera

Montate

Remora

Fundamental

Solo

Tirale

Pa’ Ti Pa’ Mi

Numbed

Puya

Oasis

Puya on Facebook

Bloodline Theory on Facebook

Zombie Frogs on Facebook

WORDS: ALEIDA LA LLAVE

PHOTOS: ECHOES IN THE WELL


Sleep – Earthless/Heavy Blanket Live at the House of Blues, Boston, MA

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I recently had the opportunity to catch Sleep for the first time while on their current tour when they stopped to play the House of Blues in Boston. I had been able to touch base with guitarist Matt Pike a few weeks earlier when High on Fire came through Cambridge as part of Converse’s Rubber TracksLive tour. According to Pike, the show had sold out, another four hundred or so tickets were released, and it sold out for a second time. Excellent.

The venue was just as packed as expected, however, I did not expect the number of hipsters that I saw. From where I was, it seemed like they may have outnumbered everyone else there. I also saw a sparkly fedora. It was strange, but interesting. The merch line was ridiculous and even longer than most of the ones that I got stuck in at the GWAR-B-QUE the week before. I was lucky enough to make it in and out in under ten minutes but there were quite a few that were standing in line for the majority of the show while merchandise sold out faster than I’ve ever seen before.

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Openers Earthless and Heavy Blanket (J. Mascius) took the stage together to play a good chunk of their EP In a Dutch Haze (Outer Battery Records) in one long instrumental piece. I have minimal knowledge of either entity outside of this single experience so I can only comment on them as whole. They were great and you really don’t need to use words when you can let the music speak for you instead.

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Onto the main event! With a set clocking in at two hours, this was basically “An Evening with Sleep”. I’m used to seeing Pike play the role of front man with High on Fire, but I was great to finally see Al Cisneros in person. I’m pretty sure I annoyed the people around me enough with my Pike related fangirling anyway though. I just about lost it when they played ‘Aquarian’. Pretty much anything off of Holy Mountain (Earache Records) makes me babble incoherently and that album made up roughly half of their set, including the crowd favorite, ‘Dragonaut’. Other honorable mentions go to ‘From Beyond’, ‘Sonic Titan’, and ‘Dopesmoker’. We were also fortunate enough to witness the live debut of the band’s latest single ‘The Clarity’ which had been featured as part of the Adult Swim Singles program for 2014. The only thing I would have asked would have been the addition of ‘The Druid’ to the set list. Listen, I’m pretty sure we all would have stuck around for a three or four hour long performance. Maybe we’ll have better luck next time. Until then, heed their call and follow the smoke to the riff filled land.

Sleep on Facebook

Earthless on Facebook

Heavy Blanket on Facebook

ALEIDA LA LLAVE

 


Recap: The 5th Annual GWAR BQ – Hadad’s Park Richmond, VA

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This year’s pilgrimage to Richmond, VA was full of a lot of strong and, at times, conflicting emotions. I didn’t make this trip as a writer. I did it as a Bohab and a human being who just wanted a chance to pay her respects to someone who had shown her kindness and had a profound effect on her life and to celebrate his life as well as grieve with some of the incredible people that make up an extensive hab family.

We arrived Friday morning and had breakfast with some of our bohab brethren staying at the same hotel before taking a nap and heading out for Hadad’s Lake and Dave Brockie/Oderus’ viking funeral. It was strange seeing the costume laid out in such a way, it was all very peaceful for a blood thirsty alien. I saw many habs sitting by the shore, some in quiet reflection, while others had their own conversations with our beloved monster.

The official memorial service featured eulogies by Jello Biafra, Randy Blythe, Adam Green, Michael Bishop,and others. There were a lot of tears but there was also a lot of laughter as jokes and stories about Brockie’s antics were shared. There was singing and the entire crowd let out a primal scream in his honor. Green played a voice mail that Brockie had left him. I had listened to it several months before but hearing his voice was still difficult.

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The actual send off itself was beautiful and included an archer launching a flaming arrow onto the small ship and Danielle Stampe a.k.a. Slymenstra Hymen tossing a flaming torch into the water as bagpipes continued to play in the background. There were a number of different chants going around the crowd but it was very quiet until the firefighters showed up – after the flames and smoke had nearly completely died out. We have no idea if a neighbor called them but it gave us all a good laugh and seemed like a fitting way to end Brockie’s public memorial service.

Cut to the next day’s GWAR-B-QUE back at Hadad’s. There were a number of hiccups with regards to the event’s planning such as VIP ticket holders (myself included) not getting their lanyards, some people getting two of them in their bags, and some premium ticket holders winding up with them instead. Tents were not labeled properly and we wasted a lot of time in line at the GWAR merch booth before being told that we had to go to another line to start all over again just to be told that they were out of lanyards and to come back in an hour. We had already missed a number of bands and signings by this point and by the time we got our VIP stickers, the GWAR signing was well underway. I decided that it wasn’t worth the hassle of waiting around for a few hours in yet another line just to be rushed through the meet & greet and spent some time by the lake with some habs while listening to the festivities behind us.

There was quite a bit going on apart from the music as well. There were the mandatory band merch booths, the pool was open, there were a number of food vendors, a jewelry tent, tattooing, and a cigar truck selling CiGWARS. And that, kids, is how I had my first cigar. There were more bathrooms than last year but the lines were horrendous. You were looking at a minimum of a half hour wait for everything.

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Unfortunately, I missed a number of bands due to being stuck in line hell but at least I had seen Bishop’s Kepone and Iron Reagan in recent months and they always shred. Revocation had to drop off the bill and, as far as I know, Goatwhore just didn’t show up. I can’t complain about the line for those delicious pulled pork sandwiches because that’s where I was watching Body Count from. They were fantastic! Ice-T and crew looked right at home among us and I saw more than my fair share of reciting every song word for word.

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What about GWAR? They shared vocal duties with Bishop’s new character, Blothar, Slymenstra, and Don Drakulich’s Sleazy P. Martini. Blothar looked interesting, like some kind of weird wizard with antlers on his back. I’m sure the costume will have been changed and refined a bit by the time the fall tour comes through town. Slymenstra did some of her fire dancing but I would have liked to have seen more. Singe off my eyebrows! I hadn’t seen Sleazy since 2008/9 but it was nice to have him back on stage, even if he was, understandably, less energetic than usual.

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I had a difficult time watching the performance. This is not by any means a reflection on the band, they were incredible, it was simply hard for me personally. There were people climbing on top of the smaller buildings to get a good view of the stage. I hung around the back of the crowd and caught maybe a minute of ‘The Years Without Light’ before my emotions got the best of me and I had to retreat back to the safety of our bohab base camp. I was content with staying behind and merely listening…Until those first few notes of ‘Gor-Gor’ hit my ear holes and I ran back into the middle of the crowd with Mama Hab. That Gor-Gor puppet is the beautiful demented dinosaur that I’ve ever seen. The song had been on my bucket list of songs that I wanted to see performed live but I just wish that it had been under better circumstances. There were more tears following its end than at any other time the entire weekend. ‘The Road Behind’ was played as expected and while my mind will always associate it with Cory Smoot first, I think there’s a little room in there for Dave too. GWAR & Company wrapped things up with a ‘Slaughterama’ that felt a bit rushed.

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I know that there are going to be people criticizing the event and I know that with better planning, the problems of this year’s event can be minimized the next time around. With regards to GWAR’s performance after losing such an electric front man, all I ask is that you give them a chance. GWAR is more than just any one person and they’ve suffered a heavy loss, not of a musician, but that of a friend and family member. Picking up the pieces is no easy task but I think that they’re up to the challenge and I am optimistic about what the future holds for them and all of us.

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For me, the main event of this weekend was the funeral and I’m grateful to everyone who took the time to grieve and celebrate with me, even if we did almost get the cops called on us. There will always be a cuttlefish shaped hole in our hearts but good friends and good music work wonders.

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GWAR on Facebook

WORDS BY ALEIDA LA LLAVE

PHOTOS BY NICK PHELPS OF MASTER PHELPS

 


Alexandra Crockett – Metal Cats Book

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Do you like metal? Check (if not, why are you even here?). Do you like cats? I don’t but you probably do. Do you like attractive men? Of course you do. This brings us to the book Metal Cats (powerHouse Books) by photographer Alexandra Crockett. The public tends to give members of the metal community a bad reputation for no real reason. These pictures are about crossing boundaries. Pretty much everyone loves cats; they bring people together. This book is a collection of metal heads with their animal companions with the added bonus of proceeds going to no-kill shelters on the West Coast. Let’s help some animals and check out some dudes!

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The Good – Most of these cats look infinitely less amused than their metal fathers which I find absolutely hilarious. Ross Sewage of Ghoul, and a million other projects, makes a particularly enticing male model. Please, keep the mask on. Villainizer and Death Toll Rising’s Drew Copeland and his furry friend can give you pointers for how to ring in the holiday season. An ugly sweater and a no nonsense demeanor are key.

The Bad – Nothing! Even a non-cat lover like myself can get a kick out of this collection.

The Adorable – Nym Penga of Mongrel Gods and In the Age of Terminal Static with his black-as-the-night chicken, Boxy. If you don’t think that chicken is amazing, well, you’re just wrong.

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If you’re a crazy cat lady, a crazy cat dude, or don’t like to read (thanks for reading), pick up a copy of this book. This would have made a great desk calendar too. Maybe we can get the ladies in on the action next time. For the record, I would be all for Metal Dogs and/or Metal Snakes if anyone wants to go ahead and make them a thing.

8.0/10

Metal Cats Book on Facebook

Buy This Book on Amazon

ALEIDA LA LLAVE


Trollfest – Kaptein Kaos

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Let it be known that, prior to this album, I had never listened to Trollfest before so I really didn’t know what to expect. Kaptein Kaos (NoiseArt Records) begins with ‘Trolltramp’ which is a short instrumental piece that sounds like something you would have heard when running around with cavemen in Chrono Trigger before the Reptites crash the party.

The songs that I enjoy the most are all in the second half of the album. Let’s start with ‘Solskinnsmedisin’ and its Latin influences. Did I hear a güiro underneath all of that crazy? This song sounds like something I’d catch my old man listening to when he can’t decide between merengue and metal. Honestly, it makes me think of a goofy Puya.

‘Sagn Om Stein’ is on the lighter side and makes me think of dingy bars where questionable bearded men can be found aka my kind of place. I don’t know what’s being said but my brain is interpretting it as “let’s party”. Grab a beer, grab a beard, and toast in a foreign language or two!

It’s difficult for me to decide between ‘Solskinnsmedisin’ and ‘Kinesisk Alkymi’ but I think I have to give the honor of my favorite song from Kaptein Kaos to the latter. I find the Asian influences and string influences extremely interesting. It would have been right at home in the Tekken or Mortal Kombat franchises. Why does everything about this album make me think of video games and alcohol?

Kaptein Kaos is a lot of fun to listen to and definitely not what I was expecting. I thought it was just going to be your standard dosage of folk metal but Trollfest used other musical styles that keep the listener engaged and amused. I had no idea what was being said for at least three quarters of this album but I want to go to a cabana party with an arcade inside.

8.5/10

Trollfest on Facebook

ALEIDA LA LLAVE


Corrosion of Conformity – IX

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Be still, my beating heart! One of my fondest memories was when I discovered that my father was a Corrosion of Conformity fan so imagine our mutual excitement when this beauty was thrown my way.

My favorite track off of IX (Candlelight Records) has to be ‘The Hanged Man’. I actually threw it on repeat for a good while. I would normally hate the little radio intro but it works when kept as short as it is here. The song overall has that old, doomy vibe to it that you feel right in your bones but with a faster pace. Seriously, just go put it on right now., it’s hauntingly beautiful and feels like it should be part of a much longer piece.

Some honorable mentions include the second track, ‘Elphyn’. I found it to be more catchy and interesting than some of the other songs and certainly worthy of terrible karaoke. ‘Who You Need to Blame’ falls into the same vein with its infectious grooves. It’s this kind of songwriting that has continued to draw fans in despite the lineup and stylistic changes over the years.

As for what I didn’t care for, let’s take a look at ‘Interlude’ and ‘The Nectar Reprised’. I know that a lot of bands and artists will include something similar on their releases but I’ve never seen much of a point to it when you can take that time to include another song or something that doesn’t otherwise interrupt the flow of the album. If I had to pick one song that I don’t care for, it would be ‘Denmark Vesey’. I respect the throwback to their punk side of things but it’s just not my bag. That being said, ‘Tarquinius Superbus’ isn’t bad.

There was a lot of hype surrounding this album and, while it’s not absolutely mind melting, it has its strong parts to suck you in. If you’re a fan of southern metal (and you really should be), IX is a great record that deserves a listen. I don’t know about you but I’m looking forward to enjoying this around a bonfire or two this summer.

8/10

Corrosion of Conformity on Facebook

ALEIDA LA LLAVE


Paganfest 2014: Live at The Palladium, Worcester, MA

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The last stop on this year’s Paganfest America tour was Worcester, MA, in the tiny upstairs portion of The Palladium. With a lineup consisting of the Finnish darlings Korpiklaani and Turisas, Taiwan’s Chthonic, Germany’s VARG, and Cincinnati’s own Winterhymn, it was bound to be an excellent way to spend a Sunday night.

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Wait a minute. A folk metal band…from Ohio? It’s true! If you’re like me, you’re used to folk metal coming from European countries but Winterhymn plays the part well, violin and all. It may have been the last show of the tour but they played as though it were the very first and the crowd danced and drank along with every song. Even their tour mates in VARG got involved when they came onstage to prank the band by slathering them in fake blood in the middle of their set. All in all, it was a job well done.

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Let’s get this out of the way right now: I love Germans and I probably shouldn’t be allowed into their country unsupervised. That said, how did I feel about VARG? I loved them too and judging by the crowd’s reaction, they agreed with me. I had heard of this band in passing but this was my first time actually being exposed to their music. One of the highlights of the evening was when Winterhymn came back out to stage dive and crowd surf near the end of VARG’s set. They were the heaviest band on the bill and easily wound up sneaking into my number two spot because of this. They were loud, energetic, and perhaps even a tad intimidating. I would love to see them again in the future.

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The third band on the bill was Chthonic. Their sound seemed a bit out of place compared to the other bands. It was bit too monotonous for my taste but they were visually interesting. Chthonic was using screens and lights in an area where most bands choose to not to simply due to the lack of space for anything, but the musicians themselves. Overall, they weren’t bad but they also didn’t wow me either. I didn’t have a very strong opinion either way after this performance but I am willing to give them another shot the next time they come Stateside.

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I have to be completely honest and say that the reason that I even went to this show in the first place was specifically to see Turisas again. If you have never had a chance to see them live, you can usually pick out fans in the crowd by their red and black war paint. There were more crowd surfers during Turisas’ set than any other band but it was their closing song that really took the cake. Sure, they have a ton of great original material but everyone and their mom has a huge soft spot for their cover of Boney M’s ‘Rasputin’. The band pulled over a dozen people up on stage to dance and sing along with them. It was a great way to end things and I’m glad that years of demanding to have that song played has finally paid off.

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Headliners Korpiklaani seemed a bit more subdued than the last time I had seen them. I was expecting lots of dancing and men resembling wizards making strange hand gestures. The typical playful banter was instead replaced with their brand of face melting folk metal. Korpiklaani definitely put on a top notch show and things were significantly less boozy until the band ended with ‘Happy Little Boozer’ and we danced with our Jager Bombs held up high. It was a mess. It was interesting to see a group that I usually consider more of a “party band” take a different approach and I believe it worked well. Could this be a sign of things to come? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what these Finns have into store for us next.

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You’ll be hard-pressed to find anyone who hasn’t enjoyed attending a Paganfest show. From the great lineups bursting at the seams with incredible talent to fellow fans dressed in full Viking garb, these events are not to be missed and grow in size every year. Here’s hoping Paganfest 2015 gets moved downstairs so we can get some real dancing in.

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Paganfest on Facebook

WORDS BY ALEIDA LA LLAVE

PHOTOS BY CHRIS SMALL OF CWS PHOTOGRAPHY


GWAR – Whitechapel – Iron Reagan – A Band of Orcs: Live at The Palladium, Worcester, MA

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DSC_0229-SAfter my adventure in Richmond for the GWAR-B-QUE over the summer and the release of Battle Maximus (Metal Blade Records), I was curious to see what GWAR had in store for us on their current tour. A Band of Orcs were the first to invade the venue and proceed to lay waste to all in their path. A Band of Orcs is literally a band…Of Orcs. They have elaborate costumes and instruments made out of weapons and/or the bones of their victims. The crowd was really into it and the floor became a giant mass of writhing bodies as young and old a like got in touch with their more primal side. The cherry on top of an already impressive performance came in the form of vocalist Gogog’s hilarious attempts at engaging the audience. He was successful as he was greeted with applause after demanding that we “give them clap”.

Iron Reagan proved that they weren’t about to be outdone by their fantasy based tour mates when frontman Tony Foresta, of Municipal Waste fame, hauled a garbage can out on stage and threw it into the crowd. The can became a beach ball at a high school graduation before venue security was able to wrestle it out of a fan’s hands but that didn’t stop anyone from throwing the garbage around instead. The flying debris was soon joined by liquor bottles being launched from backstage. The chaos set the perfect stage for Iron Reagan’s brand of crossover thrash.The third band to play that evening was Knoxville, TN’s Whitechapel. I have never been much of a fan and seeing them live didn’t change my opinion. However, their drummer was interesting enough to keep my attention throughout most of their performance. However, I can’t tell you if that was because he was good or because I liked his tattoos. Either way, it was a nice intermission before the main event of the evening.

‘Madness at the Core of Time’ kicked off the start of GWAR’s set. A number of new Battle Maximus based creatures were included, most notably, Mr. Perfect.DSC_0539-MI usually find GWAR’s props adorable but Mr. Perfect was the first one to ever make me feel unnerved. He was masterfully crafted and masterfully creepy. We had a special celebrity guest join GWAR on stage, everyone’s favorite music industry meat puppet: Justin Bieber. In typical GWAR fashion, the Biebs was massacred for the crowd’s amusement and they ate it up! I don’t think even Snooki’s demise was so well received.

DSC_0217-SPredictably, the set list focused primarily on songs from Battle Maximus but included some gems such as ‘Jack the World’ and ‘The Salaminizer’. The fan favorite ‘Sick of You’ made an appearance as expected. GWAR wrapped things up with their superb mashup of Billy Ocean’s ‘Get Out of My Dreams, Get into My Car’ and The Who’s ‘Baba O’Riley’. Fans who stuck around after the show were treated to frontman Dave Brockie reading passages from a book on Blackbeard the Pirate. All in all, it was a great show and I’m looking forward to seeing them again in December.

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GWAR on Facebook

Iron Reagan on Facebook

A Band of Orcs on Facebook

Whitechapel on Facebook

Words by Aleida La Llave

Photos By Nick Phelps of MasterPhelps


High on Fire – Kvelertak – Doomriders: Live at The Middle East, Cambridge, MA

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The first time I saw High on Fire was the night after my 21st birthday. I had no idea who they were but I quickly learned that I desperately needed more of them in my life. Four years later, I finally had the opportunity to satisfy that desire during what would become one of the best nights of my life.

 

 

 

 

First up were Boston, MA natives, Doomriders, featuring Nate Newton (Converge, Old Man Gloom) on guitar HillarieJason1-9and vocals. I didn’t really know what to expect as I’m not a Converge fan, but I was pleasantly surprised by their performance. They had a lot of energy and easily engaged the crowd. At the very least, Doomriders made for an entertaining opening act and I look forward to seeing them again in the future.

 

 

 

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The Norwegian wonders that make up Kvelertak were scheduled to play next, but not before guitarist Bjarte Lund Rolland and I gushed over a mutual love of each other’s shirts (Mine: Kylesa, His: Kadavar). Have you ever had your head inside of a dead owl? If it’s as fun as vocalist Erlend Hjelvik makes it look, then it may be worth looking into. Kvelertak are quickly becoming one of my favorite bands to see live. They’re talented gentlemen and they know how to connect with the audience. Said connection occasionally takes the form of crowd surfing while continuing to sing or play their instruments. Honestly, I was a bit disappointed that they didn’t drag people up on stage to play with them like they did the last time they were in town but it was a great performance nonetheless.

 

 

Headliners High on Fire finally took the stage around ten o’clock followed by a roar of applause from an eager audience. As a woman who loves her bass players, it can be difficult to be impressed by a guitarist, but Matt Pike, of Sleep fame, is one of my favorites for a reason and he made it abundantly clear that night. There was no witty banter, no trying to engage the crowd with small talk, just the occasional song title and an all-out assault on your ears and mind. Despite saying that he was getting sick, Pike’s performance never let on that he was feeling under the weather and a room full of fans was treated to a twelve track set featuring songs off of every major studio release in their catalog. I was personally pleased to hear ‘Fury Whip’ and ‘Rumors of War’ off of my favorite album, Death is this Communion (Relapse).

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Overall, I was really pleased with this line up. There was never a dull moment as even setting up between bands didn’t take very long. It was a wonderful night, Pike was an absolute pleasure to meet, and I commend the mastermind(s) behind this tour. My ears finally stopped ringing this morning.

 

 

 

 

 

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Words: Aleida La Llave

Photos by Hillarie Jason of Hillarie Jason Photography