On a clear summer evening in Manhattan, the Summer of Discontent Tour rolled through The Rooftop at Pier 17, bringing with it a dose of Punk, Celtic folk, and rebellion. With the East River, Brooklyn Bridge, and a setting sun and a glowing full moon like a second stage backdrop, Dropkick Murphys, Bad Religion, and The Mainliners gave New York City a triple threat of grit, melody, and meaning.Continue reading
The first time I saw Ghost was April 23, 2016, at the Rialto Theatre in Tucson. Even then, they went big, full church set, stained glass, smoke curling across the stage, and a performance that felt more like a ritual than a rock show. Nine years later, after chasing them across three states, this Phoenix stop marked my fifth Ghost concert, and I walked out feeling the same thing I felt the first time: totally blown away. Continue reading
It was a perfect Saturday date night in Athens on May 24th to watch and capture UK’s Prog Metal artist DVNE alongside Greek band Allochiria opening up the show at Gazarte Music Venue.Continue reading
It was a blistering cold night in New England as Slayer guitarist and co-founder Kerry King unleashed a hellish sonic assault upon the small Boston nightclub, The Royale for his first North American Headline Tour. King’s band is made up of metal legends that include Mark Osegueda of Death Angel on vocals, former Vio-lence and Machine Head guitarist Phil Demmel, Hellyeah bassist Kyle Sanders, and Slayer drummer Paul Bostaph.
The rain is lashing down so hard this evening that floods are already heading quickly towards biblical proportions. The treacherous and occasionally completely submerged roads around the area certainly go some way to explaining the slightly lower-than-expected turnout at KKs Steel Mill tonight, which although still very respectable, is clearly not as busy as usual.Continue reading
It is an odd thing to see bands on the rise. At capacity, Showbox Sodo in Seattle holds 1,800 people. To see Knocked Loose, Show Me The Body, Loathe, and Speed there for the Weapon of Choice Tour, is something is incredible to imagine. I have been to that venue many times, and of those, few were sold out. Still, the night was thick with hardcore energy and the venue floor filled up quickly.Continue reading
In September of 2023, Baroness released their sixth studio album Stone (Abraxan Hymns, review here) and with the summer concert season heating up, they are touring to support it. That tour recently came to the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center (HMAC) in Harrisburg, PA.Continue reading
I could not have picked a better night to go out to Oakland to see the headline tour from Crosses. I remember seeing their debut tour over a decade ago when I lived in Boston, at the Paradise Rock Club. That night, the venue was packed to the gills, and I distinctly remember being by the soundboard and seeing the separate rack settings and notes for Chino Moreno’s microphone and effects. It was a pretty cool glimpse inside the live sound of the guy who I have followed since the mid-nineties with Deftones. But much like Maynard James Keenan and Puscifer, it does seem like Crosses is his favorite child and passion. Along with his partner Shawn Lopez, formerly of the awesome and now defunct Sacramento band Far. They make for a sick team of creatives. Continue reading
Ahhh, Christmas time. A time when the family gets together, sits by the fire, trade stories back and forth… and moshes. That’s right folks, it may have been 5 days before Christmas but that didn’t stop Will and the boys from putting together a handful of Christmas shows complete with deathcore Christmas trees and lights a plenty!Continue reading
On a beautiful autumn night we headed out to see one of my favorite bands in one of my favorite Bay Area venues. To readers of this website, no one will be shocked that Baroness is one of my all-time top bands and I hold all their albums in high regard. We recently did a deep dive discography over at the Glacially Musical Pouredcast. I even own an exclusive John Dyer Baizley-made print from the Yellow and Green album era (Relapse Records) that holds a special place in my heart. Needless to say, the 2023 release of the album Stone (Abraxan Hymns) has not left my rotation. Not only was I getting to see one of the best bands to ever do it live, three other killer bands were joining them tonight in Primitive Man, Midwife and Agriculture. The approach of the headline band to have different sets of rotating openers should be a more common practice when possible.