Sonata Arctica, Arsis, Yesterday's Saints, Fallen Martyr, Trihexyn, Radamanthys - 12/9/12 at Empire, Springfield, VA

We missed all the local bands at this show, which was too bad, because some of them were decent, one had a cool name and one used to be my friend's brother's band (I'll leave it up to you all to figure out which one's which :P) We actually got there right around the time Yesterday's Saints was supposed to go on, but one of their guitars got stolen and they didn't play.

Eventually, Arsis came out instead. They were much faster and heavier-hitting than I expected. The only song of theirs that I had any previous impression of was "Forced to Rock," and the impression I got from that was an old school medium paced heavy metal band, not this whirlwind of pummeling guitars and undecipherable lyrics. Some pits formed, especially later in the set, but I was kinda tipsy and not wearing very secure shoes, so I didn't go in :( I just stood there and headbanged instead. I enjoyed their set; the music was energetic and the rolling sound of the guitars was great for headbanging. (S. said they were better the last time he saw them, so they must have been fantastic.) I talked to one of the guitarists later (the one with amazing long curly hair :D ) and he said that they play everything faster live. A great plan, in my opinion.

I didn't enjoy Sonata Arctica's set as much. They used to be one of my favorite bands, but I don't particularly like their new stuff. It's not horrible, it's just not the melodic epicness that they used to put out. (I know, I just trolled In Flames fans in my last review for similar attitudes, but I guess I'm more open-minded about In Flames since I only recently started listening to them.) Sonata still sounded good, and the few old songs they played (ex. "Black Sheep," "Full Moon," "Don't Say a Word") were awesome, every bit as fast and melodic as ten years ago.  I spent most of the set in suspense to see which (if any) song from Winterheart's Guild they would play; I won't spoil it, but I will say that sadly, I was disappointed with their choice from that album (so many other epic songs!). There was a clump of people in the middle who pretty much only moved when they played the old songs, and a bunch of people on the right who were jumping and waving the horns for every song - somehow the old and new fans self-segregated :P I guess Sonata did play a decent mix of old and new, and the new songs sounded all right, with some catchy choruses - with the exception of "Cinderblox," which sounded messy and terrible. I liked that they ended with one of their best old songs, "Don't Say a Word." There was an honest to god pit for this song, with 6 or 8 people in it. I hoped the band wouldn't ruin the vibe with an encore of newer songs, and they didn't.

Whee. Hope he's singing something good. (Photo by Steve Wass)

I had a pretty good time at the show, but mainly because Arsis was good, and I got to hang out with some friends and family. Old Sonata fans will have to weigh whether you can stand through half a set of new songs for a few of the oldies. If you really need to hear "Don't Say a Word" live one last time, then go - the rest of the set won't be (too) terrible. If you would rather stay home and listen to all the epic songs on Winterheart's Guild that they won't play, I can't really argue with you.

Next show: Heading up to Pittsburgh to see WINTERSUN with Eluveitie and Varg (not in that order) on 12/19!!!

The Birthday Massacre, William Control, Aesthetic Perfection, Creature Feature, My Enemy Complete, etc. - 11/29/12 at Empire, Springfield, VA

I didn't realize I could go to this show until the last minute, because I thought my daughter's daycare would be closed on the 30th (the last day of NaNoWriMo) and that I would therefore need this evening for writing. By the time I found out that daycare would actually be open, it was past time to get ready, and so I arrived late and only heard the last 5 seconds of local industrial-hard rock band My Enemy Complete. This was unfortunate for a few reasons - they have started to sound heavier this year, and I thought they were supposed to play a new song which Bilal said would be heavier. (I keep telling him they need to keep up the heavy industrial sound that most of their songs start with, not get all soft once the vocals begin!) Also, I pretty much went to the show just to see MEC and Aesthetic Perfection, so giving up writing time only to miss one of the bands I actually wanted to see was annoying.

The next band on was Creature Feature. They were loud and energetic, but not my type of music - they had a sort of carnival or Nightmare Before Christmas-like sound, with gothically ghastly lyrics when I could understand them (they said one of their songs was based on Poe, and another was an alphabet of different ways to die). It was sort of interesting, but not really worth the lost writing time ;)

Aesthetic Perfection, however, was totally worth it. Heavy, mostly faced paced, with a pounding bass that made me want to stomp all over the floor (although it was pretty crowded, so I could only stomp in place). S, K and I shoved each other around a bit, and there was an actual tiny, 30-second pit during their last song. It was a fun time; I only wish they had been higher on the bill so they could have played longer.

The second slot band, William Control, struck me as a band whose songs (if played at our favorite local goth party Midnight) would be the ones that I danced half-heartedly to while waiting for a faster and heavier song, or danced half-heartedly through the slow uninteresting parts just to be on the floor for the catchy chorus. As in, their songs were mildly interesting and had some good, heavy or catchy parts that made me want to dance, but were overall too slow and soft for my taste. The crowd did not seem to be feeling them nearly as much as Aesthetic Perfection and the vocalist seemed to be getting a bit irritated about it. Near the end of the first song, he suddenly screamed into the mic, making us grimace, and I wondered if that part was supposed to be there or he was just letting off his frustration. He had a very metal looking guitarist who headbanged a lot; the vocalist himself had a poofed up 50's hairdo which made him look rather pompous. Still, they were better than I expected - as I said, something half decent to fill the time between the good stuff ;)

After AP finished, I had waffled a bit about leaving then or staying till the end, but I couldn't resist the temptation of seeing at least a little of The Birthday Massacre. I was not very familiar with them; at some point S had sent me a song, and they seemed good. As it turned out they were, and they were more metal than any of the other bands that played that night. They were also the only act that I saw (besides MEC) that was a full band - the other acts on the tour were two person shows. They use catchy, heavy guitar riffs, which unfortunately disappear during most of the vocals, but the synth and vocals are also quite catchy and upbeat, and most of the choruses include guitars and even some harsh vocals, making them very headbangable. I was enjoying their set, but unfortunately the vocalist injured her knee a few songs in. She tried to keep going, but after a few more songs, the band took a break to assess the severity of the injury and then announced that they could not continue because she needed to go to the hospital.

Even though there were some lame moments - missing almost all of MEC, having to wait through two not as good bands when I could have been writing - I'm still glad I went. I supported the local goth/industrial scene and got to see a few people I haven't seen in a while, and I had a good time dancing to AP and hearing more of The Birthday Massacre. And I did reach 50K (and bake two cakes) on the 30th, so it's all good.

Next show: Sonata Arctica and Arsis, 12/9

Lamb of God, In Flames, Hatebreed, Sylosis - 11/17/12 at Fillmore, Silver Spring, MD

I was really looking forward to this show. Three great bands, what could go wrong?

We got to the venue just as Sylosis was finishing up. I heard their last song; S went to get a drink. They were pretty listenable, with some energetic and melodic segments, but didn't especially catch my interest.

Hatebreed came out to "America, F**k Yeah" from Team America and immediately got everyone pumped. Pretty much the whole floor was jumping and singing along with Jamey Jasta. I'm surprised I wasn't hoarse after their set cause I sang along to most of the choruses in a low growl, which I didn't even know I could sustain that long. They had a very simple stage show - just the guys playing and Jamey moving around the stage - but they really brought the hardcore energy and got everyone moving with their anthemic and sing/shout-alongable songs (singing along was encouraged by Jamey on just about every song).

They were followed by Swedish melodeath band In Flames, who started with a mellow song and sort of sounded like an 80's rock band compared to Hatebreed. I know In Flames gets a bad rap for not being metal anymore or something, and for not playing some song that everybody really likes, but I thought they sounded all right. They were heavier than I expected, and as they went "back in time" playing older songs, they started to sound more energetic and thunderous. They still had some slow mellow segments in each song, though, and ended with a slow song. There some surprisingly large pits during their set, though, so perhaps they still have some metal cred.

Lamb of God was excellent, and to date the only band I've seen that could share a stage with Hatebreed and outshine them (granted, I've only seen Hatebreed once before). They were loud, fast and heavy, filling the hall with a thunderous barrage of sound, and had lights, spouts of smoke and videos augmenting their performance (no fire for In Flames at the Fillmore - just some banks of lights that blinded the audience). The bass was very loud and the vocals pretty low, so much so that I could hardly hear Randy at first, but I noticed it less as the show went on. The fast but rhythmic music was great for headbanging, and luckily not all of the floor turned into the pit, but we did get shoved a bit.

The show turned out just as good as I hoped. I would recommend it to any metalhead - these are bands you should definitely see if you're into heavy music at all, and you won't be disappointed (unless you expect In Flames to be something that they're not anymore *shrug*)

Next show: I think it's Sonata Arctica and Arsis on 12/9, unless I'm forgetting about something. And after that, Eluveitie and WINTERSUN on 12/19.

Six Feet Under, Cattle Decapitation, Wretched and others - 11/3/12 at Cafe 611, Frederick, MD

I went to this show partly because the one Six Feet Under song I'd heard before sounded great for headbanging, and partly because I wanted to see what Cattle Decapitation was like after all the hype about their recent gory video. And the show was only twenty minutes away, so why not.

I'd never been to Cafe 611, although I'd heard of one or two shows there. It's located on Market Street in downtown Frederick, which seemed like an odd place for a metal show. There was a good sized crowd there, though, and a noticeably different crowd than at Baltimore or DC area shows. The floor was about the same size as at Empire (formerly Jaxx), but without the side areas. There was a small and crowded bar area behind, and a sit-down area that we didn't really explore. On the right of the floor was the office-desk-sized sound booth and on the left was another bar area that was being used to hold the bands' gear. Merch was in another back room, one of the few times I've seen merch somewhere well-lit where you don't have to shout to be heard. The stage itself was tiny, just barely big enough to hold a band and their stuff, and hardly raised or separated from the floor - just like at Krug's Place, it's a wonder no one crashed into the band when things got wild.

Wretched was on when we got there. There were three or four opening acts, but I couldn't escape the house till my daughter had gone to bed, so we missed them. Wretched sounded very muddy and raw - but I suppose that's how underground death metal is supposed to sound. They also had a bit of a black metal sound. I managed to pick out a few headbangable guitar parts and some basslines that moved along with a nice rolling rhythm, but overall found them not that impressive. The singer's pants kept slipping down, and at one point he stepped down from the tiny stage onto the floor, but spent most of that time turned around facing the stage, which I thought was a little odd.

The next act was Cattle Decapitation, who, as I said before, I was curious to see after hearing about their gory new video. I'd heard the band name before, maybe even heard a song or two, but this was the first time I really paid attention to them, because I realized they weren't just using shocking imagery just for shock value, but because they were using their extreme music and visuals to promote (somewhat) extreme progressive views. I hoped I would like them, but that was not to be. There were snippets of strong riffs or bass rhythms in their music and some cool grind and black-metal-like segments, but mostly it just sounded like noise, too much stuff going on at once that wasn't connected. The singer had a very active stage presence, though, so they were decently interesting to see live, but I probably wouldn't want to listen to a recording. There was a lot of drama from the singer about his mic volume - up, down, up.. and a mic that apparently smelled bad.

Luckily, the night wasn't a complete waste of time because Six Feet Under was amazing. Most of my previous knowledge of them consisted of one song, which with its very rhythmic riffs sounded great for headbanging. I hoped this song wasn't an anomaly, and I wasn't disappointed - all their songs (except one suspected to be a Cannibal Corpse cover) had that same slowish and very rhythmic sound. Most songs had some variety in them, though - slower instrumental bridges between intense verses or choruses, some screamed vocals thrown in - with just a few less interesting songs that seemed to have the same riffs and rhythms all the way through. The best song was early in the set, one that sounded like a cover of an old school metal band, maybe Motorhead. I think they also played at least one Cannibal Corpse cover (honestly, not very familiar with the discography of either band), which sounded a lot more chaotic than their usual sound.

It was totally worth it just to get to headbang to Six Feet Under for an hour, and also to see that the people in Cattle Decapitation really are just ordinary dudes (the singer looks like someone's dad).

Next show: Lamb of God, In Flames, Hatebreed, Sylosis, Nov. 17

Dethklok, All That Remains, Machine Head, Black Dahlia Murder - 11/2/2012 at the Fillmore, Silver Spring, MD

The reviews for November will probably be a little abbreviated, because NaNoWriMo has taken over my usual method of note-taking at concerts (texting to email) and the back-up method I discovered (my phone's notepad) is pretty limited. But at least I can give you a general idea.

Anyway, I was looking forward to most of this line-up - except All That Remains. They didn't impress me last year, and the new song they've been playing on the radio seemed wimpy to me. The other bands all seemed like they'd put on a good show, though. Black Dahlia Murder's music is fast and intense, while Dethklok has some of the epic melodic feel of European metal (never mind the hilarious characters). I thought the highlight would be Machine Head, though. They were great when I saw them earlier this year, and I really respect Rob Flynn's songwriting and guitar skills. (On a halfway related note, Suicide Silence opened for them then, and I'm really glad I had a chance to see them, cause they were great as well.)

We were very lucky that this show wasn't earlier, because the first couple of shows on the tour had been canceled due to Hurricane Sandy. So this was actually the first show of the tour.

We got to the venue just as Black Dahlia Murder was starting. (It was exactly 6:30, the time the show was supposed to start, and the rest of the night continued just as precisely, with all the bands going on within ten minutes of their scheduled times.) As expected, they were loud and fast, an intense barrage of sound. They play something like a fusion of fast thrashy riffs with vocals that go from low death growl to black metal shriek in the space of one word - great energetic music. The singer looked like he was having a great time, grinning and jumping about, and the crowd did too - there were only a few small pits, but during several songs pretty much everyone in the front half of the floor started jumping up and down. I had too much stuff with me to jump, but I headbanged pretty happily, especially when they played my favorite song, "Stirring the Seas of Salted Blood." S. said he hoped the singer wouldn't take off his shirt - but he did just before the last song.

Machine Head played the third slot, which came as a little of a surprise and disappointment. I thought they were much more qualified for the second slot than ATR, and I wanted to hear more of their music. Since they were amazing last time I saw them, I had my standards set pretty high, and was disappointed at first - they sounded muddy and the vocals were too low, barely audible at times. (Also, the floor, which had seemed pretty full for BDM, had filled up even more, and Rob Flynn being a little short, I couldn't see him much of the time.) They hit their stride in their third song, however - "Aesthetics of Hate," which they dedicated to the late Mitch Lucker of Suicide Silence, and also included a Dimebag Darrell tribute in their visuals. (Right before their set, we were standing by the merch area when a kid in a Suicide Silence t-shirt came up, and one of the merch guys asked if he would let Rob wear his shirt on stage. The kid happily agreed, but apparently Rob didn't have time to put on the shirt, because it was just hanging off the drum kit.) Finally, in this song the guitars began blasting and Rob's vocals sounded stronger, and they killed for the remainder of the set. They played "Locust" a bit faster than they do on the album, making a cool song even better. Their set was soon over, though; it was only five or six songs. I was rather disappointed at the short set, and that we didn't get to hear "Darkness Within," which is my favorite off their newest album.

As a result I felt a little bitter toward All That Remains, but I ended up being pleasantly surprised by them. With the longer set, I was able to hear them play a wider range of songs, and got a better appreciation for their sound. They're also much heavier and intense live than on their recordings - "Down Through the Ages" sounds so much better live than on the radio. During this show, I noticed their guitar work for the first time - I'd never noticed before that their songs had such powerful and melodic guitars. They moved through a range of styles, from anthemic hard rock/classic metal-style songs, to metalcore shouted verses/clean choruses, to the unintelligible death growls at the end of "Some of the People, All of the Time" (is that why it's my favorite ATR song?), and even some grindingly heavy segments. I don't know if this makes me any more likely to listen to their albums (might still find them wimpy) but I was definitely satisfied with their live performance.

After all this, Dethklok was just icing on the cake, but they easily carried the night. They sounded great, with flawless speedy guitar playing and growled vocals delivered by Brendon Small and co. (He had Gene Hoglan on drums; I didn't recognize any other names.) They played several songs off the newest album ("I Ejaculate Fire," "Andromeda," "The Galaxy," "Crush the Industry") as well as classics like "Murmaider" and "Awaken." I wasn't sure what to expect as I'd never seen Dethklok live and wondered how exactly an animated band was going to perform live. Without spoiling too much, they basically showed the music videos for the songs on a large screen, with the stage darkened so that one wouldn't pay too much attention to the live musicians below. There were a few recorded interludes including talking-to's from Facebones and the Dethklok manager, Dr. Rockzo calling for crowd participation, a plot by the Tribunal and some "backstage" antics by the band. The best part, though, had to be the part before the last song of the encore, when all the lights went off except one red one shining straight into the audience and entirely obscuring the stage, and (presumably) Brendon Small proceeded to banter with the audience in the voices of all the band members. (And he talked about Hurricane Sandy, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't entirely scripted - maybe prepared earlier that day, but not a script for the whole tour.) At that moment, it felt almost like the Dethklok band from the show was actually there in the hall (of course, we're probably lucky that they weren't, because that wouldn't have ended well for half or more of the audience). They picked a sort of lackluster song to end on - good, but not as great as the others - but the second to last song (first song of the encore) was "Go Into the Water" and it was absolutely epic.

This was a great show, even with the disappointment about playing order and the first half of Machine Head's performance - Dethklok more than made up for the that, and the rest was pretty enjoyable too.

Next show: was Six Feet Under, Cattle Decapitation and Wretched, 11/3 - the review for this will go up soon.

Epica, Alestorm, Insomnium, System Divide, Blackguard - 10/23/12 at Howard Theatre, Washington, DC

Never mind my previous paeans to Alestorm and Blackguard - the band I was most excited to see at this show was Finnish melodic death metal band Insomnium. I've been smitten with them ever since first hearing the song "Weather the Storm" with its sweeping melodic riffs that make my soul ache with their tragic power, and once I read the poetic lyrics, so full of melancholy determination, my love for them was cemented. I didn't think they were well enough known to leave Finland anytime soon, though, so I was thrilled to hear that they were touring. (Around the same time I found out that another favorite unknown band from Finland, Swallow the Sun, would also be touring, but through a lack of planning I missed their show :( S went though.) And of course, getting to see awesome bands like Blackguard, Alestorm and Epica along with Insomnium only made the deal even better.

Actually, Blackguard wasn't originally on this tour; a band called Destiny Potato was on the original bill, but at the last moment I suppose they canceled, and Blackguard was added instead for six shows before they head off to Europe to support Kamelot. They sounded good, with the same energetic stage presence and sound that they brought to their headline show two weeks ago. There was a technical issue at first, making them sound way too quiet, but that was quickly corrected and their epically fast guitars and vocals blasted into the crowd. In the second or third song, Paul, the vocalist, called for a pit and four or five people (including me) enthusiastically obliged. They played their new song, "In Dreams," and it sounded a bit more polished than last time; the folk melodies were less evident, but the riffs were stronger. Otherwise, they only played songs from Firefight (nothing from their folk metal days), and they didn't play my favorite song from that album, "Sarissas." Still, it was a fun time - a good warm-up for a night of epic metal.

Luckily for such a crowded evening, the show moved along smartly right on schedule, and Blackguard was soon followed by System Divide, a band that's hard to shove into a genre box. I had never heard them before, having been too busy listening to the other four bands the week before. One of the singers introduced them as being "from everywhere" and the other vocalist later explained that they came from Israel, Holland, Belgium, Washington DC and New York. (And when we spoke with her later at the merch table, she said several of the members were new to the band, and they only got together for three days to rehearse before the tour O.o) They had a very strong bass, to the point that its drone and/or thunder sometimes drowned out the vocals, guitars and even drums. The male vocalist provided harsh screaming extreme metal style vocals, while the female vocalist did clean vocals. Her vocals sounded a little weak to start, barely audible, but got better as the set went on. They had some poundingly heavy grindcore moments - this is the first time I've heard grindcore with clean female vocals, so that was something fun to hear - and a distorted industrial-like intro to one song. They were interesting to listen to; I particularly enjoyed the grind segments. It's a great type of music to hear live, although hard to listen to properly at home. There were a few pits for them - I think I got pushed into the circle pit by a certain someone, but there were too few people and so we were full out running around the pit, and I was afraid I was going to slip on the drink-slippery wooden floor.

 Me and Miri Milman, vocalist of System Divide. 

I know, I look truly ugly in this pic, but also truly metal methinks \m/

We hardly had time to chat and take some pics with Miri before Insomnium took the stage. They were quite a change of pace from the other bands - not as loud, hardly moving on the stage other than to headbang (shoegaze melodeath? Actually my favorite moment in the "Weather the Storm" video is when they all headbang together), and with a much calmer vibe (no moshing). They sounded good, their beautiful melodies and soul-filling riffs moving everyone on the floor, but I kept waiting for them to play "Weather the Storm" and was ultimately disappointed. Perhaps to my detriment, I possibly worship this one song too much and don't pay enough attention to their other songs. They also only played five songs, which seemed surprisingly few, less than System Divide. Still, I was satisfied to have seen them, and to meet their vocalist and tell him how much I love that song. (I talked to him while waiting for Epica's encore, and trolled him a bit, asking if they would come back some other time and play "Weather the Storm" :P He commented on my Swallow the Sun shirt, saying that they are great friends with "those guys" :) )

Then the pace picked up again as pirate metal band Alestorm took the stage. Their songs are full of salty dancing or drinking melodies with piratey lyrics, and they're my favorite band to mosh to, thanks to the jig-filled folk pits. The singer looked pretty rough as he wandered around the stage before set, but he seemed to rally - he looked much more energetic once they started, and his voice and keyboard sounded great. They played some songs they don't usually play live, like "Leviathan" and "Death Throes of the Terror Squid" (the vocalist said they were no longer a pirate metal band, but a "squid metal band"). I particularly enjoyed the "Terror Squid" due to its black metal sound - I was right in front of the stage for that segment, and the fast rumbling guitars were shaking the floor. There was a large TV screen on either side of the stage, which I thought just showed the band playing, but S reported that during "Leviathan," they also showed shots from a Pirates of the Caribbean fan video, and during "Terror Squid" I spotted segments of the official video for that song, which does feature the band playing on a snowy mountain in true black metal style. In the vein of less played songs, they also played "Pirate Song," which I didn't think was a good choice - the melody isn't that catchy and the riffs aren't very inspiring. I'd rather they had played "You are a Pirate" or "Wolves of the Sea." They did play their classic "Captain Morgan's Revenge," which was great since they didn't play it last time we saw them, and we had twenty or more people with their arms over each other's shoulders doing a jig - I was in the center cause I started it. Overall though, I was a little disappointed in the experience, because there was less dancing and arms-over-shoulders-headbanging than at previous Alestorm shows, and more of just a brutal mosh pit. It was still fun, though.

Oh that's why he was feeling better.

I could probably have gone home after Alestorm and been happy (and exhausted), but since we were already there and an amazing band just happened to be coming up next, we stuck around. I do like Epica, but for whatever reason I can't seem to get into them as much as I should - perhaps it's just that I'm not often in the mood for gothic/symphonic metal these days. They do (and did) put on a great show, though. They were loud and heavy, and Simone's vocals were clear and lovely. I thought they'd play a lot of songs from their new album, but there were actually only a few - still, they only played one song that I know really well ("Unleashed"). There were a couple pits toward end of the set, but I was way too tired to take part. Other people seemed tired too - the pits were small and short, and the crowd thinned considerably before the encore. Once again, they showed snippets of music videos on the TV screens - official videos for "Unleashed" and a couple other songs, and a least one fan video. I had feminist thoughts in mind and noticed that Simone was very conservatively dressed for a gothic female vocalist, and wasn't sure what to make of that. In spite of being tired, I did enjoy their set - they sounded good, and their songs are so epic that even though my head was starting to hurt, I was headbanging right up until the end.

 Epica. Hey look, Mark has a wind machine.

This was a solid show, with the great performances that I expected from the four bands that I knew, and a nice surprise in System Divide. It was an eclectic mix of bands, but I for one didn't mind as I liked most of them. I thought it was nice to have some variety, and also a chance to rest from the more energy-requiring bands.

Photos by Steve Wass

Next show: Probably Dethklok with All That Remains, Machine Head, Black Dahlia Murder, Nov. 2 - although I may go to a show next week with a friend, we shall see.

PS. This was my first visit to the Howard Theatre, and it seemed like a super swanky place to have a metal show - high ceilings and marble in the foyer, impeccably dressed hosts/hostesses (I think I gave a weird look to two hostesses who greeted us as we went into the bar area, because I'm not used to people welcoming me to a metal show, and I hope they didn't get a poor impression of the metal scene from other surprised people like me), tables and sit-down food service near the bar, posh bathrooms, a WATER FOUNTAIN (every venue should have one of those). The only poor thing about it was the location - near Howard University, so a horrible trek by metro or an infuriating drive through DC to very limited parking. Still, I would go there again. Just for the water fountain.

Blackguard, Not-Liable - 10/10/12 at Empire, Springfield, VA

Blackguard hasn't been around much this year (whereas last year we saw them 4 or 5 times), so I was pretty excited to find out they were doing a headlining show. Only downside is that crowd turnout tends not to be so great for their headline shows, but that didn't stop the band from putting on a great show.

Blackguard vocalist Paul Ablaze. Awesome energy

At the last minute, local opener Not-Liable was announced. They were pretty energetic and catchy, with fast, heavy songs, and surprisingly loud for a three person band. Most of their songs had a very punk rock sound, with racing guitars and shouted vocals. They did have some slow and heavy metal interludes, and their last song featured some more complicated guitar work. They were interesting to listen to, though punk rock isn't my favorite style of music (I like riffs and guitar solos). The frontman (vocalist/guitarist) had a very interesting outfit, with shiny shorts, a scarf hanging from his belt, and hat.

After Not-Liable's set, Blackguard came out to hang out at the merch table and bar, possibly waiting to see if more people would turn up (it was still early, maybe around 9pm). Around 9:20 they decided to get things rolling and got on stage. They sounded amazing, full of energy and with a great dynamic, probably the best I've ever heard them. They definitely gave it their all even for a crowd of about 20 people. They started with some songs from Firefight ("The Path" and "Firefight") and then gave us a few of their old folk metal songs from Profugus Mortis ("Cinder," "The Sword" and "Allegiance") before going back to songs from Firefight. Paul invited the guitarist from local band Cab Ride Home, who once filled in for Paul when he had to mysteriously disappear from a show, on stage to sing some vocals for "Allegiance." At this show, I finally started to see connections between the band's older and newer work. The songs from Firefight are more melodic in the vein of Amon Amarth rather than folk metal, but the fierce vocals and epic energy are the same. At the very end of the set, after numerous disclaimers that they might completely bomb it, they played a brand new song, "In Dreams," which they had apparently composed that very same day. It sounded good - it started off with a folk melody, and then transformed into the thunderingly heavy sound they used on Firefight. If that was their draft, the final version is sure to be amazing. The set seemed short - they played for about an hour, but there was a lot of talk too - but then again they were just playing for 20 people after all. S. mentioned that they may not be used to playing so long since they don't usually headline. I thought perhaps their new guitarist didn't know enough songs yet.

I spent the whole set jumping around and headbanging like mad; I figured if the band is giving their all for this tiny crowd, then the crowd had damn better give the energy right back. S, J and I shoved each other around a bit but couldn't really get a pit started. For one song, Paul called for a "passive aggressive wall of death" where everyone would calmly walk back to their places, and threatened to stop the show if there was any violence. (They didn't stop playing when I started shoving S and J though XD) Most of the crowd seemed content to lean on the rail and headbang.

Hanging out at the merch table before the show, we met their new guitarist, Louis Jacques. He mentioned that he comes from a power metal background, and said that the next Blackguard album will be like a mix of Profugus Mortis and Firefight, incorporating some of their earlier folk metal sound, and also with more orchestration. During the set, he sounded good, but I think he needs to work on his stage presence - to smile and interact more with the audience, like the other band members did. But then again, he may have had to focus more on playing since he'd be less familiar with the songs.

 Blackguard guitarists Terry Roadcase and Louis Jacques

Blackguard is doing a few more headline shows and then 6 dates with Epica, and then they head to Europe to support Kamelot! I'm so excited for them. I've been following this band for a while and to see them go across the pond to tour with such a top level band makes me very happy for them. These guys work their butts off, touring like mad, and it's great to see it paying off. I hope all goes well and they have a great time in Europe.

And before then I get to see them one more time, because our next show is...
Epica, Alestorm, INSOMNIUM, System Divide, Blackguard on 10/23

(That is, unless a miracle happens and I do get to see my two favorite local bands A Sound of Thunder and My Enemy Complete on Monday at 98Rock's Noise in the Basement...)

Photos by Steve Wass