I honestly didn’t care what show I went to, I just needed a show. It has been two weeks since I’ve been at a show. Needless to say, I have been going through withdrawals. My apartment has never been cleaner, I have never been so caught up on laundry, and I’ve actually been getting eight hours of sleep every night.
I asked a couple of random people at the show why they were there. They all pretty much had the same answer that I did…. they just needed a show. There was nothing else going on and, hell, any show is better than no show. That’s what I love. I love the fact that I am a part of something like this. These kids could have easily stayed at home, getting drunk, causing trouble, but instead they went to this random local metal festival and had a great time.
It wasn’t a huge show, it wasn’t a huge crowd but it was perfect. The people there cared about the bands playing on stage. They supported all of the bands whether they enjoyed the music or not. There were no biases even if you were friends with that one guitarist in that second band. It didn’t matter, you enjoyed each of the bands equally and clapped when they were done and moshed when there was a chance.
There were eleven bands total last night. I was running late but did catch most of them so it would be impossible for me to write about everything that happened. But here were some of the highlights of the day for me:
- Descripti()ns was the first band that really caught my ear. Earlier in the night, there had been some huge issues with feedback coming through the monitors. Descriptions was the first band to stop and take the time to figure out where the issue is. Although it was not solved 100% and there was still some feedback throughout their set, the fact that they took the time to try and figure it out really showed a level of professionalism that was refreshing.
- Portraits of War was amazing like always. I have seen these guys a couple of times now and they never fail to impress. Their music is clean and they are super fun to watch live. Their music, like the rest of the bands, is heavy and brutal but the way these guys pull it off is unlike many of the other bands. They allow you to see the true musicianship behind music like this and prove that metal is more than just screaming and blast beats.
- American Zero really got the crowd going. The members of this band refused to stay on the stage and ran throughout the venue. This was great because it really got the crowd amped and moving. That being said, there is a downfall to this whole idea of running around the venue. I heard from a trusted source that the guitarist of American Zero ran into a merch table, almost knocked over a computer and broke some girls phone just because he was being rambunctious. Now again, I think it’s awesome when bands join the crowd and it truly does the get the crowd moving but you must be able to do it safely. I truly loved their music but lost a bit of respect for these guys after hearing about what happened towards the back of the venue. Be full of energy and get the crowd involved but make sure you are aware of your surroundings.
- Immoralis was the headliner of the night but they didn’t gloat about it. I loved that. Although it was technically “their show”, they made sure that none of the bands got cocky about it including themselves. They didn’t play a longer set, they played the 30-45 minutes that all of the other bands got. They seemed genuinely appreciative of not only the crowd, but also all of the other bands that had played yesterday. I saw these guys a few years ago and they completely blew me away. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to keep up with them because I’m always going to other, non-local, shows but I’m glad to see they are still just as amazing as they were a few years ago.
- Milestone completely stole the show in my mind. I had never heard of these guys before but now they are definitely on my radar. They came onto that stage and had the whole audience in the palm of their hands. You could see everyone’s jaw drop and could hear people telling their friends how amazing these guys were. Their drummer has too much talent to be in a local bands like this to be honest. Honestly, I’m sure it will just be a matter of time before these guys completely blow up and become one of those “used to be local” bands. That being said, make sure you check them out. Seriously.
I needed a show…. any show… I just needed a live concert. I got that and more last night. Most of the bands completely blew me away and it was great to run into so many familiar faces after the holiday hibernation.
There may not be that many big bands touring up here right now but go to a local show… It’s just as good, if not better.
What a great start to 2016.
Line Up:
Immoralis
Portraits Of War
American Zero
Truth Inside The Silence
Hailing Andromeda
Milestone
Descripti()ns
Karma Sutra
Vitamin Death
The Atlantis Theorem
Skies Went Red
Venue: Skyway Theatre (Studio B)
Sausage Fest Meter- 13 out of 10
Average Age of the Crowd- 19
Crowd Surfers- 0
Stage Divers- 0
Broken Bones- None
Drunkards Taken Out By Security- None
Shout-Outs- Shout out to the random guy that came up to me to give me a high five just because he likes my blog.
Spotted in the Crowd- Members of Royal’z, Buried Above Ground, By The Thousands and so many other local bands
Overall Score- 7.5 out of 10
Show on Deck- Wrestlepalooza ft. Masked Intruder
January 5, 2016 at 1:36 am
Thank you for the review -Jymi from American zero here. We go crazy as fuck during our shows and the incident of our guitarist doing that was true and unnecessary. Klay felt really bad afterwards and also is paying for her phone and we have apologized to anyone who was affected negatively. He has a great heart but got far to excited and honestly feels bad about his actions. That being said. The show was a blast and we promise in our future shows. The show will stay on stage or in the crowd, not behind the crowd. :). Thank you for coming and we hope we have another chance to show you a good time with out and mishaps.
January 5, 2016 at 1:37 am
Also please don’t let one member of our band skew your opinion of the rest of us.
January 5, 2016 at 1:39 am
Hey Jymi. I truly appreciate your comments. I don’t want you to think I completely hated you guys, because I didn’t. I just write about what I see and hear from the crowd. I truly enjoyed your music and the amount of energy you guys put out there. It reminded me a lot of seeing Being As An Ocean live. I do hope to see you again!!! Let me know when you’re next show in the Cities is and I’ll do another write up 🙂 Keep on keeping on… you guys are truly talented!
January 5, 2016 at 1:47 am
Thank you for understanding. I promise you we aren’t just a bunch of assholes. Klay is actually probably the nicest guy in the band and he is super embarrassed and feels so shitty about what happened. We will be back. 🙂
January 5, 2016 at 1:48 am
Even with the negative which are obviously our own fault I still appreciate the review.
January 5, 2016 at 1:51 am
Don’t think of it as a negative! Just constructive criticism! Like I said, I loved the amount of energy you guys had and, out of eleven bands, you guys did stick out as one of the better bands. Seriously, no hard feelings and please don’t hold it against me. I just felt it was a good example of letting things get out of hand but with the best of intentions. Again, no hard feelings and can’t wait to see you guys again!