By Matt Albers

            It’s almost always refreshing to see one of your favorite local concert venues take a calculated risk and book a show you wouldn’t expect. Such a show was the St. Louis date of the Saints and Sinners Tour at The Pageant in early November 2011. The lineup featured Raleigh, NC contemporary progressive technical metal heavyweights Between The Buried And Me with support from Animals As Leaders and Tesseract. Initially announced early in the summer, it was surprising to see The Pageant book the show, even though it was clear they anticipated a smaller crowd for their up to 2300 person capacity by announcing that the balcony would be closed for the show, leaving only the lower portion open for a one thousand person maximum capacity.

Though not selling out, the show sold relatively well with most of the concert goers arriving in time for the first opening act. The audience consisted of an unsurprisingly diverse crowd of fans from all walks of life and communities, ranging from hardcore scene kids, open-minded metalheads, stoners, college-aged frat boy “bros,” and even a few hipsters appreciative of these louder bands’ larger-than-life and spacey musical atmospheres and intricate musicianship.

As said before, it was interesting to see that The Pageant would book this show at all, leading one to conclude that perhaps Between The Buried And Me (from now on to be referred to as BTBAM) must have put on a successful performance with a strong crowd response the previous summer at The Pageant on The Cool Tour with As I Lay Dying, Underoath, The Acacia Strain, blessthefall, Cancer Bats and Architects that made the venue’s staff consider booking this show in the first place. Not only is this surprising, but also reassuring to the both the St. Louis fan base of BTBAM as well as the local metal community, as the last time the band stopped in town on a headlining tour in fall 2009 (with opening acts Veil of Maya and Animals As Leaders once again), the show was booked on the side stage at Pop’s.

Speaking of Pop’s, it is interesting, if not crucial, to understand that on the same night that this show was being held at The Pageant, a very similar show was also going on at Pop’s with a lineup consisting of Mastodon, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Red Fang. One would think that these two shows would have been booked at opposite venues, given each of the headlining acts’ respective popularities. Furthermore, it would seem that the bands on both of these bills would have similar appeals and fan demographics, which seemed to split up fans to the strict die-hards attending the preferred show. Ultimately though, the BTBAM show was booked in St. Louis months before the Mastodon show, leading to the final result.

So, although the crowd for the BTBAM show probably would have been better suited for a venue like Pop’s and the Mastodon show probably more for The Pageant, at least with the BTBAM show at The Pageant, fans were treated to a much cleaner and inviting environment for their show, while the dirtier, more dilapidated club of Pop’s in the shady location of Sauget, IL was probably much more fitting for a sludgy stoner metal band like Mastodon, especially with their very similar opening act of Red Fang.

Back to the lineup and performances of The Pageant that night, that could not have been more perfectly chosen or complimentary to one another. Tesseract from Reading, UK opened the show quite well with their own strong set showcasing their heavy yet ambient stage presence. Although their latest vocalist, former Sky Eats Airplane front man Elliot Coleman, may not possess the same outstanding vocal range and prowess as his predecessor Daniel Tompkins who left the band only a few months prior in August 2011, Coleman did prove to fill the empty shoes rather well, not only in both clean singing and screaming duties but live performance presence as well. Next up was the always impressive jazz-influenced instrumental progressive djent metal group Animals As Leaders from Washington D.C. who, based on musical talent and song writing skills, may have arguably been the best band on the tour. A screen projector on either side of the stage displaying strange geometric patterns and trippy color effects added to the band’s sound, nature and atmosphere. The eight string guitar playing of the virtuosic pair Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes was nothing short of amazing to watch for both fans and newcomers alike. Having headlined the Fubar venue in St. Louis during summer 2011, both the band and fans agreed that The Pageant was a much nicer venue for the band to perform in.

BTBAM took the stage to perform their headlining set, which was decorated only with a single backdrop and an onstage light show of color-shifting L.E.D. lights, a minimalist compliment to the live presentation of the band’s inspiring yet controlled chaotic music. Opening with “Mirrors” and “Obfuscation” from their last full-length album, 2009’s The Great Misdirect, BTBAM delivered the damn near flawlessly precise musicianship and eclectic stage show any and all would expect from the band. Vocalist and keyboardist Tommy Giles Rogers, constantly belting growls while still maintaining clean vocal abilities, jumped back and forth between the keyboard to the front of the stage, emphatically pumping his fist and screaming to the crowd, displaying a perfect combination of death metal and hardcore music stage mannerisms. The band’s set consisted of songs from their latest release, their 2011 EP and Metal Blade Records debut The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues, as well as 2007’s Colors (save the epic “Prequel to the Sequel”), and most notably, an eight song medley of select band and fan favorite tracks from their first three albums.

Seeing such incredibly talented and unique metal bands together on the same stage in the same night was unquestionably a rare and one of a kind experience. Even rarer was that fans, whether sitting at tables or moshing in the pit, were able to experience it at such a well-designed and well-kept venue as The Pageant. It is likely that even the most anal nitpickers in the audience had difficulty not feeling that the price of admission was money well spent for a truly fulfilling concert.

By Matt Albers

            At times, the Family Arena in St. Charles, MO may seem like a third wheel of a concert venue for the St. Louis area. Its size, capacity and location make it appear as if it may be unnecessary among its competitors like Scottrade Center and The Pageant, or even Pop’s during the spring and summer seasons when it sometimes books concerts outdoors. However, without the Family Arena, St. Louis music fans may not get the opportunity to see some traveling acts, especially in the metal and hard rock crowd.

With bands fluctuating in popularity all the time, the Family Arena can be the perfect size for shows that may be too big for Pop’s or The Pageant but too small for Scottrade Center. Factor in the seemingly open-mindedness of those in charge of booking at the arena and you begin to realize how important it is as bands and tours now have the reason and opportunity to stop in the St. Louis area. Bands including Godsmack, Avenged Sevenfold, Five Finger Death Punch, Hollywood Undead and even Tool have all either headlined or co-headlined a date of a tour at the Family Arena, and some acts, like Judas Priest, have now even found a home there and return to the smaller-sized arena stage just across the Missouri River.

After playing the Family Arena in summer 2009 with Whitesnake, Judas Priest returned to the venue in November 2011 as part of their Epitaph Tour, claimed to be their “farewell tour,” with opening acts Black Label Society and Thin Lizzy. Judas Priest had further explained that this tour would actually not mark the band’s final tour before a break up, but more of a final, long-running area tour that would leave the band to play strictly festivals and other special occasions. Furthermore, the band has also admitted that they have new material written and plan on recording and releasing a new album.

Priest’s almost three hour set at the Family Arena would indeed prove to be fulfilling for all fans young and old, but showcase maybe a little more age than just experience, although at first, the two opening acts for this tour may have sounded a bit out of place. After the show however, it was clear that Black Label Society and Thin Lizzy were the perfect choices as openers to the legendary and iconic Judas Priest. Even with the added members to Thin Lizzy’s lineup to compensate for the lack of original, founding or long-lasting members, their live sound and stage presence demanded the crowd’s attention and appreciation, if not enthusiasm, at least until their predictable closing song of “The Boys Are Back in Town” hooked nearly every audience member.

Next was Black Label Society, whose sound probably stood out as the most different by comparison to the other two acts, but their obvious influence by the sound that band like both Judas Priest and Thin Lizzy have produced still tied them closely to the vibe of the bill and the demographic of most Judas Priest fans. Their set consisted of some of their best songs and most famous songs, including “Suicide Messiah,” “Concrete Jungle,” and “Fire It Up,” which not only began with stage hands throwing many large Black Label Society beach balls into the crowd, but also lead into Zakk Wylde’s obligatory guitar solo which, while fun, impressive and downright essential for any set featuring Zakk Wylde, seemed to drag out and sounded more repetitive than impressive. Fortunately, the showmanship and crowd control from Wylde and company made their set enjoyable and worthy of appreciation.

Finally, with a house of fans eagerly anticipating the headliner, Judas Priest took the stage with as much full force as a band nearly forty years old could which, as it turns out, can be surprisingly a lot. Even with their latest lineup addition Richard Faulkner, who replaced guitarist K. K. Downing upon his departure in April 2011, Judas Priest delivered a fulfilling show to their fans, complete with all the elements one would come to expect from the band. An extravagant stage show consisting of various pyrotechnical effects and diverse stage props used throughout the night well-accented the performance with an almost three-hour set spanning their entire career and playing songs from each of their studio albums, from 1974’s Rocka Rolla all the way to 2008’s Nostradamus, which was further commemorated by their onstage projector which, when not displaying image affects, displayed the cover art for the respective albums of what each song was being played.

Although the entire experience of this all-encompasing live show was impossible not to enjoy, certain aspects of their performance were negative, especially to any nitpickers that may have been in the crowd. While much of Priest’s live music and performances were spot-on, some recurring factors may have become annoying to fans, like drummer Scott Travis constantly throwing his drumsticks up in the air, only to fail to catch them half the time. Throughout the night, vocalist Rob Halford would walk off stage to make a slight wardrobe change. When he would do this, he would still perform his vocal duties offstage, but constantly not seeing him on stage while still hearing his voice ended up being rather confusing to the audience. Most disappointing was probably when, instead of singing, Halford turned the microphone on the stand to face the audience, having them provide all the vocals for “Breaking the Law” while he and the rest of the band jammed and mugged to the audience. Though a clever demand of crowd participation, this was an obvious clue that at least Halford, if not all of Priest, were tired of performing certain songs that had become a staple of their career. In their defense, forty years of the same thing would most likely yield that result even to the best of us.

Above all the nitpicking, Judas Priest’s Epitaph Tour at the St. Charles Family Arena was still a strong success. The opening acts strongly complimented the headliner and even without K. K. Downing, Priest clearly put a lot of effort all-around in delivering a unique and high-quality show experience for their fans, young and old. This tour may have been branded as a “farewell” tour, but with their obvious strong integrity and dedication to their music and their fans, not to mention talks of a new album in the works, it is evident that the mighty Priest still has a good deal of fight left in them, and any metal fan or musician worth their weight in studded leather would give the band their just credit as well as do themselves a favor and see this iconic and important band live.

By Matt Albers

            Unfortunately, it’s typical for a metal tour to completely skip over the area of St. Louis, MO in modern days. When a tour doesn’t skip us over, it’s also not uncommon for certain bands to play an off-date of the tour in St. Louis. Such was the case in early October 2011, when DevilDriver and Skeletonwitch played at Pop’s with local openers Parallel 33 and Age Of Awakening.

Announced during summer 2011, the date of this show at Pop’s, on October 5, was the day after the final date of the tour where both DevilDriver and Skeletonwitch (along with Chthonic) opened for Arch Enemy’s tour in support of their latest album, Khaos Legions, which ended at The House of Blues in Chicago, IL the night before (Tuesday, October 4). It’s not surprising that Arch Enemy skipped St. Louis on this fall tour, as the tour hit major North American cities where Arch Enemy would be sure to sell out. However, the last time the Swedish metalers played our town in 2007 (co-headlining with Machine Head on the “Black Tyrants Tour,” with support from Throwdown and Sanctity) yielded a strong, but not sell-out worthy crowd.

While Arch Enemy’s St. Louis fan base may be small by comparison to other US cities, DevilDriver’s on the other hand has maintained rather strong, though still small (perhaps the same general amount as St. Louis Arch Enemy fans). The Southern California groove metal band has maintained a positive relationship with the Pop’s venue for years, and clearly makes the time to play at the venue whenever they can. Skeletonwitch themselves, through constant touring and promotion, has also made a substantial name for themselves in St. Louis, making the pairing of these two heavy-hitters at Pop’s a metal match made in heaven.

The evening’s local talent started with Age Of Awakening and continued with Parallel 33 until Skeletonwitch took the stage. Both bands’ respective sounds and performances fit like a perfect puzzle piece to the heaviness, brutality and groove of the two national acts. Supporting their latest album Forever The Abomination, Skeletonwitch’s precise musicianship, soaring shreds, and fun-loving attitude projecting their over-the-top, traditional evil blackened metal persona captured the hearts and minds of the unfortunately small (500 plus) crowd of metalheads, all of which seemed to collectively be on the same page of excitement and enthusiasm.

DevilDriver opened their set with two songs from their 2005 sophomore album The Fury Of Our Maker’s Hand, “End Of The Line” which lead right into “Hold Back The Day.” Other songs, which spanned their now five-album long career, included fan favorites such as “I Could Care Less,” “Nothing’s Wrong?” “Grinfucked,” “Not All Who Wonder Are Lost,” “Clouds Over California,” “Head On To Heartache (Let Them Rot)” and as well as their usual closing song “Meet the Wretched” in which lead singer Dez Fafara always demands a circle pit (with participants practicing proper etiquette, of course). This was however, only their second to last song and not ultimate set closer, which instead was “Before The Hangman’s Noose,” one of a few unpredicted song choices, including “Impending Disaster,” “Pray For Villains” and “Fate Stepped In.” Surprisingly, DevilDriver played only two songs off of their latest album Beast, released in February 2011, those songs being the first single “Dead to Rights” and “You Make Me Sick.”

Fans could not have asked for more from DevilDriver’s live sound, as guitarists Mike Spreitzer and Jeff Kendrick’s ability to almost flawlessly perform their impressive and catchy guitar solos practically identically to the album recordings, while also providing backing vocals and showcasing high-energy stage presence. The same high-fidelity to their recordings during their live show could also be said of drummer John Boecklin. Vocalist Dez Fafara made sure to take time during song breaks to perform his generous front man duties of requesting more security guards for crowdsurfers, acknowledging the presence of two young children (no more than seven years old each) on their parents’ shoulders, and giving credit to the local opening acts.

While the band’s live set was thorough and unsurprisingly fun, their stage presence, especially during song breaks, seemed rather lethargic or less-enthusiastic than their past shows in St. Louis, including just a few months earlier at Pop’s in May 2011, where DevilDriver opened for Danzig along with 2Cents. Fans expecting an encore, which would most likely include their song “The Mountain,” surprisingly did not receive one at all. If the assumption of a lack of enthusiasm from DevilDriver was true, at least one of a handful of factors could be involved, including the end of a long touring cycle with Arch Enemy, an unfortunately small and undersold crowd, or the band’s next tour, where they would be traveling to Europe for the remaining months of 2011 to support Machine Head with other opening bands Bring Me The Horizon and Darkest Hour.

Or, perhaps it had to do with Dez Fafara now having the upcoming pressures of the reunion of his original band Coal Chamber, who are confirmed for Australian festival dates in 2012. Fafara allegedly told concert-goers outside Pop’s after the show that his touring plans for 2012 would be nothing to miss. Could he have been referring to DevilDriver or Coal Chamber? Or perhaps both? We will have to wait and see.

Matt Albers

            On a Sunday night in early October 2011, one of St. Louis’ smallest and most intimate venues was graced with the rare opportunity of 90s musical nostalgia when Page Hamilton’s now long-running hard alternative rock outfit Helmet played The Firebird. The sparse but enthusiastic crowd of dedicated fans witnessed a live performance that showcased a combination of musical talent and originality coupled with unfortunate rambling and awkwardness.

It must have been challenging to find local acts to open for a band as legendary and iconic among an almost cult-like fan base as Helmet. First to take the stage was Deep Thump, a three-piece whose sound seemed to combine alternative and funk with the stoner metal stylings of bands like Clutch or Mastodon. Next was Echo Bravo, who’s crunchy, post-hardcore style mirrored Helmet’s own sound to a certain point. The final local opening act was LucaBrasi, an alternative rock band with a sound that was familiar but fortunately not generic or repetitive. Unfortunately, their overall unoriginal sound combined with their overconfident stage presence tended to make them rather forgettable.

Still supporting their latest release, 2010’s Seeing Eye Dog, Helmet’s set consisted of old favorites throughout the night, including “Milquetoast,” “Exactly What You Wanted,” and opening with “Like I Care.” Of course, some of their biggest songs like “Tic,” “Sinatra” and “Unsung” were saved for their obligatory encore. Though his microphone volume was low throughout the night, front man Page Hamilton’s vocals were strong and thorough, but his guitar playing was what was most outstanding. Both his solid riffing and impressive solos were consistently entertaining and fulfilling for all fans among the unfortunately small crowd that evening, generally consisting of now middle-aged fans who had clearly grown up with Helmet’s music playing a substantial role of either their childhood, high school or college years. Hamilton’s guitar playing made any patron question why he hasn’t been so widely honored, recognized or regarded as an important contemporary musician within or outside of his genre over the years.

While Helmet’s performance at The Firebird was strong and fulfilling, and Hamilton’s newest band mates flawlessly supported the sound and live energy of Helmet’s songs, the live show was still flawed at some points, particularly with Hamilton’s stage presence. With the show competing on the same night as a St. Louis Cardinals home game against the Philadelphia Phillies, throughout the night, Hamilton would make references and quips related to the teams that would lead to rants on his opinions on the sports world. He would also go off on other rants on different topics during the few breaks in between songs, including his introduction and credit to his band mates and the old and now irrelevant history of the inspiration to “Sinatra.” The close proximity of fans due to the intimacy of the venue allowed for Hamilton to occasionally be drawn to conversation with fans during their set, including which playful banter and interaction led to him flubbing up some of his lines during “Unsung.” Though this unique interaction may have been cherished by both Hamilton and the given few fans, it took some of the fun out of the show for the rest of the crowd.

Helmet’s performance was noticeably flawed, stemming primarily from Hamilton’s apparently oblivious or almost senile attitude, which in turn may have been stemming from the tolls of old age. While the show was not perfect by any means, it did provide a unique experience to hear solid live performances of Helmet songs. However, the frequent negative points of Hamilton’s stage presence was enough to take most, if not all, concert-goers out of the experience, especially those seeing the band for the first time.

Matt Albers

            In any music genre, supergroups usually tend to be nothing more than a temporary novelty act that will ultimately fade in a given amount of time. An exception to this rule, however, is the southern sludge/stoner metal supergroup Down. Fronted by Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo, Down’s current lineup also features guitarists Pepper Keenan of Corrosion of Conformity and Kirk Weinstein of Crowbar and Kingdom of Sorrow, as well as Jimmy Bower of Eyehategod, Crowbar and Superjoint Ritual on drums. It was announced in June 2011 that Down’s long-time bassist Rex Brown, originally of Pantera, would be leaving the band and replaced by current Crowbar and former Goatwhore bassist Patrick Bruders. Down grace the stage of Pop’s regularly every other year or so, whether or not the band is supporting any new material. With rumor circulating of a new EP in the works for release in late 2011/early 2012, it only made sense for the band to stop at Pop’s once again on their most recent tour.

Opening for Down on this tour were two acts met with understandably poor crowd responses from eager Down fans chomping at the bit for the headlining act. First to take the stage were Louisiana natives Ponykiller, a slightly experimental southern stoner rock jam band signed to Phil Anselmo’s record label Housecore Records. Clearly put on the tour as a favor from Anselmo, Ponykiller’s audience comprised mostly of impatient, unaccepting Down fans, though some positive response from the front of the crowd generated from the positive-minded drinking crowd of music fans. The other opening slot was filled by a classic metal-influenced band from Uppsala, Sweden called In Solitude. Playing a combination of thrashy NWOBHM-styled metal with a touch of 1970’s-styled hard rock, In Solitude’s love and integrity for the fun-spirited forefathers of rock and metal permeated from their unabashedly old-school stage presence, donning spandex, leather jackets and aviator sunglasses. Their crowd response was noticeably more positive than Ponykiller’s, as more people began filling up the venue as the night went on.

Once Down’s set time began, the crowd’s energy truly came together as all enthusiastic fans unrelentingly cheered, chanted and sang along throughout the band’s performance. Whether fans were happy to see the show at all, or were simply unapologetic Down fans completely uninterested in any of the opening acts, it was unmistakable that both Down and their St. Louis-area fans thoroughly enjoyed the night at Pop’s. It seemed obvious from the start that all of Down’s members were honestly pleased not only by the crowd response but also just for the opportunity to perform. From the band’s performance, one could gather that the five musicians were thoroughly enjoying playing their music together. During breaks between songs, front man Phil Anselmo’s positive banter to the crowd showcased not only his satisfaction with the crowd response, but perhaps even a touch of awe from a truly enthusiastic audience showcasing their collective devotion and appreciation for the band.

Down’s set included songs spanning their so far three-album career, including “New Orleans is a Dying Whore,” “Ghosts Along the Mississippi,” and “Lifer” which followed a dedication to the fallen but never forgotten “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott. During the middle of Down’s set, Anselmo made sure to lead the crowd in an appreciative chant in honor of drummer Jimmy Bower’s birthday. Down’s two-song encore consisted of the obligatory song “Stone the Crow” and “Bury Me In Smoke,” in which members of the opening acts joined the band on stage to participate in the jam, bringing a genuinely special feel and climatic end to the show. For both veterans and virgins of a Down concert, their performance at Pop’s on September 17, 2011 proved how a metal supergroup can remain in existence for twenty years and still maintain a die-hard following, against the grain of the novelty status that generally surrounds such an act.

01/18 New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
01/19 Washington, DC – Rock N Roll Hotel
01/20 Boston, MA – Middle East Downstairs
01/21 Montreal, QC – Corona Theatre
01/22 Toronto, ON – The Mod Club
01/24 Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge
01/25 Minneapolis, MN – Station Four
01/27 Denver, CO – Marquis Theatre
01/28 Salt Lake City, UT – The Vertigo
01/30 Seattle, WA – El Corazon
01/31 Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theater
02/01 San Francisco, CA – Bottom of the Hill
02/02 Los Angeles, CA – The Roxy

Hopefully this time their visas will go through!

ULCERATE (Paul Kelland: Bass/vocals, Michael Hoggard: Guitars, William Cleverdon: Guitars, and Jamie Saint Merat: Drums) formed in 2000 and has previously released three full-length albums. The band’s latest album, The Destroyers of All, was released earlier this year and received international critical acclaim for its blend of ambitious songwriting and unorthodox extremity. ULCERATE will enter the studio next fall to begin recording their Relapse debut.

ULCERATE’s Jamie Saint Merat commented on the signing and the band’s upcoming tour dates: “Working with Relapse is a very logical next step for us, and we’re really looking forward to the partnership. Their presence of quality releases regardless of genre, overarching aesthetic and attention to detail is something that we find very natural to align with, as well as being fans of the label’s releases well before the band was even started.

In terms of what’s next for the Ulcerate, 2012 will be a big year for us – in February we’re touring Europe for 23 dates with our good friends in Svart Crown, followed up by MDF X and accompanying side-shows in the US in May, New Zealand shows in December (2011) and January, and a tentative return to Australia mid-year. We’ll also begin work on album number 4…

Gojira are comprised of vocalist/guitarist Joe Duplantier, who has a previous relationship with Roadrunner, having played bass on Cavalera Conspiracy‘s debut Inflikted, along with guitarist Christian Andreu, bassist Jean-Michel Labadie and drummer Mario Duplantier, who is also Joe‘s brother!

“We are so stoked to walk with the legendary Roadrunner,” Joe said about the new partnership. “We discovered Sepultura, Machine Head, Death, Fear Factory and so many other great bands thanks to these guys. Roadrunner has been a great source of inspiration for us as metal fans. It’s an honor to be part of this family today as a band. We feel we’ll get the right support at the right moment in our career. We cannot wait to release our new record and get back on the road.”

The band’s Roadrunner debut will be its fifth album overall. It was 2005′s From Mars to Sirius and 2008′s The Way of All Flesh which established Gojira as a metal force of nature and a key player in the scene. The band will record in New York City, also the label’s headquarters, in November 2011, with a spring 2012 release date being eyed. Joe Duplantier will serve in a co-producer capacity along Josh Wilbur (Lamb of God).

“I’ve been a huge Gojira fan ever since their monumental From Mars to Sirius album and have been actively pursuing them ever since,” Roadrunner Senior VP of A&R Monte Conner said. “I am thrilled to finally be welcoming them to the Roadrunner family. Gojira are one of the best bands in metal today, with a sound and style all their own. Their live shows are unreal, from the level of playing, to the intensity, to the Godzilla like stomp that hits you in the chest.”

Gojira have kept busy in between albums. They recently recorded the four-song Sea Shepherd EP, with all proceeds from the EP benefiting the Sea Shepherd charity. Sea Shepherd is a Washington-state based non-profit marine conservation organization which employs direct action tactics to protect sea life. One of the songs, “Blood And Salt,” recently surfaced on a Metal Hammer UK sampler CD.

Release details on that EP, which is loaded with A-list metal guests like Mastodon‘s Brent Hinds, Lamb Of God’s Randy Blythe, Soulfly’s Max Cavalera and Strapping Young Lad‘s Devin Townsend to name a few, are yet to be determined.

In other Gojira news, the band will perform as part of Australia’s Soundwave Festival, which is slated for February 2012.”

By Matt Albers

            The humble side stage of Pop’s in
Sauget, IL, just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, MO, was blessed
by a rare treat on Tuesday, August 16 when Canadian all-female metal band
Kittie headlined to a small but ecstatic crowd. Fans that night were treated to
a variety of different national acts and local openers and although the evening
made for a very worth-while outing of live music, a few aspects may have stuck
out as negatives to some patrons.

            Announced in early June 2011,
Kittie’s headlining tour featured two other metal bands as their openers, Dirge
Within and Diamond Plate, both from Chicago, IL. The local openers booked for
the St. Louis date at Pop’s were As Earth Shatters and Make Me Break Me, which
is fronted by Anthony Sasser of The Beard Productions, the local agency company
responsible for booking the St. Louis date of this tour. Later in the same
month, it was announced that Tempe, AZ comedic metal “humorcore” band
Psychostick, was added to the bill just under Kittie, as the official CD
release show for their latest album which dropped the day of the concert. This
addition was met with mixed reviews in the days leading up to the date of the
show.

            After Make Me Break Me, the only
non-metal band to play that night, finished up their set, As Earth Shatters
warmed up the crowd further with their heavy aggression and melodic song
structure and vocals. This local band seemed to have worked hard to step up
their game by the night of this show, both in their music as well as their
stage presence. The first of the national touring acts was street-thrash band
Diamond Plate, promoting their first full-length album Generation Why?, released on Earache Records one week earlier.
Diamond Plate’s ridiculous, pounding speed and unrelenting energy generated a
positive response from the still passive crowd, thoroughly entertained by fast
and impressive guitar shreds and raspy, high-pitched power metal-esque vocals.
Dirge Within followed Diamond Plate, also promoting a new release, a new EP
entitled Absolution. Mixing sounds of
metalcore, groove metal and thrash, this band served as a successful buffer between
Diamond Plate’s traditional thrash to Kittie’s eclectic metal sound. After
fixing some faulty microphone problems earlier in their set, Dirge Within’s
strong and demanding stage presence yielded the first substantial mosh pit of
the night.

            Performing at Pop’s for the release
of their latest album, Space Vampires vs.
Zombie Dinosaurs in 3D, Psychostick took the stage in front of the largest
crowd of the night, which almost packed the side stage floor of Pop’s. Since
the 2009 release of their last album Sandwich, Psychostick has generated a very strong
fan base in St. Louis in the past two years. Die-hard fans, donning ridiculous
hats and costumes inspired by those made famous by the band members, crowded
around the stage as Psychostick opened their set with the first track from
their new album, “Welcome to the Show,” a satirical narrative of the act of
being at a concert that included demands from the audience, both cliché and
outrageous. In honor of the CD release, Psychostick’s nearly hour-long set
consisted of many songs from the new album, which were met with great pleasure
from their fans, as well as classic favorites including “Two-Ton Paperweight,”
“The Jagermesiter Love Song,” “ABCDEath,” and of course, closing with their
most famous song “Beer!” It was comforting to see that the members made a point
of taking time out of their set to give thanks to Kittie and their openers as
well as the venue for allowing them to share the stage with them for their CD
release.

            Although the addition of Psychostick
ultimately was a good move for ticket sales, especially with the demographic of
both Kittie fans and Psychostick fans, it was disappointing to see one third to
almost half the crowd leave Pop’s after Psychostick’s set before Kittie even
performed. However, this did not appear to hinder Kittie’s already strong
passion for their music and dedication to their fans, proved by their
sixteen-song long set which lasted over an hour. Their live show was filled
with tight and professional musicianship, making them sound just as good live
as on any of their albums. Supporting their upcoming sixth studio album I’ve Failed You, Kittie framed their set
with songs from said new album, opening with the title track and closing with
their latest single “We Are The Lamb.” Their songs spanned across all of their
albums, including a rare full performance of the title track of their 2000
debut Spit. Their set displayed the
range of their style throughout their career, which has expanded from numetal
roots to its current peak of very thrashy groove metal.

Many songs were played back-to-back in
lengthy blocks, leaving only a few breaks for the band to take a break and
prepare for their next songs. Front woman Morgan Lander displayed a very
reserved persona during these breaks, resulting in lack of onstage banter with
the crowd, which was interesting considering that her precise dual vocals and
guitar work were strong during her performance, and while playing during vocal
breaks she worked the stage, professionally hamming it up to the audience with
aggressive screams demanding a crowd reaction. Lander’s vocals were also
well-supported by drummer and sister Mercedes Lander, providing the only backup
vocals in the band, both harsh screams and clean harmonies, an uncommon feature
among female-fronted metal bands who utilize recorded backup vocals during live
performances, such as In This Moment and Straight Line Stitch. Guitarist Tara
McLeod showcased her talented solos through her confident stage presence while
bassist Ivy Vujic’s playing and working the stage with her ferocious windmill
headbanging was amplified further by the fact that she was not afraid to play
the show on the stage at Pop’s completely barefoot.

During their show, Kittie appeared to
show little to no resentment to the fact that Psychostick had a larger crowd
and fan base, giving them and their touring partners Dirge Within and Diamond
Plate credit for their performances. When Kittie requested their enthralled
crowd to start up a circle pit, Morgan Lander made it a point to make mention
of Psychostick’s successful slow-motion circle pit – a staple while performing
their song “This Is Not a Song, It’s a Sandwich!” – explaining that since there
was already a slo-mo circle pit there should at least be a fast one as well.
The only statement Lander made that may have been an expression of resentment
was a mention of a song Psychostick performed off of their new album called
“Because Boobs.” Lander stated, “We don’t have any songs about boobs, but we don’t
really need to because they’re just there…I think it’s better this way.” Not
only was this a valid point, but this statement may also have simply been a
harmless joke delivered from Lander’s dry, reserved stage presence.

While it is true that the addition of
Psychostick to the bill did help ticket sales and overall turnout to a show
that may have been originally better suited to a venue like Fubar or The
Firebird, all the bands brought something different and unique to the table,
giving the concertgoers a little bit of everything. Fans who stayed for the
entire show could not help but feel pleased and complete about spending a
Tuesday night out with talented musicians and diverse metal. While those who
left without seeing Kittie did themselves a huge disservice, those who did stay
for their set experienced a fulfilling set from a legitimately talented,
genuine and persistent metal band that so rarely visits the St. Louis area.

By Matt Albers

            The annual Summer Slaughter tour
offers fans of the heaviest of the heavy of the world of metal with a mixed bag
of bands across the extreme metal spectrum. This year’s edition of the tour was
no exception, regardless of negative responses to the initial announcement of
the 2011 lineup. Fans of extreme metal may be more divided than of any other
subgenre, even when compared to fans of other annual metal tours like the
Mayhem Festival. With bigger named bands from the deathcore scene typically
headlining Summer Slaughter while occasionally more traditional death metal
bands fill the supporting slots, it’s become almost expected for fans’
dissenting opinions to become combative with one another; while traditional
death metal fans shun progression of extreme genres into new territories such
as hardcore, the typically younger deathcore fans may not appreciate the
subtleties and songwriting of the older extreme metal forms that helped lead
the way for modern extreme metal waves.

            Because of this common behavior of
today’s extreme metal, it’s unsurprising that the crowds that attend tours like
Summer Slaughter are more segregated than the diversity of the tour’s bill.
This trend was evident at the Louisville, KY date of the 2011 Summer Slaughter
tour on Thursday, August 4. The tour stopped in the city at a venue called Expo
Five in what appeared as the shadier, impoverished portion of Louisville, just
inside the city limits. The giant, round-structured venue, resembling a bomb
shelter, is part of a system of warehouses that serve several functions
including a flea market, and is surrounded by some of the dirtiest bars and
strip clubs imaginable (basically, think Sauget, IL on steroids). Even the most
wary fan could not deny that this venue and location was, at least visually,
the ideal location for an extreme metal festival.

            The first band on the tour was
Italy’s Fleshgod Apocalypse, whose visual appearance alone, donning tattered
tuxedos and smeared greasepaint, demanded attention. This unrelentingly brutal
band combines dark, technical death metal guitars and insanely fast and precise
drumming with gothic, symphonic keyboards. The band’s vocals are mostly
generated by the growls from guitarist Tommaso Riccardi, but bassist Paolo
Rossi would occasionally support the epic, symphonic black metal elements with
his signature high range operatic clean singing. The only downside to Fleshgod
Apocalypse’s performance that kept them from completely blowing away the crowd
was the venue’s very poor sound quality; Fleshgod Apocalypse’s vocals and
guitars sounded like nothing but muffled noise and was barely even audible over
the volume of the keyboards, which were far too high. Regardless of these
technical problems, which would continue throughout the night, Fleshgod
Apocalypse persevered with their intense stage presence, complete with crowd
participation demands and practically synchronized windmill headbanging.

            The next band was the surprisingly
eclectic As Blood Runs Black from Los Angeles. Although widely considered just
another deathcore band, As Blood Runs Black exhibited their unique and precise
blends of other metal styles beyond their thick, epic breakdowns, including the
strong songwriting abilities of Swedish-styled melodic death metal, with
soaring guitar shreds that were both technical and fluid. With their latest
effort Instinct – their sophomore
album released almost five years since their 2006 debut Allegiance – and after enduring countless member changes, As Blood
Runs Black showcased their finest and most professional lineup, featuring an
exceptionally strong and aggressive stage presence fronted by vocalist Sonik
Garcia, who effortlessly traveled through the range of extreme vocal styles,
from deep, guttural growls to strong barking shouts to high-pitched screeches.

            Third on the day’s bill was Oceano
from Chicago, IL, led by the bold extreme vocals of African-American front man
Adam Warren. While Oceano’s groove, breakdowns and strong stage presence were
as tight and consistent in Louisville as any other of their performances,
Warren’s attitude toward the crowd seemed more than a little displeased. Its
one thing for a metal front man to demand action in a mosh pit, but it’s
another to encourage actual, uncontrolled violence as he did, with comments of
fans not pummeling each other nearly hard enough. Warren’s negative view toward
the audience was most evident when, after not receiving a strong enough mosh
pit during their last song, called the crowd pussies, threw down the microphone
and walked off stage before the rest of the band finished playing the song.
What’s more, during a sudden break in a song earlier in their set, Warren
spoke, “Whether you’re in the Bible belt or not, your God never fucking existed
anyway.” While you have to give him credit for taking the risk of saying this
to the crowd, many of which could have easily been members of the Christian
hardcore/metal fusion community, this was more than likely a cocky attempt at
shock value more than anything, especially for any band aware that the venue’s
security would protect him from offended fans.

            After the first dose of newer bands
on the bill, the first of two traditional death metal veterans took the stage
at Expo Five, Dying Fetus. This groovy death-grind hybrid band showcased their
confident professional musicianship in a live setting to a rather accepting or
at least pleased crowd consisting of both traditional death metalheads as well
as enthusiastic young mosh maniacs. Focusing mostly on songs from their latest
effort, 2009’s Descend Into Depravity,
Dying Fetus were not able to squeeze in some of their fan favorites to their
understandably short festival set, such as “Pissing in the Mainstream,”
“Justifiable Homicide,” “Epidemic of Hate” or “Killing On Adrenaline.” There’s
really not much else to say about a band like Dying Fetus; they have been
around for twenty years and continue to crank out quality death metal records,
and judging by their set, they continue to genuinely enjoy doing what they do
and are definitely not just going through the motions.

            After Dying Fetus, some fans were
anticipating the supposed “Summer Slaughter half-time show” featuring a set
from instrumental metal band Powerglove, known for covering theme songs from
video games and cartoon shows, ranging from the nostalgic and vintage to the
new and modern. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on one’s taste)
instead of Powerglove, the Louisville date of Summer Slaughter featured a set
from the band Kingdom of Sorrow, which was surprising considering that Kingdom
of Sorrow was a featured act on the Mayhem Festival, which was traveling the
U.S. the same time Summer Slaughter was as well. Kingdom of Sorrow’s presence
seemed to be well-accepted by the Louisville crowd, as both prominent members (Crowbar
and Down guitarist Kirk Windstein and Hatebreed front man Jamey Jasta) are
famous and well-respected personalities in today’s metal world. Although the
band’s style did change the momentum and feel of the show due its vast
differences from vast plethera of extreme metal, a set from Kingdom of Sorrow
was still probably better received than one from Powerglove. Although a fun
embrace of nerd culture through extremely talented – as well as fast – metal
musicianship, Powerglove’s band nature and musical style, amplified by their
oversized, GWAR-esque, video game-influenced costume armor would more than
likely have been shunned if not booed off stage by a more than likely small
crowd paying attention to the satirically humorous break from brutality.

            After the surprise set of Kingdom of
Sorrow came the four 2011 Summer Slaughter “headliners.” The first of these
bands to share the highest billing on the tour was the return of Six Feet
Under, the legendary groove-laden death metal outfit of former Cannibal Corpse
front man Chris Barnes. After parting ways with fellow founding members,
bassist Terry Butler and drummer Greg Gall earlier this year, Barnes recruited
the talents of Chimaira guitarists Rob Arnold and Matt DeVries and reputable
metal drummer Kevin Talley, known for his past work with bands like Dying
Fetus, Misery Index and Daath, as well as Chimaira’s 2005 self-titled album.
Now as a five-piece with Arnold on rhythm guitar and DeVries on bass, Six Feet
Under’s live sound is even more dynamic, amplifying the experience already led
strongly by Barnes’ stage presence, showcasing the solid, confident aggression
of a seasoned veteran who exhibited his genuine enjoyment of being on stage.
Six Feet Under’s ten-song setlist spanned not only the length of their career
but was even framed by songs from Barnes’ tenure with Cannibal Corpse, opening
with “Stripped, Raped and Strangled” and closing with “Hammer Smashed Face.”
The Louisville crowd seemed very enthusiastic about Six Feet Under’s
performance, although their sizable audience mostly consisted of fans of
traditional death metal rather than most members of the deathcore crowd, most
of which seemed to find something else to do during their set.

            After Six Feet Under was easily the
most melodic and possibly out of place band on the bill, Washington D.C.-based
metalcore/melodic death metal band Darkest Hour. Having previously toured on
the Summer Slaughter tour in 2009, Darkest Hour may have anticipated the
smaller, less-than-enthusiastic crowd on the tour from past experiences, but
were not fazed by this or their technical malfunction during the middle of
their set; halfway through their set while vocalist John Henry was introducing
their song “The Sadist Nation,” their oldest song on their set list, Henry’s
microphone began to short out and eventually failed. The band pressed on
throughout a handful of songs with Henry screaming into a failed microphone
while a sound tech constantly jumped on and off the stage to attempt to install
a new microphone. With both the faulty and functioning microphones installed,
either Henry or the sound board op became confused on which mic was which.
Rolling with the punches, Henry quickly decided to use both mics, holding each
mic with one hand and screaming into both, finally bringing vocals back to
their set. Although Henry’s handling of the technical difficulties added
positive professionalism to Darkest Hour’s show, the sound issues appeared to
bring the already unimpressed extreme metal crowd down further, along with the
band playing some of their more melodic and less heavy songs, particularly
“Savor The Kill,” “The World Engulfed In Flames,” and their solemn, almost
power ballad-esque “Love As a Weapon,” all from their latest album The Human Romance released in February
2011.

            At this point of the night, the vast
majority of attendees re-entered the main auditorium of Expo Five for the first
of the two top-billing co-headliners. As the sun began to set, Knoxville, TN
deathcore band Whitechapel treated ecstatic fans to a unique set of thick
breakdowns, surprisingly professionally traditional groove, and front man Phil
Bozeman’s signature extreme vocals, ranging from his deep guttural growls to
strong barks and screeches, all displaying his impeccably fast diction. Bozeman
also pointed out that one of their three guitarists was unable to perform that
evening due to food poisoning after allegedly eating undercooked roast beef
from a submarine sandwich chain that will remain nameless. Whitechapel did not
have to put too much effort into their set in order to impress the already
captivated crowd of fans, but took pride in showcasing their musical abilities
with an instrumental interlude that was calm and atmospheric as well as heavy,
brutal and groovy. It’s interesting to note that only three years earlier,
Whitechapel were one of the lowest bands on the bill of the 2008 Summer
Slaughter tour. By supporting their musical “coming into their element” so
strongly, Whitechapel not only pleased their own fans but those new and
unfamiliar to their music as well.

            Returning to headline the 2011
Summer Slaughter tour was The Black Dahlia Murder, who had also headlined the
tour in 2008. After already establishing and solidifying their place as one of
the most famous and widely-appreciated bands of modern extreme metal, The Black
Dahlia Murder brought every bit of their signature sound and show to Louisville
at Expo Five. Their zany antics and humor during their sound check alone was a
precursor of their high-energy and highly enjoyable stage presence that makes
them stand out within their own subgenre, as well as the metal world in
general. Vocalist Trevor Strnad’s eccentric mannerisms, mimicking a conductor
of an orchestra, was all part of the fun that fans come to expect from the
band, and actually works in their fun-loving favor against their music, which
is not only brutal and extreme, but surprisingly well-orchestrated for a band
that is often labeled as just another deathcore outfit.

            The 2011 Summer Slaughter tour was
indeed an experience all its own, especially at the Expo Five venue in
Louisville, KY. The setting alone made the presence of so many different,
original metal bands both fitting as well as a bit foreign. The only real
downside to the show at this particular venue was the highly noticeable poor
sound quality. While some bands enjoyed the good luck of working sound during
their set, other bands like Fleshgod Apocalypse and Darkest Hour were not so
fortunate, which is considerably disappointing as two of the most uniquely
outstanding bands on the bill. Perhaps with better sound quality, both bands
may have had more enthusiastic and positive crowd responses. Still, the 2011
Summer Slaughter tour successfully delivered the heaviest of the heavy once
again to satisfied fans far and wide, for a break from their lives and a day of
some of the loudest, most obnoxious music on the planet.