The Big Four Tour - a reality, kinda.

Pretty entertaining stuff going on at the Sonisphere festivals over in Europe:

METALLICA's official web site has been updated with the following message:

"You've been posting and chatting about it for months and we're here now to confirm it . . . METALLICA, SLAYER, MEGADETH, and ANTHRAX will all share the same stage for the first time EVER! Look for the four of us at the Sonisphere shows in Warsaw, Poland and Prague, Czech Republic on June 16 and 19, 2010, with a few more of the festival dates still in the works. You can be sure these shows won't be the only ones."

Commented METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich: "Who would have thought that more than 25 years after its inception, thrash metal's 'Big Four' would not only still be around and more popular than ever, but will now play together for the first time...what a mindfuck! Bring it on!"

The announcement on METALLICA's official web site seems to directly contradict MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine's December 8, 2009 online posting in which he said, "Although there have been many rumors about a reunion of the 'Big Four' set to happen in Eastern Europe next summer, the plan never came together for us. We are hopeful that this will happen for real one day and will keep you posted as things develop."

Great show! Black Dahlia Murder + Obscura!

Woohoo! Maybe Lawrence will start getting a ton of metal shows again!

On March 13th at the Bottleneck in Lawrence, The Black Dahlia Murder will be tearing the place up along with Augury, Obscura, and Hatesphere. What an awesome line-up.

Thrash for the holidays!

An awesome thrash-tastic tour is coming to the Riot Room on December 22nd. Exmortus and Vektor are headlining, while local support comes from Vanlade and Koktopus. THRASH!

Killswitch Engage back again...again...

March 14 – The Midland by AMC – Kansas City – MO

Killswitch Engage (lame)
The Devil Wears Prada (lame)
Dark Tranquility (awesome)

Randomest. Lineup. Ever.

2009 Album: #40 - #36

40. Brutal Truth - Evolution Through Revolution



April 14th
Highlights: Get a Therapist...Spare the World, Powder Burn, Global Good Guy

It really sucks that I have to put this album so low, because by all means, it's a pretty good album. It's just that it's very average for someone who is well versed in the grind/death metal world. While Brutal Truth is known for having some of the best grindcore releases around, Evolution Through Revolution just seems to be complacent by going through the numbers in creating an album. One thing I noticed, which kind of seems silly, is that the songs themselves on average are too long for typical grindcore songs. They seem to lose their punch quickly. If they were more towards the death metal side of the spectrum, maybe it'd be for the better, but it's not, and they just sound too strung out.

But the Brutal Truth you know and love is still alive on this CD. Kevin Sharpe still has great vocals that are a staple of the genre, and a couple of gems shine through. It's just too bad that the music to fit the vocals sounds like it's something that's already been done before and done better by either Napalm Death or Pig Destroyer. Again, this isn't a bad album, just extremely underwhelming. Show this CD to new Brutal Truth fans to get them into their older, better releases.

----

39. Xasthur - All Reflections Drained



April 21st
Highlights: Maze Of Oppression, Masquerade Of Incisions

I'm a fan of this type of black metal usually, but something went wrong on this release. A band like Wolves In The Throne Room creates epic soundscapes with their music. Xasthur here just kind of uncomfortably noodles in and out of several different types of this kind of black metal that he usually is a master of creating. The album doesn't create a mindset for the listener other than waiting to hear the big payoff, which ultimately never comes. And the production is the other big tiff. Although Xasthur is known for his bad production, it ultimately holds the music back and keeps me from really getting into the music and losing myself in it. Bad production can't be the only reason that happens: the LLN had notoriously bad production, but all of those releases had heart. Xasthur didn't put his heart into this album.

That's not to say this release is without its merits, though. Maze Of Oppression does a good job (halfway through) of creating a creepy/beautiful atmosphere. But enjoy the vocals while you can. They are extremely absent more than they should be on this album. Masquerade Of Incisions is another good one, assuming you last through the long intro. All Reflections Drained should be viewed as a more experimental side to Xasthur. Although this was a miss, I have no doubt Malefic will get back on track soon.

----

38. Sunn O))) - Monoliths & Dimensions



May 5th
Highlights: Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia), Aghartha

If you weren't a fan of Sunn O))) before, this album probably won't change your position. But if you are a fan of Sunn O))), you'd probably like it. But I'm put off because it is more experimental than it is drone. Yes, it's interesting to see how they incorporate a choir and stringed and horn instruments into their music, and yes it can create a unique and creepy vibe through the music (what Sunn O))) album DOESN'T?), but there is little in the way of heavy drone/doom in this album. Hunting & Gathering (Cydonia) is extremely heavy, and Attila Csihar's vocals are inhuman as ever, but something seems to be lacking. A layer underneath the music that gives it its' foundation, perhaps.

This album will be the dividing point among Sunn O))) fans: fans who like them because of crushing drone, or fans that like them for more experimental noise. The album, in my opinion, would be much more in favor of the experimental fan. Although the drone is there, it's not nearly enough to satisfy the crushing power you'd expect from this crazy group.

----

37. Suffocation - Blood Oath



July 14th
Highlights: Come Hell Or High Priest, Images Of Purgatory, Provoking The Disturbed

Suffocation is a great band, there's no doubt about that. But whereas their self-titled album a few years ago was filled to the brim with brutality and unrelenting death metal, it seems the legendary band has taken a step back on this album unfortunately. They seem to want to add the "brutal" to their "death metal" genre with this release, because it seems like the mid-paced riffing of bands like Devourment have become the focus, rather than the fast paced stuff from their past albums. That's not a huge loss, though. The songs themselves are alright, albeit disappointing in the long run. Some of the guitarists just seem bored throughout the album.

Come Hell Or High Priest, on the other hand, sounds like a staple Suffocation song through and through. The guitars and drums work here to induce as much headbanging as possible. Images Of Purgatory is another neck-breaker with awesome solos. However, it's not enough to bring this album to greatness. It sits comfortably with being "good" and maybe that's alright for Suffocation right now.

----

36. Whole Wheat Bread - Hearts Of Hoodlums



January 20th
Highlights: Bombs Away, Lower Class Man, New Age Southern Baptist Nigga From Da Hood

Hey, it can't be all metal all the time, can it? Whole Wheat Bread created a pretty addicting pop/punk album, although it is paper-thin. Although criticizing a pop/punk album for depth seems stupid, the songs on this album will make you jump, make you smile, but they don't provoke very much else. And, honestly, that's what I expected from this album. Bombs Away is an a dark anthem for street life and songs like Girlfriend Like This remind Whole Wheat Bread's audience just how junior high they can be in their songwriting: "I don't care if it burns when I piss/I ain't never had no girlfriend like this/I don't care what nobody say/If you don't like her, you're probably gay"

The only large fault I can find with this album is that the actual "punk" moments on this record are far and few between. While Lower Class Man and I Can't Think might induce some pretty awesome circle pits, compared to their last album, this is not a punk album. It seems Whole Wheat Bread might be stretching the pop/"punk" title a bit thin, but for now, it works.

Also: there's a song called "New Age Southern Baptist Nigga From Da Hood". "I'm down with Jesus/He is my homeboy/He smoke the reefer/He break the law"

----

35-31 next!

New TRIPTYKON material!

Triptykon, the next project for Celtic Frost/Hellhammer mainman Tom Gabriel Fischer has finally debuted 2 full songs from their upcoming release. And it's fantastic.

http://www.myspace.com/triptykonofficial

2009 Albums: #41

This is it! The moment you've all been waiting for. From the best to the worst and everything in between. I'm starting off with just one album, the worst, so I can have a nice, even number for the rest of the list. Without further aideu...the worst CD I heard this year:



41. Dååth - The Concealers

Century Media/Roadrunner
April 20th
Highlights: Sharpen The Blades, Self-Corruption Manifesto, The Unbinding Truth

To be completely honest, this is the only album I've heard all year that I would out and out call "bad". And I feel a little remorse that it has to be Dååth, a band I was pretty happy to know about a few years ago. Unfortunately, everything that made this band semi-unique and interesting is pretty much down the drain by now. I'll start with the good on this album: Kevin Talley is the drummer! I mean, no, he's not nearly as good here as he was with Dying Fetus or Misery Index and his talent is definitely repressed by the mediocrity of the songwriting, but hey. It's Kevin Talley! What little there is improves what it can. And there's a couple of shining solos on the album as well. Out of left field is the song "The Unbinding Truth" that has a totally wild Neo-Classical solo (seriously) near the end of the song. It's unexpectedly awesome. But what talent is peeked at there is stored away for the rest of the album.

Dååth was a fun band that was equal parts industrial and death metal, and I really did enjoy their album The Hinderers. However, it's almost as if this album is made by a completely different band. Their sound is about as death metal now as Trivium is. In fact, the Trivium metalcore sound is alive and well all over these tracks. Pseudo-breakdowns, uninspired riffing, and the new vocalist would be much more at home with a hardcore band. And forget about anything "industrial" or interesting except for a few seconds on about two tracks where a keyboards breaks through before being cast back into the shadows. And then there's a completely useless, almost "techno" sounding track near the end of the album. Embarassing.

Next post will be 40 - 35!

Megadeth -- Kansas City, MO -- December 5th, 2009

This was not a concert. This was a religious experience.

First band was Arcanium. They were marginally better than "Seasons After" who opened the Cannibal Corpse show a couple weeks ago. Again, they sounded like they'd be right at home on a rock station or nowadays Headbanger's Ball. Not so much clean singing, but still pretty lame. Props for them at least for winning over most of the crowd. 4/10

Tonight was the first date of the Endgame tour that had Warbringer instead of Machine Head. I thought for sure that the crowd would be full of scene kids hating on thrash, but Warbringer completely leveled the place. This is my third time seeing them and easily the best. They were top-notch. All the solos sounded just like they do on the album, and they got the crowd to pit and scream along all throughout their set. As always, Total War is always amazing to hear live, but Combat Shock is fantastic as well. Best straight-up modern thrash band today. 9/10

A small part of me (a very small part of me) thought that since Suicide Silence was so incredibly popular, that maybe they'd have enough crossover appeal to metal fans like me that I'd find something to like in their set. I mean, I like 2 songs (kinda) by Job For A Cowboy! But, alas, they were pathetic. Their stupid ways of getting the kids in the crowd to rebel against God in "Unanswered" was just about the dumbest part of the night until the final song, "No Pity For A Coward". I couldn't believe how amazingly retarded the lyrics are to this masterpiece. Everyone chanted along "Seconds from the end/What's it gonna be?/Pull the trigger bitch" and I couldn't help but laugh at how terrible it was. I assumed maybe some of the band would have some talent, but what little they gave us was soon followed by ten minutes of breakdowns. Killswitch Engage still may be the worst band I've ever seen, but Suicide Silence is a very close second. On a positive note: The song "Smoke" by them has maybe 20 overall seconds of what I consider "good" but that's about it. 2/10

But nothing was gonna bring me down for Megadeth. The place was absolutely packed for Megadeth and there was a push to the front as soon as the lights dimmed. As soon as Dialectic Chaos started, the crowd was whipped into a frenzy that didn't let up until the end of the set. I was eventually pushed from the front of the venue to around the middle because the chaos was too much. But about Megadeth: Dave Mustaine and Chris Broderick are solo machines. They nailed each note of each solo no matter how challenging or how long they were. Insane. And the crowd pretty much drowned out the vocals with their own singing on every song. Dave let the crowd sing the entire first part of "Sweating Bullets" and the end of "A Tout Le Monde" and, of course, "Peace Sells". If you step back and look at this Megadeth set, you might think that it's pretty weak. But I think that Megadeth falls into the same category of Iron Maiden. No matter what their setlist is, hearing any song in a live setting is amazing and unique. I will be telling my grandchildren to tell their grandchildren about how amazing it is to scream along every word of "Peace Sells" live in concert. I was covered in sweat, blood, beer, and everything else imaginable by the end of the concert, but I was euphoric. Nothing even compares.

Highlights: Sweating Bullets, Peace Sells, Wake Up Dead, Tornado Of Souls (THAT SOLO!)

10001230129/10

Warbringer:

Jackyl
Living In A Whirlwind
Severed Reality
Total War
Prey For Death
Beneath The Waves
Combat Shock

Megadeth:

Dialectic Chaos
This Day We Fight!
Wake Up Dead
Skin O' My Teeth
Headcrusher
A Tout Le Monde
She-Wolf
Tornado Of Souls
1,320'
In My Darkest Hour
Sweating Bullets
Hangar 18
44 Minutes
Trust
Symphony Of Destruction
Peace Sells
---
Holy Wars

D.R.I. show!

The pioneers of crossover thrash are making a stop in Kansas City on their first US tour in a while (I think). They will be at the Record Bar (no word yet if it's all ages, 18+ or 21+ yet) on January 24th. That's the same day as Nile and Immolation at the Beaumont Club, unfortunately. :(

New shows: Fang + Ad Astra Per Aspera

A couple of cool shows will be happening at the Jackpot in Lawrence in December!

12/12 - Bay Area Legends Fang will be performing with a myriad of other bands.
12/26 - Ad Astra Per Aspera will be performing their only show of 2009 and opening will be none other than Lawrence's biggest musical export Coalesce.

Skipping Kansas: Overkill

Dang. Overkill will be skipping us on their amazing tour next year. Closest date looks like Oklahoma.

Vader
Overkill
God Dethroned
Warbringer
Evile
Woe Of Tyrants

Apr. 01 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Trocadero
Apr. 02 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
Apr. 03 - Hartford, CT @ Webster Hall
Apr. 04 - Quebec City, QC @ Imperial de Quebec
Apr. 05 - Montreal, QC @ FouFounes
Apr. 06 - Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theater
Apr. 07 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogarts
Apr. 08 - Detroit, MI @ Blondies
Apr. 09 - Chicago, IL @ The Metro
Apr. 10 - Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
Apr. 11 - Minneapolis, MN @ Station 4
Apr. 13 - Denver, CO @ Gothic Theatre
Apr. 15 - Vancouver, BC @ Red Room
Apr. 16 - Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
Apr. 17 - Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
Apr. 18 - San Francisco, CA @ The Grand Ballroom
Apr. 19 - Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues
Apr. 20 - Los Angeles CA @ House of Blues
Apr. 21 - San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
Apr. 22 - Phoenix, AZ @ O.K.'s
Apr. 23 - Tucson, AZ @ The Rock
Apr. 24 - Farmington, NM @ Gators
Apr. 25 - Tulsa, OK @ Marquee
Apr. 26 - Austin, TX @ Emu's
Apr. 27 - Houston, TX @ Scout Bar
Apr. 28 - Dallas, TX @ Trees
Apr. 29 - Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall
Apr. 30 - Springfield, VA @ Jaxx
May 01 - New York City, NY @ Nokia Theater

Get better soon, Dio!

Perhaps one of the best vocalists in metal, Ronnie James Dio (Dio, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell) was diagnosed recently with stomach cancer. He canceled a full European tour. Luckily, the cancer was found in its very early stages. Dio has said he'll do all that he can to be back on stage as soon as possible. Get well soon, Dio!

Skipping Kansas: Kreator (again)

One of the biggest German thrash acts of all time are coming back to the states. However, Kreator is skipping us. Again!

The line-up is:

** March 3-12:

KREATOR
VOIVOD
NACHTMYSTIUM
EVILE
LAZARUS A.D.

** March 13:

KREATOR
NACHTMYSTIUM
EVILE
LAZARUS A.D.

** March 14:

KREATOR
VOIVOD
NACHTMYSTIUM
EVILE
LAZARUS A.D.

** March 16:

KREATOR
EVILE
LIGHTNING SWORDS OF DEATH
LAZARUS A.D.

** March 18-31:

KREATOR
KATAKLYSM
EVILE
LIGHTNING SWORDS OF DEATH
LAZARUS A.D.

"Hordes Of Chaos Part II" tour dates:

March 03 - Jaxx, West Springfield, VA
March 04 - The Trocadero, Philadelphia, PA
March 05 - The Palladium (MA), Worcester, MA
March 06 - Nokia Theater, New York, NY
March 07 - Club Soda, Montreal, QUE
March 08 - Imperial de Quebec, Quebec City, QUE
March 09 - Opera House, Toronto, ONT
March 10 - Peabody's Cleveland, OH
March 11 - Blondie's, Detroit, MI
March 12 - The Bottom Lounge, Chicago, IL
March 13 - Rave, Milwaukee, WI
March 14 - Block Station 4, St Paul, MN
March 16 - Bluebird Theater, Denver, CO
March 18 - Corazon, Seattle, WA
March 19 - Rickshaw Theater, Vancouver, BC
March 20 - Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, OR
March 21 - Slim's, San Francisco, CA
March 23 - House of Blues, West Hollywood, CA
March 24 - House of Blues, San Diego, CA
March 25 - The Rock, Tucson, AZ
March 27 - Emo's Alternative Lounging, Austin, TX
March 28 - Meridian, Houston, TX
March 30 - The Club at Firestone, Orlando, FL
March 31 - The Masquerade, Atlanta, GA

Cannibal Corpse -- Kansas City, MO -- November 22nd, 2009

A great night! The place was pretty well packed, and people went really crazy for most of the bands. Great crowd, great bands, great experience.

Except for the warm-up band. They're local (I think?) and called Seasons After. They're pretty much the generic hard rock/"metal" bands you hear on the radio. Mudvayne, Stone Sour, etc. It was the generic formula you get from those songs and the singer was horrendous. People were yelling for them to get off the stage by the end of the first song. 2/10

Erik Rutan is the MAN. Third time seeing Hate Eternal and they were fantastic as always. Only a three-piece this time, no second guitarist. But it really didn't matter. Erik was definitely the best guitar player there tonight. Crowd was pretty meh for them. Unbelievable. Oh well, I think Hate Eternal and Mr. Rutan speak for themselves. 9/10

Bringer Of Storms
Behold Judas
I, Monarch
Catacombs (YES, DON'T EVER STOP PLAYING IT, ERIK!)
Fury Within
To Know Our Enemies/The Obscure Terror (I don't remember which!)
The King Of All Kings

I think I am older than every member of Born of Osiris. Seriously, I doubt any of them are above 21. It was funny. I knew I wasn't going to like them, but they were a lot less bad than I thought they'd be. If they got rid of all the deathcore garbage and breakdowns, their twin guitar work could actually produce something listenable! Other than that, it was pretty much 50% breakdowns. Sometimes they'd add keyboards on top, but it really didn't do much. They have potential, but they need to get away from deathcore. Still, probably the best (or least worst) deathcore band I've seen. Miles ahead of Winds of Plague and Whitechapel. 5/10

Unearth. It was my third time seeing them, so I knew what to expect. And to make matters worse, I was smack dab right in front of their douchey guitarist. I knew I was going to get beer spit on me, have him thrust his crotch in my face and whatnot. But you know what I did? I decided to headbang and play along with Unearth for the sake of maybe he wouldn't do stuff to me. And you know what?

It was great.

I know, but they were SO much better than the two times I saw them before. In fact, the guitarist was one of the best parts! He faked out giving me a pick a couple times before he finally gave me one. I got another one and gave it to this kid behind me who was going nuts. Unearth was actually...*gulp*...good. I had a great time. I dunno if I'd pay money to see them headline just yet, but they might be getting there. 7.5/10

Unearth opens for good bands. I saw them open for Slayer, then Testament, and now the mighty Cannibal Corpse. Third time this year for me seeing them, and they are one of the funnest live metal bands ever. "Death Walking Terror" remains the heaviest song ever live and "Hammer Smashed Face" is just fantastic to hear. I headbanged so hard that I had to stop, lest I wanted to vomit on the security guards.

I wasn't on the same side as Alex Webster, but after a few songs, people started chanting his name. He laughed. In fact, Paul Mazurkiewicz got a chant too! And I finally did it: I yelled out "FUCK THE ALLIANCE!" and Corpsegrinder laughed and said "Of course!" No Skull Full of Maggots, but it was still fantastic. 9.5/10

Evisceration Plague
The Time To Kill Is Now
Death Walking Terror
I Cum Blood
Fucked With A Knife
Pit Of Zombies
The Wretched Spawn
Make Them Suffer
Vomit The Soul
Priests Of Sodom
Unleashing The Bloodthirsty
Hammer Smashed Face
Stripped Raped and Strangled

I actually inteded to see most of Hatebreed, at least until they played the Slayer cover, but I was dead. Headbanged harder than ever, except for the last time I saw Skeletonwitch. Great show. Lots of good surprises, and all the bands really delivered.

Alice In Chains - A New Era!

Reactivated grunge metal gods Alice In Chains will be returning to the Midland Theater in Kansas City on February 21st, 2010. If you remember, Kansas City was the last US show AiC played before their singer, Layne Staley, passed away.

Tour alert: Devildriver

Devildriver will be hitting the road in the US in January of next year with Suffocation (rumored to be co-headlining), Goatwhore, and Thy Will Be Done. So far, the only 2 dates to surface are in Milwaukee and California, so I'll keep my eyes peeled.

Skipping Kansas: Awesome Behemoth tour

Amazing Behemoth tour is coming to the states, but no dates near us yet. Behemoth always tours a ton for each new release, so hopefully they'll be back within the year.

Behemoth
Septicflesh
Shining

Jan. 07 - Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of the Living Arts
Jan. 08 - W. Springfield, VA - Jaxx
Jan. 09 - Raleigh, NC - Volume 11
Jan. 10 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade
Jan. 11 - Tampa, FL - State Theatre
Jan. 13 - Austin, TX - Emo’s
Jan. 15 - Tucson, AZ - The Rock
Jan. 16 - Los Angeles, CA - House of Blues
Jan. 17 - San Francisco, CA - Slims
Jan. 18 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theater
Jan. 19 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
Jan. 21 - Calgary, AB - Republik
Jan. 22 - Edmonton, AB - The Starlite Room
Jan. 23 - Regina, SK - The District
Jan. 24 - Winnipeg, MB - WECC
Jan. 25 - St. Paul, MN - Station 4
Jan. 26 - Chicago, IL - House of Blues
Jan. 27 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
Jan. 28 - Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Smalls
Jan. 30 - New York, NY - Gramercy Theatre

Skipping Kansas: American Carnage

Jealous of the sweet Canadian Carnage tour featuring Slayer and Megadeth? Well don't...

They're coming here! With a better line-up! (well, not HERE here, but the States at least)

Slayer
Megadeth
Testament
(rumored)High On Fire

JANUARY
18 WaMu Theatre, Seattle, WA*
19 Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR (tickets sold via www.rosequarter.com)
21 Cow Palace, San Francisco, CA*
22 Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA * (tickets on sale 11/21)
23 Dodge Theatre, Phoenix, AZ**
25 Magness Arena, Denver, CO*
26 Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, NM*
27 El Paso Coliseum, El Paso, TX*
29 Verizon Wireless, Houston, TX**
31 Municipal Auditorium, Nashville, TN*

FEBRUARY
1 Gwinnett Arena, Duluth, GA*
2 Broadbent Arena, Louisville, KY* (tickets on sale 12/4)
4 Roy Wilkins Auditorium, Minneapolis, MN* (tickets on sale 12/4)
5 UIC Pavilion, Chicago, IL* (tickets on sale 12/4)
6 Cobo Arena, Detroit, MI*
9 Chevrolet Theatre, Wallingford, CT**
11 Izod Center, East Rutherford, NJ*
13 Susquehanna Center, Camden, NJ*
14 Tsongas Arena, Lowell, MA*
16 Pavillon de la Jeunesse, Quebec City, QC (tickets sold via Billetech.com)
18 John Labatt Centre, London, ON (tickets on sale 11/27 via JohnLabattCentre.com)
19 Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON (tickets sold via Ticketmaster.ca)
20 Bell Centre, Montreal, QC (tickets sold via Admission.com)
22 Moncton Coliseum, Moncton, NB (tickets sold via MonctonColiseum.com)
23 Metro Centre, Halifax, NS (tickets sold via TicketAtlantic.com

*Tickets sold through Ticketmaster
**Tickets sold through Live Nation

Art Brut -- Lawrence, KS -- November 7th, 2009

Formed a Band
Bad Weekend
My Little Brother
Summer Job
Modern Art
Rusted Gun of Milan
What A Rush
Pump Up the Volume
Good Weekend
Direct Hit
Emily Kane
The Passenger
DC Comics And Chocolate Milkshake
Alcoholics Unanimous
18,000 Lira
Post Soothing Out

9/10

Best surprise live band of the year for me. I hate all my friends who told me this band was britpop, they are pretty much a punk rock band with Smiths-overtones (if that makes a lick of sense). Extremely loud and really awesome.

Thank you Lawrence.com for the tix!

M Art Brut! Top of the Pops!

Metal As Art 2010 Tour

Hypno5e
Revocation
The Binary Code

Pretty good tour early on next year. I saw Revocation open up for Quo Vadis in Maryland and their new album is great as well. It'll be in Lawrence at the Replay Lounge on January 31st, and in Kansas City at the Riot Room (21+) on February 2nd.

Overkill 2010 US Tour!

After touring pretty much everywhere last year with Exodus, East Coast thrash titans (and the band that should totally be in the Big 4 instead of Anthrax), OVERKILL will be touring North America in Spring of 2010 with the killer line-up of polish death metal titans VADER and blackened death metal killers GOD DETHRONED! No exact dates have been set, but it looks like it'll take place in April.

EVIL!

NEVER DIES!

Album Review: Slayer - World Painted Blood

1. World Painted Blood
2. Unit 731
3. Snuff
4. Beauty Through Order
5. Hate Worldwide
6. Public Display Of Dismemberment
7. Human Strain
8. Americon
9. Psycopathy Red
10. Playing With Dolls
11. Not Of This God

In my personal experience, it seems acceptable in the metal community to completely dismiss Slayer after "Seasons In The Abyss" in 1990. And for a while, I'd have agreed. Some fans say they haven't been good since South of Heaven, some say they haven't released a good album since "Divine Intervention". Whichever you may think, Slayer definitely has altered their music since the 90's, and the wariness that Slayer fans felt then has carried over into the 2000's. "God Hates Us All" was down-tuned and appealing to the "nu-metal" crowd, whereas "Christ Illusion" in 2006 only partly made amends for the 16 years prior to it, but ultimately failed. As we almost close out the first decade of 2000, Slayer returns once again with their tenth studio album. And Slayer fans should rejoice: they're back. Kind of.

First things first: There are some songs on this album that sound like they come right out of their '80s period. The beginning of "Snuff" sounds right at home on "South of Heaven" and "Public Display Of Dismemberment" could be mistaken as an unused track from the "Reign In Blood" sessions. Of course, Slayer still has some faults. There are still unconventional "Slayer songs" which do nothing but harm the band at this stage. "Human Strain" is definitely an odd-sounding song and ultimately sounds like something off of "God Hates Us All". I understand why Slayer wouldn't want to make a straight-up, balls-out thrash record at all times, but they've been like that for the better part of 20 years now. Had they taken the Slayer formula of war and satanic lyrics with speed and solos, this could've easily been album of the year. Another fault that should be mentioned (as I'm sure it's been mentioned about Slayer since 1994): Tom needs to stop yelling. It's sounding too forced these days. "Playing With Dolls" has a creepy vibe throughout and it features Tom actually singing through parts of the song which make it a very interesting song, albeit lacking in the end.

Also: "Americon" might just be the stupidest Slayer song ever released, lyrics-wise. Without even looking, I bet that Kerry King penned the lyrics. "It's all about the motherfuckin' oil/Regardless of the flag upon its soil". COME ON.

But I digress. "World Painted Blood" injects new life into the worn down thrash machine that is Slayer. "Unit 731" and "Snuff" have enough breakneck speed to satisfy old-school thrash fans, and "Psycopathy Red" might just be the best Slayer song written since 1990. The band still has its chops. The songs are still unmistakably Slayer, but they must have been listening to the myriad of forum posts on the internet about the guitar solos sounding the same. Lots of varied stuff here, but not enough to forget that it's Mr. King and Mr. Hanneman on the axes. The bass break (first ever for Slayer?!) in "Psycopathy Red" shows Mr. Araya has still got it, even if he needs to stop screaming all the time. Trust us, Tom. You sound a lot better when you let the lyrics come naturally. I've always been a huge fan of Mr. Lombardo's skill on the skins, but unfortunately, it doesn't seem like it really shines through on this album. Not to say that it's bad, just nothing too special.

The mix is not good on this album. It's not "Death Magnetic" bad, but it's still not that great. You have to really listen to pick up the drumming and the guitars are pretty "tinny" at times as well. It shouldn't make too much of a difference to die-hard Slayer fans, though.

At the end of the day, Slayer released a record. As the most consistent of the Big 4 of thrash metal, that should be more than enough reason to pick it up. But if you need more convincing, just know that "World Painted Blood" has Slayer back to being the thrash monster terrorizer that we all know and love. It's not perfect, but as long as you don't compare this album to any of their other albums (which you shouldn't do anyway), you'll find that Slayer is faster, hungrier, and a hell of a lot more evil than they have been in a while. SLAYER!!!

85/100

Stand-out tracks: Unit 731, Snuff, Psycopathy Red

Ben Folds -- Lawrence, KS -- October 27th, 2009

Sixth time. Best time! Good crowd, great song selection. And it was just him and his piano, only the 2nd time in like...6ish years. Amazing.

Dog
Annie Waits
All U Can Eat
Effington
Gone
Sentimental Guy
Emaline
Jesusland
Still Fighting It
Unreleased song (The Secret Life Of Morgan Davis)
Unreleased song (Girl [I think])
New Song - Picture Window
New Song - Levi Johnston's Blues
New Song - Belinda
You Don't Know Me (feat. Kate Miller-Heidke)
Kate
Landed
Freebird/Rock This Bitch
Bastard
Dr. Yang
Such Great Heights (Postal Service Cover)
Army
Evaporated
Zak and Sara
Happy Birthday to Sydney
Not The Same

Encore:
Song for the Dumped
Narcolepsy
Philosophy

10/10

First time seeing Ben Folds play Evaporated, Song for the Dumped, and I think Emaline. I think it might be the first time I've seen him do Such Great Heights, too.

The opener was Kate Miller-Heidke from Australia and she's the 2nd best opener I've ever seen with Ben Folds (first would be Rufus Wainwright). She did an excellent cover of Toxic by Britney Spears. After she helped with You Don't Know Me, Ben took photos of her and her guitarist with the crowd being happy, us booing them, and then Kate "pissing" on the stage. :D

Skipping Kansas: too much!

I've seen the history of places like the Static Bar and the Bottleneck back in the day. It's depressing how many awesome metal tours now skip over this part of the states.

Ensiferum recently announced a US tour with Hypocrisy (who have tapped Children of Bodom frontman Alexi Laiho as a touring guitarist!), Ex Deo (Kataklysm frontman's side band), and Black Guard (formerly: Profugus Mortis). The fantastic pagan tour 's closest KC-area date is most likely Texas or Minnesota.

The first pagan tour of 2010 was announced, yet is nowhere near us KC folk. Korpiklaani will be hitting the road with Tyr, and support will come from Swashbuckle and White Wizzard. Closest date looks to be Tulsa, OK at the Flytrap Music Hall on January 23rd.

And last but not least, Dying Fetus will not be coming here on their first tour supporting their amazing new album, "Descend Into Depravity", although more dates are rumored to be announced. Co-headlining will be The Faceless, and support will come from (on select dates): Vital Remains, Beneath The Massacre, Annotations of an Autopsy, and Enfold Darkness. Looks like the closest current date is Denver, CO on November 18th.

mc chris -- Lawrence, KS -- October 13th, 2009

I Fight Dragons is a fun band who plays pop punk/rock with chiptunes. They've also modified several NES/SNES/Power Glove/Guitar Hero controllers to create different sounds. Infectious as hell, I can't wait to see them again. 8/10

Don't You?
Heads Up, Hearts Down
The Faster The Treadmill...
Work It (new song)
Money
No One Likes Superman Anymore
I Fight Ganon (Legend Of Zelda theme)

3rd time seeing Whole Wheat Bread, and they never disappoint. Pretty much the same set as last time, but a longer hip-hop section. It was all great. When they're punk, they're punk as hell. And when they're crunk, they're crunk as hell. 8.5/10

206
Ode 2 Father
Throw Your Sets Up
Never Scared (cover)
I Don't Give A Fuck (cover)
Girlfriend Like This
--
Rapping part!
--
Broke
Old Man Samson
Catch 22
Lower Class Man
Police Song
Bombs Away

Third time seeing mc chris as well. He played a ton of songs, most of them new. But that's okay, because all his songs are pretty catchy and fun to listen to. Crowd was alright, could've been better. Before "mc chris is dead" he threw out a group of frat boy douchebags because they kept calling him a homo everytime songs ended. Other than that, it was a great time. 8/10

Smokin' 40's and Drinkin' Blunts
?
White Kids Love Hip-Hop
006
pizza butt
Rant about his girlfriend!
? (new)
neville
Tractor Beam
10 Year Old
Juggalo rant!
OMC
Tussin
WIID
Geek
nrrd grrl
mc chris is dead
IG-88's '57 Chevy
Fett's Vette

Dethklok -- Kansas City, MO -- October 12th, 2009

Awesome concert! I thought I was going to miss at least some of High on Fire, but I got there in time to see it all. It was a great experience.

High On Fire was my first concert of 2008, and I'd been jonesing to see them again. While they didn't get a very long set, they left me (again) wanting more. They absolutely slayed and Matt Pike is still a beast on the guitar. He rips through solos like it's as easy as not brushing his teeth and the crowd ate it up completely. Frost Hammer was amazing, and Waste of Tiamat is my favorite live HoF song still. I can't wait to see them again. 9/10

Fury Whip
Blood From Zion
Cometh Down Hessian
Waste of Tiamat
Frost Hammer
Rumors Of War

First things first: there was a huge pit filled with hardcore kiddies fighting invisible ninjas for Converge. But to be honest, they're one of the least worst "core" bands I've seen live. Maybe that's because they honestly don't try to be metal, they are at heart a hardcore/grindcore/mathcore band. But I still don't get it. A lot of times it sounded like they were leading up to a huge moment where they'd kick in and the place would explode, but nine times out of ten, it just never seemed to come. However, when they kicked it in, I really enjoyed it. I guess I was expecting a DEP-esque type of craziness, but Converge wasn't terrible. More grind, less core. 5/10

?
No Heroes
Axe To Fall
Eagles Become Vultures
The Broken Vow
Last Light
Reap What You Sow
Wolves At My Door
Dark Horse
?
?
Concubine

I, at first, thought it was lame that Mastodon was performing all of Crack the Skye still. But as I quickly found out, CtS translate extremely well live and made for a really memorable performance. Sound trouble happened at the beginning of the set, but was fixed by The Czar. Speaking of that song, the 2 songs I liked the best from their set were the longest from CtS, The Czar and The Last Baron. Absolutely chill-inducing when heard live. And the brutality of their pre-CtS material as the encore was amazing. The crowd went insane during Mother Puncher. Awesome show. 9/10

Oblivion
Divinations
Quintessence
The Czar
Ghost of Karelia
Crack The Skye
The Last Baron
--
Circle of Casquatch
Aqua Dementia
Where Strides The Behemoth
Mother Puncher
The Bit

Anyone who still doubts the intentions of Brendon Small and Dethklok just need to attend a show to see what all the fuss is about. The straight up melodic death metal approach from Dethklok really paired well with the prog-attack of Mastodon. I will say that Dethalbum I songs are better than Dethalbum II songs. But the crowd loved it all. Craziest pits I've seen all year. Brendon Small and his band are really, really talented. You can't help but headbang through their set. 9/10

Detheme
Bloodlines
Burn The Earth
Hatredcopter
Black Fire Upon Us
Birthday Dethday
Dethjingle
Dethsupport
Awaken
The Gears
Murmaider
Thunderhorse
Go Into The Water
Fansong
_________

Kylesa -- Lawrence, KS -- October 10th, 2009

Lionize had to drop and the rest of the bands had shortened sets because of bad weather conditions to the west of Topeka. It was still a good concert, but would've been better with everything in its right place.

Opening the show was Wrath and Ruin. Last time I saw them was before the Impaled show last year, and somehow they went from a 3 piece to 5 members. And the easiest way to describe them is...well...Xasthur. They sound almost exactly like what Xasthur would sound like live. Keyboards and all. They sounded fine but unless the vocalist was shrieking, you couldn't hear them. Lots of their songs sounded similar, so maybe it's a good thing Malefic doesn't perform live? Not too bad. 5/10

Up next was Red Fang and besides checking some youtube videos on them, I really didn't know what to expect. They all have crazy facial hair (except for the drummer, kinda like how ZZ Top's drummer's last name is Beard yet he doesn't have one) and for the most part, they rocked. Some of their songs started to sound same-y after a while, but when they were good, they were really good. I would absolutely love to see them again. 7.5/10

Third time seeing Saviours, second time this year! We had to wait a while for them to get in, so we got a criminally short set. And by criminally short, I mean only about 4 or 5 songs. And what sucks is that they were really hitting their stride right as they ended. The duel guitar solos were still salivatingly good and they kicked it into overdrive several times. Lots of headbanging and moshing. (There were surprisingly few hipsters here! Awesome!) Really needed to be a longer set. 8/10

For months leading up to this concert, I was saying it'd be the heaviest show of the year. Did Kylesa deliver? Yes. Kind of. It wasn't as loud as I expected, but it was still very heavy. Some of the songs off of Static Tensions translate insanely well live, especially Said and Done and Unknown Awareness. We only got two encore songs, one from their first album (I'm guess it was either Testing The Good Of Man or Dream Of The Freedom To Come) and the Pink Floyd cover Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun. Which is the only time I would willingly listen to Pink Floyd. 8/10

Scapegoat
Insomnia For Months
Said And Done
Unknown Awareness
Running Red
Nature's Predators
Almost Lost
Only One
Perception
To Walk Alone
? (either Testing The Good Of MAn or Dream Of The Freedom To Come)
Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun (Pink Floyd cover)

Peelander-Z -- Lawrence, KS -- October 1st, 2009

Kansas was invaded by aliens from the Z sector of planet Peelander tonight, and they brought with them giant aliens, limbo lines, human bowling, and a smile to everyone's face in attendance.

I've heard people say that you don't really go to a GWAR show for the music, you go for the show. That's partly true for Peelander-Z. The trio (Peelander Yellow, Red, and Green) do put on an amazing show with great crowd participation, but their music is also infectiously fun pop (or maybe Peelander?) punk that you can't help but jump along to.

Just to emphasize how much fun this was, here's a partial list of everything that went on during the 50 or so minutes that Peelander-Z played:

* Bass player came in from outside during the first song playing while wearing a giant alien space costume
* Peelander Yellow crowd surfed around the bar while playing
* Peelander Red played the bass while standing on peoples shoulders
* During Mad Tiger, they passed out drumsticks and pots until most of the crowd was banging along with the beat. Eventually, they pulled up someone on stage to keep the beat until the only sound left was the pans banging together from the crowd
* During the aforementioned pan banging, the band made a makeshift limbo contest and the crowd participated
* Peelander Red led a human train all around the bar while playing his bass which culminated in a crazy moshpit
* They brought up audience members to play their instruments
* Peelander Green and the drummer for the opening band, Birthday Suits, set up their kits in the middle of the crowd to have a drum duel
* We all moshed in circles around the drummers


They spent as much time in the crowd as they did on the stage during their set.

All this went on while nearly every song had motions to it that Peelander Yellow was more than happy enough to explain. Also, the songs usually led with an amusing rambling from Yellow about how they aren't Japanese, they aren't human, but they are from the Z sector of planet Peelander! Nothing I can put down in words and even describe how much fun this show was.

Partial/Out of Order setlist:

P-Pop High School
Beautiful Sundae
Handsome
Super Health
Autograph
So Many Mike
Ninja-High Schooool
Mad Tiger
S.T.E.A.K

10/10

Go see this band.

Dragonforce -- Kansas City, MO -- September 28th, 2009

My one-sentence review from a Dragonforce fanboy standpoint: Extremely fun, concert of the year so far.

My one-sentence review from an un-biased standpoint: Extremely fun, concert of the year so far.

The first band of the evening was Taking Dawn and I'd only heard bad stuff from them. Like they sound like a worse version of Avenged Sevenfold (is that even possible?), but they were a bit better than that. True, I'd never listen to them on my own, but they were pretty entertaining live. At one point, the guitarist ran off the stage and was playing the guitar as he ran all over the club and up the stairs to the VIP section. Awesome. But the music was no bueno. 5/10

I assumed that a ton of people were there for Sonata Arctica. And it showed. Lots of singing along to their songs. It was really fun. They are cheesy as anything, but really entertaining. Lots of lighters in the air and clapping along. The keyboards and the bass were kind of low in the mix, but the vocalist and guitarist were superb. 8/10

Setlist:
1. In Black And White
2. Flag In The Ground
3. 8th Commandment
4. Last Drop Falls
5. Fullmooon
6. Don't Say A Word
7. Vodka

There's not really a less controversial band in metal these days than Dragonforce. Are they tr00? Do they suck live? Well, one just has to attend this tour to see for themselves: Dragonforce deserve every single bit of praise they get for anything. We've all seen the video of them sloppily playing through songs on Youtube. But they are spot-on now. The mix was perfect, Herman Li (Ri) and Sam Totman blazed through their solos with ease and it was some of the most fun I've ever had at a concert. I've been listening to these guys for a long time and to hear those songs live just made everything that much better.

No: My first Draognforce experience was not through Guitar Hero, nor was it the song Through The Fire And Flames.

My friend in front of me caught a Sam pick and gave it to me! YES! The entire crowd was singing to every song all night long and even the keytar duel with the Sonata Arctica got a joyous response. I only hope that an big turnout (for a Monday night, at least) will prompt these guys to come back ASAP. 10/10

1. Fury Of The Storm
2. Heroes Of Our Time
3. Reasons To Live
4. Disciples Of Babylon
5. Starfire
6. Keyboard Solo/Keytar Battle with Sonata Arctica
7. Operation Ground and Pound
8. Fields of Despair
9. Where Dragons Rule
10. The Last Journey Home
11. Valley Of The Damned
encore
12. Strike of the Ninja
13. Through The Fire And Flames

Motorhead -- Kansas City, MO -- September 24th, 2009

Wow. Up in the top 5, probably top 3, performances of the year for me. Every part of Motorhead's performance was top notch. And to say that they were loud is an understatement.

Because of jankety directions, I got lost downtown trying to find a parking place and ended up missing Nashville Pussy and delicious almost-nudity I hear. Oh well.

Reverend Horton Heat's sound started off kind of weird for me, but as I got used to it, I really started enjoying him. Perfect blend between rock and roll, old time country, and rockabilly, the crowd loved every second of his set. Especially when he played Psychobilly Freakout (curse you Guitar Hero! I haven't 5-starred it yet!) and when he stood on the bass player's stand-up bass. Really fun, and he usually comes around here a ton of times a year, so I'll be sure to catch him next time. 8/10

Reverend Horton Heat’s Big Blue Car
Now, Right Now
I’m Mad
Ain’t No Saguaro In Texas
Drinkin’ And Smokin’ Cigarettes
Please Don’t Take The Baby To The Liquor Store
Psychobilly Freakout
Baddest Of The Bad
400 Bucks
Death Metal Guys
The Jimbo Song
Devil’s Chasin’ Me
Big Red Rocket Of Love

Not 100% on the set, but it seems to be right.

Motörhead. Is there anything else I need to say, really? They were loud, they were heavy, they were awesome, and they will forever be legends. Highlights of the night were Stay Clean, Rock Out, Killed By Death, and of course, Overkill. 9.5/10


1. Iron Fist
2. Stay Clean
3. Be My Baby
4. Rock Out
5. Metropolis
6. Over The Top
7. One Night Stand
8. I Got Mine
9. The Thousand Names of God
10. Another Perfect Day
11. In The Name of Tragedy
12. Jus Cos You Got The Power
13. Going To Brazil
14. Killed By Death
15. Bomber
-----------------
16. Whorehouse Blues
17. Ace of Spades
18. Overkill

They are Motörhead. And they play rock n' roll.

Some show updates

Quick note about a couple of shows.

Going on for 24 hours starting tonight at 12:01 AM, you can buy 1 ticket and get 1 free for the Dragonforce show on Monday, Sept. 28th at the Beaumont Club. Link here.

And now for some slightly disheartening news, the Moonspell show has some big changes. Samael has dropped and taking their place will be Divine Heresy. The show has also changed venues, from the Beaumont Club to the next street over at the Riot Room. That means the show is now 21+. The show time has changed to 8:30 PM. Should still be a fun night!

See you at Motorhead tonight!

TONS of new shows!

Let's get right into it, then!

Dethklok + Mastodon w/ High On Fire, Converge
Uptown Theater - Kansas City, MO
October 12, 2009

Bane
Jackpot Saloon - Lawrence, KS
October 14, 2009

Moonspell w/ Samael, Book of Black Earth, Secrets of the Moon
Beaumont Club - Kansas City, MO
October 24, 2009

Hatebreed Feat. Cannibal Corpse w/ Unearth, Born of Osiris, Hate Eternal
Beaumont Club - Kansas City, MO
November 22, 2009

Baroness
Riot Room - Kansas City, MO
November 28, 2009

Trivium w/ Chimaira, Whitechapel, Dirge Within
Beaumont Club - Kansas City, MO
December 3, 2009

Megadeth w/ Suicide Silence, Warbringer, Arcanium
Beaumont Club - Kansas City, MO
December 5, 2009

Marduk w/ Nachtmystium, Mantic Ritual, Horde of Hel
Riot Room - Kansas City, MO
December 11, 2009

Nilw w/ Immolation, Krisiun, Abigail Williams, Dreaming Dead
Beaumont Club - Kansas City, MO
January 24, 2010

blink-182 -- Kansas City, KS -- September 4th, 2009

Woot!

It rained while I was waiting in line, but let up right as soon as I got in the venue. They had the side stage set up on the lawn section of the amphitheater, so as the stages traded off having bands play on each of them, it was easy to watch all of them.

First band was Billy Boy On Poison. Stupid name aside, they were kind enjoyable. They're a hard/alt. rock band from LA, so you pretty much know what they sound like. They were loud, there were solos, and the vocalist was stumbling around on himself on acid. An entertaining show all-around. Songs included: On My Way, Happy Valentine's Day. 7/10

Opening the main stage was Company of Thieves. An indie rock band (emphasis on indie), the first couple of songs were mediocre, but they really turned it up near the end of their set. Not awesome, but not too bad either. Modest Mouse with female vocals. Songs included: Oscar Wilde, Under the Umbrella. 7/10

Mac Lethal was the only person probably on either stage from Kansas City, and definitely the only one who lived there still. A really awesome underground rapper, it was just him and his DJ on the second stage. He made tons of references to places around KC. The beats wuz phat, and da lyricks was sick. He should've played longer. Songs included: Rotten Apple Pie, Crazy (Perfectly Content). 8/10

The only really bad band of the day was Chester French. They made ironic faux-hipster music for ironic faux-hipster junior high girls. Haha, white rappers! lolololol. No. 3/10

stellastarr* was next on the side-stage. Pretty straight-forward indie-rock, but they did it very well. The vocals weren't too high in the mix, but it all turned out to be very enjoyable. 7.5/10

I've been a fan for a while, so seeing The Von Bondies finally was really a treat. It's a heavier and funner version of the White Stripes (lol irony) and the crowd went nuts. Lots of crowd surfers, and they were loud. Really glad I finally got to see them. Songs included: C'mon C'mon. 8.5/10

Apparently the best local band the Kansas City area has to offer are The Republic Tigers. I could see how they say that. Again, a pretty standard indie rock band, but they do it well. Not too much crowd interaction, but they rocked pretty well. Songs included: Buildings & Mountains, Made Concrete. 7.5/10

The last time I saw blink-182, Taking Back Sunday opened, so I was eager to see if I still liked them as much as I did back in 2004. Unfortunately, while the songs were high energy and memorable, the vocalist and new guitarist/vocalist can't hold a candle to past members and had a hard time recreating their sound. They're still a very fun band, but they played too much new stuff. 7.5/10

Setlist:

What's It Feel Like To Be A Ghost?
?
?
?
Liar (It Takes One To Know One)
Cute Without The 'E' (Cut From The Team)
Where My Mouth Is
A Decade Under The Influence
Makedamnsure

The last band on the side stage was Matt & Kim. It's comprised of 2 people named, well, Matt & Kim. Kim drums, Matt uses a synth. If they weren't so unironically happy and stoked to be playing, I'd almost dismiss their sound as a stupid hipster sound. But they weren't too bad. Lots of mini-covers of songs. Biggest side stage crowd of the day. Songs included: Daylight. 6/10

Weezer was the best band of the day. Seriously. Every song had people going crazy and everyone sang along. They played almost every one of their big hits and it made for one of the most enjoyable music sets I've ever seen. Rivers even had a trampoline he used when he wasn't playing the guitar! Best song of the night: Perfect Situation. 9.5/10

Setlist:

1. War Pigs (Black Sabbath Cover) > Hash Pipe
2. Troublemaker
3. Undone - The Sweater Song
4. Surf Wax America
5. Perfect Situation
6. (If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To
7. Say It Ain't So
8. My Name Is Jonas
9. Island In The Sun
10. The Good Life
11. Pork and Beans
12. Beverly Hills
13. Buddy Holly
14. Should I Stay Or Should I Go (The Clash cover)

Third time seeing blink-182. I was forever scared that they'd be super serious if they ever reunited, but I was thankfully wrong. Tons of stupid immature fart and penis and gay jokes and changed lyrics to make fun of someone's mom were intact. Was it stupid? Yes, but it was fun. For 2 hours, I was transported back to junior high and I couldn't have been happier. Too much new stuff, though. But they played Josie and Man Overboard! 9/10

1. Dumpweed
2. Feeling This
3. The Rock Show
4. What's My Age Again?
5. Obvious
6. I Miss You
7. Stay Together For The Kids
8. Down
9. Always
10. Stockholm Syndrome
11. First Date
12. Man Overboard
13. Going Away To College
14. Not Now
15. All The Small Things
16. Reckless Abandon
17. Josie
18. Anthem Part II
encore
19. Carousel
20. Damnit

Christraping Black Metal

After being denied a US tour earlier this year because of Visa problems, black metallers MARDUK are going to be in KC at the Riot Room (21+) on December 11th; a Friday. Along with them are Nachtmystium and Mantic Ritual.

Clash of the Titans 2009-10?

Unconfirmed, but Slayer and Megadeth might be at the Sprint Center a few days after Christmas with Behemoth opening.

Back to the Grave!

California death/grind band Impaled will be re-recording their debut album, "The Dead Shall Dead Remain" to be released later this year. Woot!

An off-date

From an off-date from their tour with Satyricon and Toxic Holocaust, Taiwanese extreme black metal band ChthoniC will be at the Oz Cafe in Wichita on October 18th. No word yet on any other dates.

Blacker than the blackest black, times infinity.

Dethklok
Mastodon
High on Fire
Converge

Holy crap.

Uptown Theater, Oct. 12.

Clash of the (Midwest) Titans

The Midwest's two best local bands are sharing the same stage on the day before Halloween. Troglodyte and Hammerlord will both be at the Replay Lounge in Lawrence on Oct. 30th. No word yet on if the show is 21+ or not.

Skipping Kansas: Satyricon (again!)

Satyricon has one party on a tour that is 3/4 amazing and 1/4 lame. I like those odds, but the closest date so far is Colorado. Full dates are here.

Satyricon
Bleeding Through
Toxic Holocaust
ChthoniC

New Concerts on the horizon!

Sad about Metallica not coming back to Kansas City on their next leg of their World Magnetic tour? On August 7th at the Granada in Lawrence, will be a Metallica tribute band by the name of Battery. They're a nationally touring band, so they must be good!

After some absence, The Mars Volta will return to KC at the Midland by AMC on September 14th. Tickets go on sale soon!

Possibly the heaviest show of the year, Kylesa will be at the Granada on October 10th along with Doomriders, Bison B.C., and Red Fang. It's gonna be loud.

An odd tour.

During/before/after (not really sure) some stints with Metallica, Lamb of God will be in Wichita with GWAR and Job for a Cowboy. Huh.

It'll be at the Cotillion Ballroom on October 8.

Origin -- Lawrence, KS -- July 25th, 2009

Great way to end my metal journey.

I got there too late and missed Marasmus, so there was one opening band for me. Lucky for me, it was Troglodyte! One of my favorite local bands around. This was pretty much their first time in Lawrence, and it was by far the best I've seen them! They had lots of energy and the Jackpot's sound system sounded extremely good for them. No full setlist, but included: Skunk Ape Rape, Don't Go Into The Woods, We Eat Our Own, Crypto-stew-ologist, and Die When You Die. Bigfoot death metal at its finest. 9/10

It was a homecoming show for Origin, welcoming them back from slaughtering the summer on the Summer Slaughter tour all over the US. The band knew pretty much everyone at the Jackpot, and it was all fun and games all night long. Their performance was brutal as always, the guitarist and the bassist were still unbelievably mind-blowing, and the drumming insane as everything. Always a good time when Origin is in town. 9/10

1. Staring From The Abyss
2. Implosion Of Eternity
3. The Aftermath
4. ?
5. Wrath Of Vishnu
6. Disease Called Man
7. Reciprocal
8. The Burner
9. Finite
10. Antithesis
11. Portal

Thus concludes my metal journey. I think I won't be attending another concert until blink-182 on Sept. 4 and no metal concerts until about Sept. 28th for Motorhead and Sept. 29th for Dragonforce. Thanks for reading.

Skeletonwitch -- Kansas City, MO -- July 23rd, 2009

I actually had to watch the first band from outside. It was local band War Bear. They play a pretty nice stoner/sludge metal and aren't too shabby at all. Some of their songs kinda sound the same, but it's good. 7/10

I had heard good things about Trap Them. Didn't Barney of Napalm Death say something akin to Trap Them restored his faith in grindcore/metal? And lemme tell ya, Barney was right. Their first and last songs were sludgey as all get-out, but everything in between was old-school punk/grind and it ruled. The vocalist is a madman and you can't help but headbang to the tunes. This band is made for small bar shows: the intimacy only fueled them to be more and more aggressive. Totally awesome. 8.5/10

If you have even a passing interest in heavy metal, Saviours is the band for you. They are, through and through, the definition of heavy metal. Their plastered with tattoos, they got long hair, and they know how to rock. They are ultimately heavy and most of their songs are pants-wettingly good. Some of them even had an old-school back-and-forth guitar solos between the two guitarists. I got chills more than once while they were playing. Infinitely awesome. 9/10

After being in the studio in Seattle for a month straight, Skeletonwitch is back and better than ever. Fourth time seeing them, and I'm still eagerly awaiting them to come back. Complete with smoke machines and strobe lights, the Witch played a perfect set. The solos were spot on, the drums were clear and fast and the crowd screamed along on every song with the band. It was, by far, the best time I've seen them. It depresses me to know that some people haven't seen Skeletonwitch live. Go as soon as you get the chance. You won't be sorry. 10/10

1. Upon Wings Of Black
2. Beyond The Permafrost
3. Blinding Black Rage
4. Sacrifice For The Slaughtergod
5. Fire From The Sky
6. Limb From Limb
7. Crushed Beyond Dust
8. Soul Thrashing Black Sorcery
9. Where The Light Has Failed
10. Remains Of The Defeated
11. Within My Blood

Thus concludes my third installment of my metal journey. Join me again after Saturday the 27th when my last show, Origin, will be complete. Oh, and pick up Skeletonwitch's new album, Breathing The Fire, on October 13th.

Rockstar Mayhem Festival -- Kansas City, KS -- July 21st, 2009

Running very low on sleep, so I'll try and be as thorough as I can. I'm worn out.

There was a really, really long line when I got to Sandstone Amphitheater, but it actually moved very, very fast. I got in and browsed the kiosks until the first band started.

Whitechapel started the day off, but they were bad. No, they were pretty terrible. Actually, they were one of the worst metal bands I've seen live. Every Whitechapel song has 148 breakdowns in it. And they have THREE GUITARISTS. What? Are they the Iron Maiden of wigger-slam? A few songs had some good moments, but ultimately, they were terrible. 3/10

1. ?
2. ?
3. ?
4. Possession
5. Vicer Exciser
6. Prostatic Fluid Asphyxiation
7. ?
8. This Is Exile

After them was the Jaeger band, and for us it was Continent of Ash. I went and bought the Cannibal Corpse comic book and got in line to meet them, so I could just hear the band, but they sounded terrible as well. If I see them again, I'll review them for real.

Luckily, the Hot Topic booth was right in front of its' stage, so I got to see Behemoth. Unlike the night before where their sound was messing up, they absolutely slayed today. They know how to work a crowd and all their songs sounded spot-on perfect. Same set as the night before, however. 9/10

1. Slaves Shall Serve
2. At The Left Hand Ov God
3. Conquer All
4. Demigod
5. Ov Fire And The Void
6. Chant For Eschaton 2000

After meeting all the guys from Cannibal Corpse and getting their autographs, I saw God Forbid again. They changed up their set some from the night before. And they sounded better this time. The crowd seemed pretty into them. Still not great, but better than the night before. 6/10

1. Star Wars Intro/?
2. ?
3. Walk Alone
4. Broken Promise
5. To The Fallen Hero
6. The End Of The World

I hate myself for it, but I actually enjoy The Black Dahlia Murder live. They were better the night before in front of a smaller crowd because of all the stage divers, but their energy was still there. Everything up to the new song was good, but everything after it was really, really good. They do start to sound the same after a while, but they had a perfect set length so that it was awesome. 8/10

1. Tim And Eric Intro/?
2. Everything Went Black
3. Necropolis
4. A Vulgar Picture
5. Miasma
6. What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse
7. Funeral Thirst

I have a lot of friends who are big fans of All That Remains, so I was eager to hear them for myself. While I really dig the song Six (because of Guitar Hero!) the rest of their stuff is just okay. The clean vocals sound like Linkin Park, to me, but the vocalist does really nice harsh vocals as well. They probably had the biggest crowd reaction of the 2nd stage all day. 7/10

1. ?
2. Chiron
3. Forever In Your Hands
4. Six
5. ?
6. Two Weeks

Job for a Cowboy was the 2nd to last band on the Hot Topic stage. I had higher than average hopes for them because I thought they'd change from a crappy deathcore band to a pseudo-respectable death metal band. Was I right? Eh, no. Not really. Their bass player isn't too much of a tool anymore and some of their songs sound better, but that's about it. The new stuff sounds very bad live, and they're still just a deathcore band. 4/10

1. Knee Deep
2. ?
3. Unfurling A Darkened Gospel
4. Constitutional Masturbation
5. Entombment of a Machine
6. Embedded

Never listened to Trivium before today. I heard that their newest album was good, that they're a metalcore band, and that they're a Metallica knock-off band. I just heard the metalcore side, today. It wasn't terrible: there were no breakdowns and some actually pretty good solos. But nothing special. They said they'd be back with a really good tour in the fall, so we'll have to see. 7/10

1. ?
2. ? (something from the first album)
3. Down From The Sky
4. Throes of Perdition (part of this was real good)
5. Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr

Cannibal Corpse. Still just as awesome as they were the night before. All newer stuff except for the excellent closer of Hammer Smashed Face and Stripped, Raped & Strangled. Awesome. 9/10

1. Evisceration Plague
2. The Time To Kill Is Now
3. I Cum Blood
4. Sentenced To Burn
5. Make Them Suffer
6. Priests Of Sodom
7. Hammer Smashed Face
8. Stripped, Raped, & Strangled

Now time for the mainstage. Well, that is after some nachos and a hot dog. I got to the lawn when Bullet For My Valentine were 2 songs into their set. They seemed alright, a lot better live than on album. The vocalist's accent is amusing to me, too. But overall, alright band. 7/10

1. ?
2. ?
3. Tears Don't Fall
4. Waking The Demon (I think)
5. Take It Out On Me
6. Scream, Aim, Fire

I don't really want to get into it here; I might write an "essay" or so later, but I can say this: Killswitch Engage is the worst band I have ever seen live, metal or not. The whole band is full of douchebags, what they play is killing "heavy music" and I feel sad to know that some people actually like them and will grow up thinking they are metal. They are worse than Annotations of an Autopsy, Panther and Cobra Starship. One point for one good solo during their horrendous Holy Diver cover. It's true: metalcore is the glam metal of the 2000's. It's all about trendy shit to get money. 1/10

1. My Last Serenade
2. ?
3. Rose of Sharyn
4. ?
5. ?
6. My Curse
7.?
8. Holy Diver

Is there something wrong with metal band's sound equipment these days or what? Behemoth the night before was bad, but what happened to the first half of Slayer's set was embarassing. Sometimes the guitars would be really loud, and then fade almost completely out. Sometimes the drums would be silent. Sometimes all the sound would cut out except for Tom's mic. It was extremely unprofessional and a lot of people were pissed off. It ruined many songs which should have been awesome (Chemical Warfare, Born Of Fire, etc.) Luckily, they fixed it halfway through, during Ghosts Of War, and Slayer kicked ass for the rest of the set. Nothing was their fault, they were awesome. 8.5/10

1. Darkness Of Christ/Disciple
2. War Ensemble
3. Jihad
4. Psychopathy Red
5. Born Of Fire
6. Mandatory Suicide
7. Chemical Warfare
8. Ghosts Of War
9. Dead Skin Mask
10. Hell Awaits
11. Angel Of Death
12. South Of Heaven
13. Raining Blood

I really hope Slayer comes back here and has a more competent person working the soundboard than whatever joker was tonight. All in all, though, the day was awesome. I can't wait to see who's on Mayhem Fest 3.

Thus concludes day 2 of 5 of my metal journey. Tomorrow is a day of rest, then it's off to Skeletonwitch! Stay tuned!

Cannibal Corpse -- Omaha, NE -- July 20th, 2009

I got lost on the way here. Not terribly lost, but Mapquest really needs to update their directions. I got to my hotel after sitting in traffic, in the rain, between 2 Semi's. Meh. The drive to Omaha actually isn't all that bad. It's a lot better than the drive out to Manhattan, KS. And the hotel I stayed at is literally 1 minute via car from the venue. Awesome.

I literally stepped in the door right as the Star Wars intro played. I got to my spot at the awesome Slowdown venue (for the Kansas fans: It's like the Granada, but 2x the size) and God Forbid took the stage. I think their set was very similar to the last time I saw them on the No Fear tour, but tihs time I thought they sounded better. Their sound was crisp and clean and there weren't really too many breakdowns. I wouldn't pay to see them headline, but I wouldn't mind having them open shows from now on. 6/10

Setlist:

0. Star Wars Intro
1. ???
2. War Of Attrition
3. Empire Of The Gun
4. Antihero
5. Broken Promise
6. The End Of The World

The place was most packed for Behemoth. Yep, they went on before Black Dahlia. Inferno checked the drums forever, and you could tell they were having problems. And it showed. The sound for Behemoth had a really annoying reverb through every song except Demigod and Nergal sometimes just called for his guitar to be cut completely until they fixed it. It even interfered with Chant for Eschaton (BLASPHEMY!!!). Piss-poor job on the venue's side, but Behemoth were still awesome. They put on a great show and the crowd chanted for more. 8/10

1. Slaves Shall Serve
2. At The Left Hand Ov God
3. Conquer All
4. Demigod (awesome)
5. Ov Fire And The Void
6. Chant For Eschaton 2000

A lot of people left the floor before The Black Dahlia Murder came on, but a lot of people also went to the floor. It's my third time seeing TBDM and I still think they're very enjoyable. This time, more than the others. Trevor, their vocalist, is still a goof and you can tell they absolutely love what they do. Lots and lots of crowd surfing and stage diving. 8.5/10

1. ?
2. I Worship Only What You Bleed
3. Everything Went Black
4. Necropolis (new)
5. Elder Misanthropy (really, really good)
6. A Vulgar Picture
7. Miasma
8. What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse
9. Deathmask Divine
10. Funeral Thirst (I think)

Really, though. There's a reason why Cannibal Corpse is still around today, why they fill out shows wherever they go, and why they still rule. Because they do what they do and they do it good. Everyone who saw them tonight were in for a treat: Cannibal Corpse played 20 songs. 20 SONGS. Does Rush even play 20 songs anymore?! I heard stuff that I never thought I'd hear live, and I'm convinced that Hammer Smashed Face really is the greatest death metal song ever. At least live. I can't wait until they do a real headlining tour for Evisceration Plague. 9.5/10

1. Evisceration Plague
2. The Time To Kill Is Now
3. Disfigured
4. Death Walking Terror (Heaviest live song ever)
5. I Cum Blood
6. Fucked With A Knife
7. Sentenced To Burn
8. Evidence In The Furnace
9. The Wretched Spawn
10. Perverse Suffering
11. Scalding Hail
12. Make Them Suffer
13. Pit Of Zombies
14. Shatter Their Bones
15. Vomit The Soul
16. Priests Of Sodom
17. Unleashing The Bloodthirsty
18. A Skull Full of Maggots
19. Hammer Smashed Face
20. Stripped, Raped, and Strangled

Thus concludes show 1 of my 4 show metal journey. Gonna wake up in 7 hours, drive 3 hours back to KS and do it all again at Rockstar Mayhem tomorrow.

The first show on 2010!

It's gonna be a doozy.

Nile
Immolation
Krisiun
Abigail Williams
Dreaming Dead

At the Beaumont Club on January 24th.

...wow...

Not going to Mayhem Fest? (part 2)

Then book it up to Omaha, NE the day before! 07/20

At The Slowdown will be

Cannibal Corpse
Behemoth
The Black Dahlia Murder
God Forbid

Or, if you're extra brutal, go to this AND Mayhem Fest!

Oh, um. Some people might like this.

DevilDriver is coming to the Granada right after their Trash and Burn tour. The line-up looks like this:

DevilDriver
Emmure
MyChildrenMyBride
Veil Of Maya
Dirtfedd
HAMMERLORD!

Get in for free, watch Hammerlord, leave.

MDF VIII: May 28 - 30

MDF VIII
May 28-30, 2010

ENTOMBED (Sweden)
OBITUARY
PENTAGRAM
EYEHATEGOD
SINISTER (Netherlands)
INCANTATION
PORTAL (Аustralia)
HAEMORRHAGE (Spain)
IMPALED
GRIDLINK
INGROWING (Czech Republic)
GRIDE (Czech Republic)
MASSGRAVE (Canada)
16
BIRDS OF PREY
FUCK THE FACTS
TOMBS
HOWL

Skipping Kansas: In Flames

In Flames just announced a US Tour, and it's skipping Kansas City. There is no Chicago date, and In Flames likes to tour, so I think there'll be more dates announced, possibly for early 2009. Closest date at the time is Texas. Full dates here. Support comes from Between The Buried and Me, 3 Inches of Blood, and The Faceless.

Let's Welcome Our Boys Home!

Clutch US Tour

Clutch announced an epic tour, with dates lasting through October. It hits the Beaumont Club on October 1 with Wino (from SAINT VITUS!#@@#!@J#KMFIODJF) and Mother Revolution opening the show.

Good 1-2 shot

Dragonforce is at the Beaumont Club on Sept. 28th with Sonata Arctica. You know that, right?

The day before, Sept. 27th is metal gods Motorhead along with the semi-eclectic line-up of Reverend Horton Heat (I, unfortunately, forsee boo's in the future for them) and Nashville Pussy. It'll be at the Midland by AMC.

:D

Skipping Kansas: DOUBLE SHOT: Vader + Children of Bodom

Vader is headlining this year's iteration of MONSTERS OF DEATH. The full line-up is:

Vader
Decrepit Birth
Warbringer
Dementa
The Augury
Success Will Write Apocalypse Across The Sky

Closest date is in Tulsa, OK on Dec. 5. Full dates here.

Children of Bodom are returning for their third and final US run in support of Blooddrunk. These might not be all the dates, but it looks pretty grim for KC.

Sep. 18 - Providence, RI - Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel #
Sep. 19 - Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom *
Sep. 20 - Clifton Park, NY - Northern Lights *
Sep. 22 - Quebec City, QC - Capitole Theatre *
Sep. 23 - Montreal, QC - Metropolis *
Sep. 25 - Kitchner, ON - Elements *
Sep. 26 - Toronto, ON - Sound Academy *
Sep. 27 - Chicago, IL - House Of Blues #
Sep. 28 - Minneapolis, MN - Epic *
Sep. 30 - Winnipeg, MB - The Garrick *
Oct. 01 - Saskatoon, SK - The Odeon *
Oct. 02 - Calgary, AB - MacEwan Hall *
Oct. 03 - Edmonton, AB - EEC *
Oct. 05 - Vancouver, BC - The Commodore *
Oct. 06 - Seattle, WA - Showbox Market #
Oct. 07 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre #
Oct. 09 - San Francisco, CA - Regency Ballroom # + %
Oct. 10 - Pomona, CA - The Glasshouse #
Oct. 11 - Pomona, CA - The Glasshouse (w/ HOLY GRAIL)
Oct. 12 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre # + %
Oct. 14 - Honolulu, HI - Pipeline Cafe (CHILDREN OF BODOM only)

* THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER and SKELETONWITCH support
# SKELETONWITCH and another act (to be announced) support
% Includes special guest AUSTRIAN DEATH MACHINE

Goin' DOWN to NOLA

Phil Anselmo and Co. are returning to Kansas City after a very, very good opening set for Metallica. They will be at the Beaumont Club on August 3rd. It should be humid and muggy, just how they like it in NOLA. Tickets are $22, and no opener is announced yet.

Not going to Mayhem Fest?

Wolves In The Throne Room along with Minsk will be at the Jackpot in Lawrence that night, July 21st. I'm gonna try and make it after Slayer finishes up at Mayhem.

A little clarification regarding Mayhem Fest.

Apparently, if you have a ticket stub from Freaker's Ball in 2003 when Marilyn Manson canceled, you can exchange it at 98.9's HQ, in person, for one Mayhem ticket. This is only available until July 10th, though!

Quo Vadis -- Baltimore, MD -- June 11th, 2009

Another band that I've wanted to see for a very long time. Quo Vadis was one of the first death metal bands I've ever heard, more specifically, the song was Absolution (Element of the Ensemble II). Last night was awesome. A smaller venue with a band who looked like they felt completely comfortable, cracking jokes with one another and interacting greatly with the crowd. It was an awesome time.

The first band to play was Nightfire from New York. They played a very professional sounding technical death metal in the same style as perhaps Necrophagist at times, but more brutal. They were definitely fun to listen to and the technicality astounded at times. 8/10

The first band that performed that was on the Quo Vadis tour was Dark Faith from Florida. I preferred this band to Nightfire because they sounded more melodic and, to me, had a tinge of black metal to their sound. They were very awesome and great to headbang to. 8.5/10

The best opening band was saved for last, though. Revocation is a thrash metal band with tech. death, grindcore, and punk thrown into the sound. They're only a three-piece band, too! They played probably the most enjoyable music of the night. Hopefully, I get to see them again real soon. 9/10

Quo Vadis' set was plagued early on with some sound problems, but the band took it in stride with smiles on their faces to make for a memorable set. They cracked jokes with the crowd about how awesome band introductions were in Europe and how although they were playing for only about 30 people, they were sweating like they were playing for over 1,000. It was great fun to hear all these songs I've known for so long. I really, really hope they get to do a full US tour. 9.5/10

1. Silence Calls The Storm
2. Absolution (Element Of The Ensemble Part II)
3. Break The Cycle
4. In Contempt
5. Fate's Descent
6. On The Shores Of Ithaka
7. Tunnel Effect (Element Of The Ensemble Part IV)
8. Hunter/Killer
9. Dead Man's Diary
10. Point Of No Return: Mute Requien
11. Legions Of The Betrayed

D-Force D00d

For the first time in a very long time, Dragonforce will be hitting the Beaumont Club (with Sonata Arctica!) on September 28th!

http://www.last.fm/event/1103898

American Waste Festival -- Kansas City, MO -- June 6th, 2009

This was, by far, one of the best things to happen to the metal community in and around Kansas City. I only hope that this fest comes back again and again and again, forever. Such a good time.

I got into the Beaumont's backyard just as Muzzle Loader was starting their set. This band reminded me of when I was in junior high, going to local band house shows. The only thing is that all those bands were generic metalcore/screamo. Same for Muzzle Loader. They should spend less time on thinking how they could jump and do stuff with their guitars to look cool and more time on writing some good music. They have potential, but they're gonna have to dig for it. 5/10

After them on the outside stage as well was Iseah. Again, another generic deathcore band. Nothing special at all. 5/10

The first band worth seeing today was Sicadis on the outside stage. The vocalist was funny, they had good stage presence, and even invited some guests on stage, most notably the vocalist for At the Left Hand of God. They are melodic death metal which at times was worse, but at other times was better. It all evened out and they were very enjoyable. If they took out every instance of clean vocals and kept the same death metal vocals, it'd be great. 7.5/10

One of the main reasons for me attending this wonderful fest was up next on the outside stage and the un-unholy time of 3:15 PM. It was my third time seeing Skeletonwitch and they continue to get better and better each time I see them. They played 3 songs off their new album, due out on October 14th called "Breathing The Fire", so sayeth Chance Garnett. The rest of their set was a brilliant look back through Beyond The Permafrost. On the title song of that album, me and everyone else up close to the stage got to shout the chorus along with Chance into his microphone. They were on fire throughout their entirely to short 30-minute set. But it was 30 minutes of unholy bliss. 10/10

Sacrifice For The Slaughtergod
Fire From The Sky
Limb From Limb
Remains Of The Defeated
Crushed Beyond Dust (new)
Upon Wings Of Black
Beyond The Permafrots
Blinding Black Rage (new)
Where The Light Has Failed (new)
Within My Blood

The first band I saw inside the Beaumont club today was another band who I was really psyched to see: Hammerlord. I've said it before, I'm saying it now, and I'll say it forever more: They are the best band in and around the Kansas City area. And, as evidenced today, they have one of the most talented guitar players ever. The solos were mind-blowing. Every single part of the band clicked and they sounded outstanding. I will continue to support Hammerlord until they're as big as Testament themselves! 9/10

? (new)
Shut Your Eyes
Dead City Radio
Lordess
Thunderers

After Hammerlord, I went outside to see Troglodyte, but the schedule got mixed up. The Killer went on instead. This was, unfortunately, the worst band of the day. They sounded like generic "brocore" hardcore, and the mix was terrible. All I could hear were drums. No one in the band looked into it at all until about the last song. They just didn't sound good at all. 4/10

I decided to skip Snake Eater and watch The Esoteric reunion inside the club. I'm not really sure what kind of genre to put The Esoteric in, but they were heavy, and that's all that really matters. I think maybe they'd be called metalcore, back when it wasn't such a dirty word but actually, you know, good. Also elements of heavy metal thrown in. A good show all around. 8/10

Partial/Out of order setlist:

Until The Grave Gives Up The Ghost
Destroy, She Said

To close out the outside stage, Troglodyte battered everyone who was out there to witness their awesome brand of death metal/grindcore. They seemed really into it, especially the vocalist, and it came through. The mix was a bit iffy at time, but it hardly mattered to Trog. I wish they could've played for longer; it's always a pleasure to see them. 8/10

Partial/Out of order setlist:

Troglodyte Rises
Don't Go Into The Woods...
Skunk Ape Rape
We Eat Our Own
Die When You Die (GG Allin Cover)
Beaten And Eaten
They Walk Among Us

I walked back into the club to catch the last song from LaZarus A.D. Not enough to really give them a fair review, but I liked what I heard. I hope they come back soon.

I saw Unearth open for Slayer back in 2007. While they were slightly better this time around, they were still very, very bad. Every song was pretty much 50% generic breakdowns. It didn't really help that their guitarist is a huge tool as well. Some parts sounded halfway decent, but it just went back down the toilet with breakdown after breakdown. Not good at all. 5/10

Testament. Need I say more? They were near perfect. They are pretty much the epitome of a classic thrash band. I've seen Exodus, Metallica and Slayer and Testament blew them all out of the water. What kept this from being the perfect set is that I wished they would've played for longer. But what we got was fantastic. Alex Skolnick is a beast on the guitar and Chuck Billy is a fantastic frontman. They were loud, fast, and awesome. And they played Disciples of the Watch!

OBEY!
9.5/10

Not 100% on the setlist, if anyone wants to correct it, go ahead:

The Preacher
The New Order
Over The Wall
More Than Meets The Eye
The Persecuted Won't Forget
Burnt Offerings
True Believer (?)
Into The Pit
Disciples Of The Watch
encore:
D.N.R.
3 Days In Darkness
The Formation Of Damnation

Overall, this was an outstanding day of metal. Tomorrow, Coalesce is headlining, but I'm dead. Everyone else go. Let's hope this becomes a yearly thing in Kansas City.

Awesome kvlt tour!

After a great showing at the Blackest of the Black tour last year on Halloween, Moonspell will be returning to Kansas City at the Beaumont Club with Samael, Book of Black Earth, and Secrets Of The Moon. Wear your best spikes'n'chains for this one! The show will be happening on October 24th.

FINALLY

Riot Room
July 7th.
Sunn O)).

Be there.

REO Speedwagon -- Kansas City, MO -- June 4th, 2009

Very surprising, every band did very, very good tonight. Starlight Theater was packed, just like any venue is whenever REO Speedwagon is in town. It was a bit chilly by the time they went on, but REO put on a pretty good show. They are good ol' classic rock. They only played a few new songs; the rest was stuff you'd hear on the radio often. "Can't Fight This Feeling" got a big reaction, as did "Keep On Lovin' You". REO was very heavy on the power ballad's, but they never got old. They had an encore with "Ridin' the Storm Out" and ended with a new song which they brought out Styx (the entire band) that was heavy on crowd participation. A great end to the show.

Unfortunately for REO Speedwagon, they had a really tough act to follow. Styx is very, very good live. I'd say REO Speedwagon is "heavier" than Styx, but that's like saying Slayer is "heavier" than Rush. Styx also channeled their inner Rush, as the synth and guitars in some songs reached a near-prog quality. There really was not a bad Styx song tonight in Kansas City. And to be a part of the crowd that roars into "Come Sail Away" is really something else.

The show opened with 38 Special. They were all around quality, but really shone later on. As the only band without an encore, they performed a medley of songs that included "Second Chance" and ended their set with the 1-2 punch of "Caught Up In You" and "Hold On Loosely". Not a bad set from them.


38 SPECIAL (40 minutes) -

Rockin' Into the Night
Twentieth Century Fox
Back Where You Belong
Wild-Eyed Southern Boys
Fantasy Girl
Medley - Teacher Teacher; Stone Cold Believer; Like No Other Night; Second Chance
Caught Up In You
Hold On Loosely

7.5/10

STYX (80 minutes) -

Miss America
Too Much Time On My Hands
The Grand Illusion
Lorelei
I Am The Walrus
Crystal Ball
Suite Madame Blue
Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
Come Sail Away
ENCORES-
Home Sweet Chicago
Blue Collar Man
Renegade

8.5/10

REO SPEEDWAGON -

Don't Let Him Go
Take It On The Run
Keep Pushin'
Golden Country
Can't Fight This Feeling
Son Of A Poor Man
Time For Me To Fly
Back On The Road Again
Keep On Loving You
Roll With The Changes
ENCORES-
Ridin' The Storm Out
Can't Stop Rockin' (with STYX)

8/10

Supergroup Chickenfoot is coming

The supergroup CHICKENFOOT, comprised of Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Michael Anthony (Van Halen), Joe Satriani, and Sammy Hagar (Van Halen) will be at the Uptown Theater on Aug. 11!

Ben Folds -- Kansas City, MO -- May 30th, 2009

Happy birthday to me! When I found out Ben Folds was playing in Kansas City the day before my birthday, I was ecstatic and I wasn't let down!

The opening band was Rachel Unthank & The Winterset. They're a folk band from England. They were alright, but got a little boring after a while. Nothing special, nothing too bad. 5/10

This was my 5th time seeing Ben Folds and the best since Way To Normal came out. He seemed really loose and playful. He cracked a lot of jokes, had a lot of crowd banter, and even went out into the crowd once! It was definitely the most joking/friendly I've seen Ben. The set is still full of Way To Normal tracks and the staple tracks as well, but there were some gems thrown in there. Namely: Battle of Who Could Care Less and Boxing. Boxing was the highlight of the night for me. Ben said the band is cooling down and going to record their new album. I can't wait for it and I can't wait for them to be back. :)

Effington
Brainwascht
Sentimental Guy
Kate
Lovesick Diagnostician
Battle of Who Could Care Less
Bitch Went Nutz
Annie Waits
There's Always Someone Cooler Than You
Dr. Yang
Hiroshima
Jesusland
Before Cologne > Cologne
Free Coffee

Ben Solo:
Boxing
Best Imitation of Myself
Gracie

Narcolepsy (extended)
Errant Dog
Landed
You Don't Know Me
Zak And Sara
Rockin' the Suburbs

Encore:
Kansas City Blues improv
Army
Not The Same
One Angry Dwarf

10/10

I have video of Annie Waits, Imitation, Gracie and Narcolepsy. I will upload it soon!

New Hydra Head Releases Streaming

http://cleanhandsgofoul.com/ - Khanate - Clean Hands Go Foul
http://allreflectionsdrained.com/ - Xasthur - All Reflections Drained

Warning: Khanate will mess you up.

The Skeletonwitch concert just got 1000 times better.

Skeletonwitch
Trap Them
Saviours

Be still my heart.

At the Riot Room on July 23rd.

More stage dives! More circle pits! MORE ENERGY!

A pretty awesome hardcore package is coming through Kansas City.

Headliner:

Poison The Well

Certain Dates:

Madball
Bane
Vision Of Disorder

Support:

Terror
Death Before Dishonor
War Of Ages
Crime In Stereo
Trapped Under Ice
The Mongoloids
The Ghost Inside
This Is Hell
Vision

The best part? Tickets are TEN DOLLARS!

It comes to the Midland on August 1.

GWAR -- Kansas City, MO -- May 13th, 2009

Such a GOOD show. And the venue, Crossroads KC, is a nice outdoor venue as well.

Cattle Decapitation opened the show promptly at 8:00, and it was the best time I've seen them by far. The new material from The Harvest Floor goes over so well. The band was tight and never missed a beat and Travis Ryan still has my vote for best American extreme metal vocalist. Travis also did some ambient/drone music in between tracks. Very interesting and it worked well. 9/10

The Gardeners Of Eden
A Body Farm
To Serve Man
We Are Horrible People
Tooth Enamel And Concrete
In Axetasy
Success...(Is Hanging By The Neck)
Regret & The Grave

Priestess was next. I only knew them from their one song on Guitar Hero, but they were pretty entertaining. They started to grate on my nerves (mostly from the vocals) but they were alright. They should be opening for The Sword. The drummer was the best part of the band. At least, he was until he sang on one track. Yeesh. Overall, pretty enjoyable. 7.5/10

The Gem
?
"Sideways" soemthing
? (something about voices)
?
?
?
Lay Down
?

Hoooooly crap. I can't believe I went this long without seeing GWAR. There were so many homemade GWAR shirts and so many fanatical fans that it was almost like a GWAR festival. It wasn't just a concert, it was a show. Complete with decapitated Barack Obama, disemboweled Hillary Clinton, and a mecha Ronald Reagan, there was no shortage of bloody moshing at this show. Excellent, excellent performance. They'll be on tour again in August, they said, for their 25th anniversary. Let's hope they come back to Kansas City. 9/10

1. Battle-Lust
2. Salaminizer
3. Go To Hell
4. Bring Back The Bomb
5. Bonesnapper
6. Crack In The Egg
7. A Short History of The End of the World
8. Murderer’s Muse
9. Crush Kill Destroy
10. Ham On The Bone
11. Krosstika
12. War Is All We Know
13. The Private Pain of Techno Destro
14. U Ain’t Shit
15. Rock N Roll Never Felt So Good
-------
16. Eighth Lock
17. Slaughterama
18. Sick of You

SKELETONWIIIITCH!

http://www.last.fm/event/1065997
1
Coming to the Riot Room July 23rd! That's twice this year already. Let's hope for more!

20 Years of Madness

Today, twenty years ago, Morbid Angel released the greatest death metal album ever: Altars Of Madness. Here's to twenty more.