Monday, June 25, 2012

Live show #11: Valkyrie at RAS Hall

This show was the first time I'd been to DC in a while, and my first experience with the RAS hall. The venue is an Ethiopian restaurant, kinda like Asefu's, but with a more sensible layout. The thing is, shows have to be over pretty early, so this one started around 3 pm.

Ilsa opened. They played some new material from their new full-length on A389, coming this Halloween. The new stuff was a marked improvement on their sound, capitalizing on each members' strengths more than in the past. I've watched this band from the beginning, and it's good to see they're still improving. Their live sound in particular these days is much more discernable. They never fail to disappoint.

Richmond greats Inter Arma were next, playing a long set of long songs. They're still playing mostly songs from Sundown, but they have a new EP out and a forthcoming full-length. Here's another band with whom I have a long history. It's always a treat to see these guys, and they always deliver. TJ's drumming usually steals the show for me; over-the-top but always on-point. Their new material delves deeper into the black metal they hinted at with Sundown.

Lastly, Harrisonburg's Valkyrie rocked us for nearly an hour. This band has Alan from the awesome Earthling as well as Pete Adams from a little band called Baroness. Valkyrie play doomy, guitar-harmony-driven rock. It's feel-good music for me, and while perhaps they're not reinventing the wheel, the delivery was nearly flawless. Each member has enough style to make the music special. Though it was weird having the show over at 7, it ran smoothly and hopefully they continue to have shows at RAS hall.

-Ben

Listen/download the show:

Live show #10: Fight Amp at Charm City Art Space

I did not originally intend to attend this show, but my show with Xozo got shut down, so I headed over to Charm City Art Space. These circumstances unfortunately caused me to miss most of the bands, including the amazing Multicult, whose live performances always seem to evade me.

I arrived during the beginning of Pfisters' set.* They played competent, punky noise rock. Their set was a little lengthy but they included a cover of Agent Orange's "Bloodstains" (you might recognize it from Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4) which was fun.           

Fight Amp were the headliners, one of my favorites. Practically every time I've seen them they've had a new lineup. Tonight was no exception, with a new drummer in the fold (who made his shitty frankenstein kit sound great). Even though Fight Amp have a new album coming out and a better, more recent one, they heavily favored their first album, Hungry for Nothing. I like that album a lot, but I've heard them play those songs many times; it would have been nice to hear some stuff from the underrated Manners and Praise. Still, it's a shame more people didn't show up; Fight Amp's sound and delivery were exceptional. Be sure to catch 'em next time!

-Ben

*I greatly regret posting a myspace link, but this seems to be their only web presence.

Listen/Download the show:

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Live show #9: Maryland Deathfest X; Sunday

Sunday; the day of DOOOOM! I first caught my pals in Cough's set. Hands down, they had the best sound of the festival, which was mostly because they brought their own gear. In fact, they even had better tone than their masters in Electric Wizard would have later.

Next I saw some of Rwake's set and most of Morgoth's. The latter would have been a lot better on the inside; seeing their eerie death metal outside in the bright sun kind of diminished any atmosphere they might have. Still though, it was fun to see the old Death-imitators.

I really wanted to see all of Japan's Church of Misery, but watching them meant having the blistering afternoon sun in my face, so eventually pasty me decided to head inside for New Zealand's Ulcerate. I'm not too into that technical death metal stuff, but I enjoyed their approach. While the drums and vocals are clearly in the tech death vein, the guitars use Neurosis-like riffs and atmosphere to conjure something more.

Next inside were the mighty YOB. They were crushing as expected. It was my first time seeing them with their original drummer, who made a difference by playing more slowly and forcefully. Forty-five minutes isn't much time for a YOB set though; they only played three songs. They closed with the 20+ minute "Mental Tyrant" from The Unreal Never Lived, which was a rare treat to see. If not for the sheer spectacle of seeing Electric Wizard live, YOB's set would rate as my favorite of the day.

Wino and Saint Vitus were the next band I caught outside. While their set favored their classic Born Too Late, something about this band doesn't lend itself to an outdoor festival environment. I saw them in a more intimate small club and they were much more convincing. Perhaps it was also that everyone (myself included) was most stoked for the immediately proceeding Electric Wizard. Unfortunately, my recorder shut off after one song of Electric Wizard, so that's all you get. I'm sure there are other recordings floating around, though.

I don't care that I didn't record them though; it was insane to actually see this band. Electric Wizard never stray far from their home of England. I have to point out their live guitar tone was not quite up to their recorded standards, but that was clearly due to them using rented, tinny Marshalls. As mentioned before, Richmond's Cough had better Electric Wizard tone than Electric Wizard. But I digress; EW's set was phenomenal. They played mostly Black Masses and Witchcult Today material, but threw in a song from Come My Fanatics and of course they ended with the legendary "Funeralopolis."

The last band I saw was German "dark metal" act Bethlehem. I'm honestly not too familiar with this band even though I have their first two albums. However, they put on a good performance, with an emphasis on atmosphere. Their vocals were actually pretty close to being scary. I recognized their talent, but at this point I was pretty numb from experiencing all the weekend's amazing bands. I hate festivals, but Maryland Deathfest is about as good as it gets in the U.S. for that kind of thing. Another year, another Deathfest.

-Ben

Listen/download the show:

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Live show #8: Maryland Deathfest X; Saturday

Round two! Fight! My second day of this year's Deathfest started out with a rare performance by Wisconsin thrashers Morbid Saint. They played a solid set, showcasing the classic Spectrum of Death album. It's weird, though; seeing lots of these classic/ostensibly mindblowing bands all in one festival kind of diminishes the greatness of each individual bands' performances. That's just a downside of the festival environment, though.

Speaking of being underwhelmed, there wasn't much to tickle my fancy before Brujeria, so I checked out Anvil. Honestly, I was only familiar with them through their documentary, which is basically them whining about not attaining success over their 30-year run. There's a reason for that: the music just isn't that good. Sloppy playing, tired metal clichés, and cheesy old-metal-guy stage banter do not help.

Most unfortunately, death metal asesinos Brujeria and sludge legends Noothgrush played at the same time. I decided to watch a bit of Brujeria then head inside for Noothgrush. Both bands killed it, but I'm a bit more of a Noothgrush fan honestly, even with Jeff Walker and Shane Embury playing in Brujeria. Morbid Angel were supposed to play immediately following Noothgrush, but there were some technical difficulties (sound man yelling at guitar techs) happening on Morbid Angel's stage which delayed them for a bit. All was good when they launched into their classic "Immortal Rites," though. Their set consisted mostly of songs from Altars of Madness and Covenant, a good move by the band. However, they did play two songs from their dreaded new album, Illud... whatever. This was contrary to the rumor going around that they were contractually forbidden to play any song from that release. When they changed guitars for the last two songs, lead guitarist Trey Azagthoth inexplicitly walked off the stage, without the other members even acknowledging it (my recorder also stopped recording at this point). Weird, but maybe he needed to get back to Quake III or something...

The last band I caught was Winter, after witnessing some police bullshit involving fireworks. Another legendary band, another great set. I feel like a bit of a broken record by praising most of the bands I see/record, but this blog is more about documentation than critique. Winter's bleak Celtic-Frost-at-33rpm set was a fitting closer for the evening; everyone worn out from the long day of metal. One more day!

-Ben

Stream/Download the show:

Monday, May 28, 2012

Live show #7: Maryland Deathfest X; Friday

It's that time of year again. Maryland Deathfest: "America's biggest metal party." It's slogan is true, but it's also a four-day test of one's endurance for metal, Baltimore heat/humidity, and drunken heshers.

Tickets for Thursday sold out quickly, so Friday was the first day I attended. I planned on seeing the first band of the day Castevet, but I missed them due to some ticket confusion. Bummer. After catching up with some old friends, the first band I saw was Creepsylvania's Ghoul. Replete with giant Robo-battles and fake blood flowing, their set was fun as always. Ghoul is absolutely all about the live show; they have some solid thrash metal records but live is where the magic happens.

After Ghoul I saw Today is the Day. Their sound was botched by an extreme over-abundance of sub-bass frequencies, but their set was fantastic nonetheless. Frontman Steve Austin always puts 100% into each performance, even with the sound issues and breaking guitar strings. After that was British grind OGs Napalm Death. Most of my enjoyment of their set was rendered null by their atrocious sound. The thing about metal/hardcore/whatever is one needs to hear the guitar riffs to recognize and enjoy the songs. Napalm Death's sound was mostly bass drum, vocals, and sub-bass; the guitar was an indiscernable, high-frequency mess. I know playing outside isn't ideal, but I've never seen such a good band sound so bad. I decided to stop recording them 20 minutes in to save space for Godflesh and Unsane.

Godflesh immediately followed Napalm Death. I was looking forward to seeing them more than any band at the festival, so I was pretty concerned about the sound issue. Luckily, there is much less to mess up with them seeing as they are a two piece with a drum machine. They really delivered, opening with "Like Rats" and crushing everyone in attendance with those massive riffs. Justin Broadrick was intense as he ever was in the early days of the band. They kind of blew their load early with a bunch of songs from Streetcleaner, but I was beyond stoked to be seeing them at all.

Right after Godflesh inside was NYC noise rock legends Unsane. They actually had good sound, and played a nice, varied set. The material from their new album, Wreck, sounded great. They ended their set with a cover of Flipper's "Ha Ha Ha." Not being a big fan of the last band Nasum, I left after Unsane to get some sleep for day two.

-Ben

Download/Stream the show:

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Live show #6: Sky Burial at Piss Palace

The Piss Palace is not actually a palace made of some sort of crystalline urine, but a tiny basement in Baltimore. I'm not sure if they're still calling it Piss Palace, as the promotion for this show merely said the address of the house. Regardless, this was not my first time here; At the Graves played here with openers Dead Peasants not too long ago.

Dead Peasants started things off well with their bassless drone/black metal set. These guys are seriously one of the best new bands in Baltimore; be sure to check them out. I was particularly transfixed by their drummer's performance. I've never seen blasts so fast, so forceful, and unaided by triggers (or even microphones in this case), and he only uses a miniscule 3-piece set. Mind blown once again.

Next was The Lottery. I was pretty stoked to finally see them after recording them a while ago. Instead of bass, this band uses a cello. It's an effective replacement, and it certainly gives them some originality. While each member was plagued with technical difficulties throughout the set, it was still very enjoyable from an audience perspective. Their set consisted of one 30-minute sludge epic, with a smidge of post-rock dynamics thrown in occasionally.

Sky Burial were the headliners, on tour from Nashville, TN. I wasn't familiar with them prior to this evening, but any band that uses the holy grail of tone that is the Mesa Mark III is worth checking out to me. They didn't disappoint, giving a very solid performance of their spacey post-metal sound. They happened to be the only band that had a bassist this show. His basslines reminded me of the bass playing in Isis; very present but clearly serving the song. Despite being the headliners, Sky Burial played only a criminally short 20-minute set. I guess it was at somebody's house, though: such a show needs to be over at a reasonable time.

-Ben

Listen to/download the show:

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Betterment

All the shows I've recorded are now on bandcamp, and there's a player embedded in each post for your listening convenience. You can also download them in whatever format you want from bandcamp. Easier for me (no mp3 encoding), easier for you.

Here's the page: http://inhumanyouth.bandcamp.com

-Ben

Friday, May 11, 2012

Live show #5: Tragedy at Ottobar

Tonight I was faced with the tough decision of attending either this Tragedy/Triac/Occultist show or Pygmy Lush/Screaming Females at the Golden West. Obviously I chose the former, mostly because it seemed like the rarer occurance.

I missed openers Wargames due to some serious traffic on 295 going into Baltimore. Local grind greats Triac were second. Xozo played with them once. I was eagerly anticipating seeing this band, as I've not yet seen them without ex-singer Noel (now in Lady Piss). As usual, they failed to disappoint. Jake's drum performance was mesmerising, and Chad and Kevin held it up vocally.

Next were Occultist from Richmond. Having no prior experience with this band, I was pleasantly surprised by their solid set. Their sound kind of ran the gamut from thrash to death to black metal, but they tied it all together with tight transistions. Frontwoman K.Z. put on a pretty menacing performance. Check 'em out; I think At the Graves is playing with them on May 20th at Casa Fiesta in D.C.

Though some might unfavorably compare headliners Tragedy to their legendary old band His Hero is Gone, I like them both for different reasons. Tragedy has that sappy minor-key feel that I'm usually a sucker for. The recording of Tragedy's set came out pretty well, but it doesn't come close to representing their live energy. Their music seems to be built for the live performance, with lots of epic vocal refrains and D-beats to encourage audience participation. They mixed in some decidedly darker new material from their new LP, but their set had a good flow and included a nice mix of their material.

Download the show: 051012 - Tragedy at Ottobar

-Ben

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Live Show #4: Old Man Gloom at Ottobar

Monkey time in Baltimore! It's awesome Old Man Gloom are back. It's too bad At the Graves couldn't play this show, but oh well.

I missed the first band and all but the last song of Passage Between. The latter seem to open most of the good tour shows that come around. They seem to get better every time I see them, though. Ilsa, the heaviest band in DC, were next. Not much needs to be said on them; I love those guys and they always fucking rule live.

Lastly, Old Man Gloom brought the simian rage. Interspersing tracks from their new tour-only album "NO" with cuts from all their other releases, they played a satisfying 50-minute set. The climax was when they played most of the monumental single track from Seminar III, "Zozobra." Notice the "most"; they inexplicitly left out the awesome coda with the guitar solo. My only other complaints were that the bass was a little too loud and they could have played a lot longer, considering the show was over before 11. That's nitpicking though; it was a rare treat to finally see them and in turn I seriously enjoyed it.

Download the show: 050612 Old Man Gloom at Ottobar

-Ben

A Warning

So, apparently these sendspace links I have for the shows can be a little confusing. To mitigate such confusion, I have constructed a handy diagram with pro imaging software Microsoft Paint. Enjoy!

-Ben

Live show #3: Barclay House 8th Anniversary Show

Barclay house: Baltimore's longest-running DIY space and one of my favorite venues. It was my mom's birthday, so I missed all but the last four bands. I arrived during Bad Biology's set. Their noisy, My War/Slip It In-era Black Flag worship resonated with me; that's the way I like my hardcore punk.

The turnout was great for this show; it was pretty much a giant party for the Baltimore underground punk/metal scene. This amounted to much less boredom between bands. The next group was Musket Hawk; a solid, newish punk/metal band with a touch of early screamo influence. I dug 'em. Their drummer was pretty awesome.

After Musket Hawk, and being entertained by my inebriated friends, was Philly's noise-punks Nightfall. They were as good as the last time I saw them, when Revolta played with them at Sidebar about a year ago. During their chaotic set I got caught in the mosh, so the recording's a little uneven in parts. It's got that err... gritty, real charm to it!

Lastly was the return of Diablero. While they had some technical difficulties, they played with conviction (especially Mr. Carnes!)  and it was good to see them again after a few years. The basement was packed for their set, which made it that more intense. All in all it was a fun, fitting show to celebrate a mainstay of the Baltimore underground.

Download the show: 050512 Barclay Anniversary

-Ben


Sunday, April 29, 2012

Live show #2: Wizard Rifle at Golden West

I arrived at the Golden West cafe in time to catch Dan Ivan's set. I'm glad I did; it was this guitarist playing weird noisy rock stuff with loops. "Weird noisy rock" is an probably an apt description of all the bands that played this show.

Next was Lady Piss. Revolta played with them awhile ago at the now-defunct Hexagon, so I was familiar with them. Check 'em out; they're definitely the best AmRep-noise rock worshippers around. Or maybe the only ones, but regardless they always impress me live. During their set this time this crazy random guy came storming into the Golden West, demanded they stop (they didn't), and proceeded to bring in a bunch of old clothes and food, saying he was sacrificing for everyone there or something. I guess they eventually kicked him out, but it was pretty err... entertaining.


Wizard Rifle, on tour from Oregon, were last. I've seen their name around a lot, being that they're on Seventh Rule, but I hadn't really checked them out prior to tonight. Too bad! I certainly enjoyed their 2-piece sludgy, mathy noise rock sound. The guitarist made really good use of his whammy pedal; something I rarely see. It's too bad more people didn't show up, but Wizard Rifle seemed satisfied after their set. Catch them the next time they roll around!

Download the show: 042912 Wizard Rifle at Golden West

-Ben

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Live show #1: Endless Bummer at McDaniel College

This show was somewhat of a test run for my new recorder. It was a benefit show for the Shriners' Children Hospital, taking place in a church at McDaniel College in Westminster. I missed the first few bands.

The show was pretty terrible; very few people showed up and most of the bands weren't exactly to my taste. I made this trek to visit a good friend who attends McDaniel and to support my pals in Endless Bummer (plus I was dying to try out the recorder). This show isn't really indicative of the shows I'll be covering, so don't worry.

The recordings sound pretty decent considering the show was in a massive, noisy church. The sound was particularly apt for the jangly surf rock of the Flying Faders. On the other hand, the reverberant church wasn't the best setting for Baltimore blackened punks Endless Bummer, but they played some new jams which were pretty sweet.

-Ben

Download: 042512-EndlessBummer-McDaniel

INSTANTIATION

I'm Ben. I play in the bands At the Graves, Xozo, Dry Clouds, and once upon a time Revolta and Midnight Eye. This is my blog. It exists because I acquired a decent handheld recorder (handles high SPLs) with which, along with words, I will document live shows.