Nekrogoblikon at The Whiskey on 1/18

Riding on the heels of my post about Klingon metal, I bring you another delightfully bizarre and original metal sub-genre: goblin metal! Seriously, I cannot make this stuff up.

Nekrogoblikon is a local metal band who writes songs mostly about goblins - except for that one song about bears. They've got kind of a Euro-thrash vibe with impressive twin guitar leads and bitchin' fast keyboard solos. There are also some campy electronic disco beats thrown in occasionally but it kind of makes sense, especially if you've seen the music video for No One Survives. I'd venture to say that fans of Children of Bodom and Powerglove would dig them equally.

Anyway, they put on a totally incredible show and since they were the headliners they actually got to play a long set. I especially enjoyed "Return to the Sky", the song about birds plucking out everyone's eyes and reducing humanity to bird droppings. I'm choosing to believe it was somewhat Hobbit-inspired.

The only photo I got right before my phone battery died.

Make sure you stalk Nekrogoblikon on Facebook or Reverb Nation to find out about their next shows and stream their music for FREE.

The next event on my concert calendar is Scrap Metal at The Key Club on 1/26.

The Glory Stompers at The Whiskey on 1/14

Have I mentioned that recently The Whiskey has gotten a lot better? Well, it has! The last few shows I've seen there have had zero drama from security guards and no bands have had their sets cut short. My only complaint would be that one of the bartenders likes to charge $2 for tap water. Hey lady, cut it out. But mostly, it's alright.

The Glory Stompers played a totally bitchin' show at The Whiskey last Monday! The crowd was a bit sleepy and timid at first but they all warmed up after Joe shouted at them and humped the air for a few songs. Lovely stuff.

James and Mike tearin' it up!

That would be Joe's leg. Mike and Dustin are busy shredding.

I write about these guys all the time and I'm sure I'm beginning to sound rather redundant by now but they're the kind of band that even the average concert-phobic shmoe wouldn't mind seeing over and over again. They've easily got one of the best stage performances of any LA band I know and they're really solid musicians. If you like hard rock or metal you'll probably love this band.

Joe wields the American flag like it's a weapon.

Be sure to check out The Glory Stompers on Facebook or Reverb Nation.

The next event on my concert calendar is Ascendancy at The Whiskey on 1/24.

Special Report from Portland - Klingon Metal at Dante's on 1/12!

Initially, the purpose of this blog was to provide recaps of concerts that take place in the Los Angeles area only but I happened to see a band called Stovokor play on my last trip to Portland and decided I absolutely had to write about them. These guys are a Klingon metal band that has fully immersed themselves in the Star Trek Klingon mythos. This band doesn't seem to tour much so if you're ever in the Portland area and they happen to be playing a show you HAVE to go!! Alternatively, you can contact them online and beg them to come play a show in LA. Seriously, I feel like I need to circulate a petition or something! I might even be willing to find them accommodations at Gene & Angela's Half-Way House for Traveling Bands.

Dante's was a pretty cool venue. I get the feeling that Portland is more of a punk rock town than a metal town because the times I've visited it seems to be mostly punk bands playing shows. Stovokor actually played in between two punk bands as well but there were several metalheads in attendance so it wasn't a totally punk crowd. As soon as the first punk band finished the metal fans lined up at the front of the stage.

Prepare yourself - Stovokor plays in full Klingon makeup. They have three guitar players, a bass player, vocalist, and drummer. I imagine that all of the Klingons in Portland are probably in this band. (Klingons seem to be sort of a minority.) But they were highly entertaining and had great stage presence! Musically speaking, I'm not sure I'd categorize them in any metal subgenre or call them anything but "metal" but I mean that in a good way.

Klingon guitar player. "For the Glory of Qo'nos!"

Klingon bass player.

Klingon vocalist. The rest of the band did a pretty good job hiding from the camera.

The only bummer was that the band disappeared quickly after their set was over because they had to move their gear out of the venue so I wasn't able to get a photo with anyone in Klingon makeup as I had requested. I also didn't get a chance to buy any merch because I didn't see any for sale. That sucked because I always try to buy merch and support the band. Hopefully I'll get a chance to grab a CD the next time I see them!

Be sure to check out Stovokor on facebook or stalk them in person in Portland! 

The next event on my concert calendar is Lighting Swords of Death at Footsie's tonight, 1/22.

Ex Mortus, Winterthrall at The Airliner on 1/5

The Airliner is a such a cool venue! Ex Mortus, Winterthrall, Letum Ascensus and several other bands put on a killer show at this place last Saturday and there wasn't a single boring moment the whole night! The Airliner has a really cool set up inside with two separate stages upstairs and downstairs so that one band can play while the next band tears down or sets up. They also serve food and have a really spacious smoking patio outside where drinks are allowed. So far, it's also been a 100% douche bag free environment. Seriously, it's awesome!

The first band I saw was Ex Mortus, who blew away any expectations I had for the night and set the bar way too high for the bands playing after them. These dudes probably aren't major headliners yet because not enough people know about them but, damn, I would hate to follow these guys. It's like a neoclassical thrash metal explosion full of technical playing AND catchy riffs! Both guitar players have an extremely intimidating skill level but no one in the band is douchy or arrogant. (I'm sure I'd probably be a douche bag if I did anything half as well as these guys can play guitar.) Another note about this band: the sound was perfect at this show, and it was perfect the last time I saw them, too, which I think says a lot because some of my very favorite bands consistently have a really hard time getting their levels right. So major props to them for getting the sound perfect. I bought a T-shirt and a CD.

    Yet again, I forgot to bring my camera and had to rely on an iphone for photos.

I wandered around for a bit in between sets and came back upstairs to see Winterthrall put on a great performance. They're a blackened death metal band with a doom feel, except that their music isn't slow and boring like a lot of doom metal. It's the perfect music to listen to on a really rainy day when you suspect that the sun has finally been swallowed up by portentous black clouds and the sheer hopelessness of humanity is finally being washed out to sea. (I wish!)

And then Letum Ascensus finished off the night by playing some very loud and heavy death metal. It was fun!

Be sure to find Ex Mortus, Winterthrall, and Letum Ascensus on Facebook, Reverb Nation or whatever your favorite music site is.

The next event on my concert calendar is Lightning Swords of Death at Footsie's on Tuesday, January 22nd (or possibly Nekrogoblicon on Friday, January 18th, at The Whiskey).