Scorpion Child, Gypsyhawk at The Viper Room on 10/5

Holy crap, what an awesome night! 70's hard rock commandeered  the Viper Room last Friday with awesome performances by Scorpion Child and Gypsyhawk. It was a rock 'n roll double whammy!

Seeing Scorpion Child play was one of those concert moments when you say to yourself "I can't believe I'm really here now and my life is so hellaciously rad!" When they took the stage, I felt like I had been pulled through a time portal to the early 1970's - except that I was loving it instead of hating it! 
I like some classic rock but I am definitely 100% hesher and 0% flowerchild. Somehow, Scorpion Child has taken classic 70's rock and completely reinvigorated it without really changing the essence of it.  I think it's partly due to the amazing, melodic bass lines that drive most of the songs and the overall incredible, dynamic song composition.  Everyone is pulling their own weight in this band. Sure, there is a Led Zeppelin influence but nothing I heard sounded derivative or unoriginal (did you get that joke?). In fact, I'll go so far as to say I like Scorpion Child better than Zeppelin because they don't remind me of dirty free-love hippies, even though they did have a dude doing psychedelic visuals on an overhead projector, but you know what? He was rad, too.  

The only band that could follow a set like that is Gypsyhawk, and fortunately, that's who played next. These guys also have a 70's rock feel but their style is a little more metal, with muscular guitar riffs and shredding solos. Their set was totally killer and full of songs off of their new album, Revelry and Resilience, which I highly recommend you buy. These guys balanced out their 70's rock vibe with some 80's cock-rock, synchronized, guitar moves and got the crowd really going! People were dancing, head-banging and rockin' out for the entire set! They finished their set with Commander of the High Forest, an awesome song off of their first album, and then we all migrated over to The Rainbow to keep the party going. What a great night! 

Be sure to check out both bands on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Gypsyhawkusa

https://www.facebook.com/scorpionchild

The next event on my concert calendar is Dreaming Dead on October 20th at The Stardust Club.

Accept, Kreator at The Avalon on 9/26

German metal invaded Hollywood and blew the top off of The Avalon last Wednesday!

I had never seen Accept before and I'm not very familiar with the material they've put out in the post-Udo years so I wasn't sure what to expect. Oh man, it was so awesome! These guys had such camaraderie on stage - you could tell they really love performing and they've been doing it for a long time. The crowd was stoked and gave back tons of good energy to the band. I was thrilled when they played Losers and Winners and Fast as a Shark, and I really enjoyed the songs they played off of their new album, Stalingrad. I was standing right behind the sound booth so I could hear them really well. The sound was killer - that's a concert experience I rarely have. After their set the band was walking around and talking to fans, even hanging out at the merch booth for a bit. What an awesome bunch of dudes!

The night got even better when Kreator took to the stage and began to lay waste to everyone's ear drums with some blood thirsty, relentless thrash metal! Same as the Accept set, I really enjoyed the songs they played off of their newest album, Phantom Anti-Christ, and I totally rocked out to Pleasure to Kill and Raise the Flag of Hate.  The only thing I did not enjoy was the lack-luster crowd enthusiasm. Seriously, these guys came all the way from Germany, played an awesome show, and then no one was able to muster more than a golf-clap? Lame. Anyway, if you've never heard Kreator before, you should check them out. You'll definitely like them if you're a Slayer fan. They have a similar angry guitar tone and they're super fast shredders. A lot of their brutal sound also comes from their amazing drummer, Jurgen "Ventor" Reil, who knows exactly how to compose and execute a pounding thrash metal drum fill.

https://www.facebook.com/KreatorOfficial?fref=ts

The next event on my concert calendar is Gypsyhawk at The Viper Room on Oct. 5th.

TYR at The Whiskey, with Moonsorrow, Korpiklaani on 9/12

After almost three years of being a huge fan, I finally got to see TYR live at The Whiskey! As soon as Metsatoll completed their set, I squirmed up to the very front of the stage to maximize my viking metal experience. And what an experience it was! Sure, there are plenty of other folk metal and viking metal bands out there, most of which I've seen, but no other band comes close to sounding like TYR. Ah, the bright clear guitar tone, the Faroese chanting, the ancient rhythms of old Norse songs... all of these attributes and the feelings they impart are unique to TYR. Their songs conjure up images of viking long ships navigating the foamy oceans centuries long past during the great Norse expansion.... sigh. As expected, their live show was nothing short of breath-taking and it exceeded every expectation I had. Now, all of my metal dreams have come true!

Korpiklaani and Moonsorrow also played great sets and I'd say all around it was a stellar show. Major props to whoever managed to put together such an amazing line up! Sometimes a concert is just a concert, but sometimes a concert is a mind-blowing, time traveling journey into an age of epic sagas and glorious, heathen adventures! 


Check TYR out on facebook https://www.facebook.com/tyrband

The next event on my concert calendar is Accept and Kreator at The Avalon on Wednesday, September 26th. 

The Glory Stompers CD Release Party at The House of Blues

I was at the House of Blues twice last week! What a great week for local music. Steel Panther on Monday, and The Glory Stompers on Friday for their long awaited CD release party! 

The Glory Stompers are a high energy five piece that smoothly blend a variety of different influences to summon forth a powerful hard rock-metal alchemy of sorts. They possess a genuinely unique sound - something that is rarely encountered these days, and which easily sets them apart from other hard rock/NWOAHM bands. 
I've watched these dudes play a ton of shows but this was the first time I've seen them pack the House of Blues! I was so stoked for them! And it somewhat restored my faith in the people of LA to see such an outpouring of support for a local band. The Glory Stompers have built a solid track record of delivering exceptional live shows with their over the top stage presence and tremendous, synergistic energy and this show was no exception. It's difficult to describe unless you've seen them, but when these guys take the stage I would maintain that it definitely feels more like a "concert" than like seeing some friends play in a bar (not that I don't enjoying seeing my friends play in bars every chance I get). There is no lack of entertainment or shredding! To complete a perfect evening, singer Joe Manente performed his signature move during the last song of the set by stapling pictures of the presidential candidates to his forehead and chest (while sober). I'm sure you can find some bloody footage on youtube. Seriously, check these guys out the next time they play a show!

The next event on my concert calendar is TYR at The Whiskey on Wednesday, September 12th.

Steel Panther at The House of Blues Every Monday

Here's a possible scenario for you: 

Maybe you love going to metal concerts but you hate comedy clubs. And maybe you have a friend who's one of those "comedy club people" who would rather go listen to people tell jokes than see a totally bitchin' metal concert (I know, it sounds unbelievable but it happens). Well, I have the perfection solution for your hang-out hang-ups:  if you and your friend both go see Steel Panther you will both somehow miraculously agree that you witnessed a killer show full of heavy metal shredding and raunchy jokes! 

I saw these guys perform on Monday night at the House of Blues and (just like the last four times I've seen them) they definitely blew away the expectations of everyone in attendance. All jokes aside, these guys rule! Steel Panther is singly-handedly keeping glam metal alive and well on the Sunset Strip by fully embracing and owning the comedy of the hairspray-spandex era. Songs titles like "Just Like Tiger Woods" and "Asian Hooker" consistently keep every audience shocked and laughing while guitar player Satchel's undeniably impressive guitar skills keep any skeptical metalheads fully engaged and impressed by the music. This is not a show for the pious, though. The humor is definitely R rated and so are the occasional displays of nudity by the random drunk women who crawl onto the stage. Whatever, I just go for the music.

The next event on my concert calendar is The Glory Stompers on Friday, September 7th, at The House of Blues.

Black Cobra, Saviours at Los Globos

Los Globos brought the city of LA another formidable metal show last night with a solid lineup of sludge/doom and stoner metal. Hopefully, the venue will stick with this trend and continue to book metal shows in the future.  Drink prices are steep, but it's an otherwise great place to see live music. The lineup consisted of Secrets of the Sky, Behold! The Monolith, Black Cobra, and Saviours.  I'm not really into sludge or doom metal so I was mostly there to see the last two bands, and I definitely liked what I saw and heard. Black Cobra made a lot noise for a two piece, but in a good way, and I will certainly be checking them out the next time they make the trek down to LA from their hometown of SF.
Saviours tore it up as usual, delivering heavy but energetic stoner metal riffs and lively screaming vocals. I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to check out the latest Saviours album, "Death's Procession".  It's a worthwhile investment full of heavy hitting, compelling hard rock.

The next event on my concert calendar will be Steel Panther on Monday, September 3rd, at the House of Blues.

Gypsyhawk, Ex Mortus, and Holy Grail

Last weekend was one of those concert weekends that I hope will go down in music history as the humble beginnings of something huge.  If so, I will be able to look back on it and say that I was there. Gypsyhawk kicked it off on Friday at Vacation Vinyl with their record release party for their new album Revelry & Resilience. (Have you heard it? It's totally bitchin - like 70's rock injected with heavy metal power and epic guitar solos.  So far, my favorite track on the new album is The Fields but Galaxy Rise is a close second.) Vacation Vinyl was completely packed with head bangin' fans and the Grill 'Em All truck was parked out front representing heavy metal cuisine. After party was at 4100 Bar. Awesome night!

But the awesome didn't stop there. Saturday night Holy Grail and Ex Mortus played a free show at Footsie's in Cypress Park. I've spotted Ex Mortus' name on the moshking.com concert calendar several times but I've shamefully never checked them out, mostly because I suspected they were probably a black metal band, which is not my thing. INCORRECT! Ex Mortus turned out to be a shockingly impressive thrash metal band with virtuoso guitar talent. These guys laid down impeccable and energetic neoclassical guitar solos left and right. The bass player and drummer were amazing, too. Everyone who got to watch can now claim that their existence has been improved a little bit.

Holy Grail wrapped up the night at Footsie's by playing some of their awesome new stuff, as well as some of their equally awesome not-so-new stuff (I wouldn't quite call it old stuff, yet). They had kind of a rough start due to sound system issues but when you're playing in a bar parking lot with your amps facing out of the back of two pickup trucks you can't expect the sound to be perfect. Regardless of sound issues, Holy Grail still kicked ass and I'm sure they still made new fans out of anyone who was seeing them for the first time.  

The next event on my concert calendar is Saviours at Los Globos this Thursday, August 30th.