The Whisky and The Rainbow - Two Venues in One Night on 1/24!

Apparently Thursday is the new Friday because there is way too much good shit happening on Thursdays lately!
I started off my Thursday evening metal adventure at The Whisky (yes, I'm there pretty often) to see Ascendancy play. If you haven't seen them before, I highly suggest you check them out. They're a local five piece that lays down some seriously heavy groove metal. It was a high energy show and I was stoked to see that there was a decent crowd there to support the band on a weeknight. Of course Ascendancy played a consistently bitchin' set but something hard to describe happened towards the end of the show that unleashed a mysterious untapped reservoir of thunderous energy on stage, giving the band a freakishly powerful finish! All of my hair stood on end! That was some good (but weird) shit, man!

Gus Trujillo on vocals.

Epic shred time.

Next, I wandered over to The Rainbow to check out Rattlehead and Desecrate for their pre-NAMM show.  Both bands are well known on the Sunset Strip for being excellent shredders and great performers.  This night was no different, even though everyone was crammed into the claustrophobically tiny upstairs space that The Rainbow has converted into a concert venue.  I imagine that's what it must feel like to be stuck in a tugboat's boiler room. Desecrate hammed it up by running circles around the smushed audience with their wireless rigs and Rattlehead had to do battle with a drunk girl who kept insisting on providing backup vocals.  Somehow, it all worked out!

The stage is actually below the audience space!

Rattlehead!

Be sure to look for Ascendancy, Desecrate and Rattlehead on Facebook or at their next concerts! The next event on my concert calendar is Ascendancy and Nekrogoblikon at Mirror Image Studios on 2/15.

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).

3 Inches of Blood, Legal Tender, and The Hookers at The Whiskey on 2/11

Mad props to everyone who came out last Tuesday and supported one of my very favorite bands ever - 3 Inches of Blood. Those burly Canadians made my night! It was an incredible evening full of incredible music!

I arrived right before Legal Tender started their set. This band gets better and better every time I see them - which is quite often. I think it's really rad that these guys play as many shows as they do. Everyone in the band was working hard to sell it and it really paid off because their performance was full of great energy and super entertaining. I can't wait til these guys get an album out!

                          Legal Tender got the mosh pit going early in the night.

Boy, was I surprised when The Hookers took the stage. Perhaps their name is referencing all of the catchy hooks their songs had, rather than ladies of ill repute. It was a band of rugged roadhouse dudes who looked nothing like hookers. The music was an extremely fast, extremely loud, in your face blend of metal, punk and hard rock. I'll definitely see these guys the next time they come to LA.

I'm sure it seems that I say this about every band I see but 3 Inches of Blood is really one of my favorite bands, up there with Megadeth and Iron Maiden. I'm so happy to see them finally headlining their own tour! I only wish more people had shown up. It's so disappointing to post about how awesome a show was on facebook only to have several people comment, "Oh,  wish I could have made it. I love that band." Get it together, people! Well anyway, this was the best show I've seen them play in a few years. It was really incredible! Cam Pipes sounded so intense and I could actually hear each instrument perfectly. They genuinely sounded better live than on the recordings and that rarely happens (and I love all of their albums). Those guys totally owned that shit!! I cannot WAIT for them to come back to LA as headliners again.  I took lots of photos at the very front. It was worth getting squished against that horrible shelf that the Whiskey has in front of the stage. We even got a surprise special guest for Deadly Sinners! James Luna of Holy Grail jumped on stage and did some guest vocals.

                           I stayed glued to the spot in front of Shane Clark all night.

    Justin Hagberg and Cam Pipes were rocking out together in the middle of the stage.

                                            Byron Stroud is the beast on bass.

I'll have to try harder to get a picture of drummer Ash Pearson next time. The combination of his excellent hiding skills and my lack of photography skills resulted in zero photos of him.  He's one of the best drummers I've ever seen, though, and he was on fire last Tuesday! Can't wait for the next 3IOB tour!

Check them out on facebook where they're streaming some free music!

The next event on my concert calendar is Holy Grail at The Slide Bar in Fullerton tonight. There are lots of great shows this week, including Arsis on 12/20 at The Whiskey, High on Fire and Corrosion of Conformity on 12/20 at The Mayan, Goatwhore on the 21st at The Observatory, and Hirax, Agent Steel and Bonded by Blood on 12/22 at The Key Club. Better check moshking to make sure you're not missing anything!

Metal Blade Records 30th Anniversary with Gypsyhawk, Sacred Reich and Armored Saint

*sniff, sniff*  Metal Blade Records celebrated 30 years in the music business at The House of Blues Friday, December 1st, with a killer line up and a sold out house! What an honor to be in attendance at such a historic celebration! Lots of industry people and metal celebrities were in attendance. The vibe was rockin' yet sentimental.

Gypsyhawk kicked off the celebration for the event with their usual no holds barred rock n' roll style! This hard rock foursome was signed to Metal Blade in 2011 and showcases the promising future of the label and the fact that Metal Blade has "still got it" when it comes to signing great bands. It's a breath of fresh air to see a band like Gypsyhawk re-energizing the classic hard rock sound amidst a market that's so saturated with metalcore and screamo bands. They had a stellar set list which included my favorite song of theirs, "Eyes of Ibad"! I love that song! The crowd warmed up to them pretty quickly, especially when they played Hedgeking and Commander of the High Forest.

                                Is that Animal on drums? Where did Ian go?

Sacred Reich followed them with a very short but sweet set. Brian Slagel explained why the set was so short at the end of the night but I was talking and I missed the explanation. Oops! They're playing again soon, though. 

Armored Saint was the headlining act and they played a super thrashy, high energy show! They even had special musical guests throughout their set, including Johan Hegg from Amon Amarth to sing "Hit the Lights"! Oh man, it was so amazing! For the last song, Eric Harris of Gypsyhawk got to come out and sing a Thin Lizzy song with Dug Pinnick from Redemption. It was a badass ending to a badass evening!

                                          That big blonde blur is Johan Hegg.

                    Eric Harris is on the far right. Too bad most of my photos are blurry.

Three cheers for Metal Blade Records and their continuing efforts to sign great bands, regardless of the difficult and changing music industry. May they have many more years of success!

Check out the Metal Blade Records website to see what other awesome bands they've signed.

I'm seeing Gypsyhawk again tonight at The El Rey with The Sword and the next event on my concert calendar is Holy Grail at The Slide Bar in Fullerton on Monday the 17th.