It seems that whenever Dope comes to town, they always have Mushroomhead in tow, not that that is a bad thing, far from it. These two acts each put on a unique show, and somehow they work well together, and the crowd responds, and this show was no different.On Saturday 8/6, the tour came to town, and I was ready for it. Having experienced this duo twice before, both times in 2004, I had an idea of what to expect. Despite having that idea, I knew I was still in for an insane night of metal.
I arrived at the club at just about 7 PM, the doors were not yet open, but the line was already growing around the block. The doors opened at 10 after or so, and the line started to slowly file in. By the time I entered, the first band was already onstage. I made my way towards the railing barrier by the pit area, it gave me a good view of the stage without being in the line of fire of the pit swirling in front of me.
The band onstage was called Stemm, a five piece from Buffalo, NY. I wish I had been able to see their entire set, I think I missed about 10-15 minutes of their performance. They were very good, heavy riffs combined with the dual vocals, alternating screaming with singing. Their sound is reminiscent of other recent acts, but for some reason I can't put my finger on it. The energy was high, and the crowd seemed to be picking up on it, or they were just restless for what was coming up later in the evening. Whatever the case may be, I thought they were good and would definitely be into seeing them again if and when they pass through again.
Next was gothic industrial act Nocturne. This is a band I had heard of but never heard, as seems to be the case with a loot of music recently. Guitarist Chris Telkes, bassist Rotten Rotny, and their drummer took the stage, kicking up the first track prior to the arrival of singer Lacey Conner. This is a band I think I could really get into, the industrial gloom they delivered was sort of like a cross between Nine Inch Nails and The Cure, with perhaps a touch of Lacuna Coil tossed in. Lacey's presence onstage was magnetic, great voice and, uh, eye catching attire, she was hard to turn away from. Melodic singing, electronic samples, chugging guitars, all backed with a steady rhythm on the drums captivated the crowd. I don't think I've ever seen so many camera phones being held up as there were during Nocturne's set. They have won over a new fan in me.
The stage was quickly reconfigured for Crossbreed. I first heard of these guys a few years ago, when I read that they had a sound similar to Fear Factory (one of my favorite bands). While, the comparison fits, to an extent, the CD was mediocre and nothing mind blowing. Their live performance on the other hand, was a visual experience, to say the least. The band took to the stage coated in dayglo paint, and proceeded to to tear it up. In addition to their electronic inspired breed of metal, they add another sound/visual to the stage, it appeared to be some sort of metal grinder, used to add some texture to their sound, as well as the great visual as it spewed waves of sparks into the air. The crowd responded with reckless abandon to their set, making a madhouse of movement in the pit. I may have to give these guys another go around on CD.OK, the wait was over, despite the good performances that had come before, this was the start of what most of us were there for. The stage was full of activity as Crossbreed's equipment was cleared, and Dope's was moved to the front. I was ready for this, I have seen Dope 4 times before, and each time it was a great performance. The time was upon us.
The first to make an appearance was Racci at the drum kit, followed shortly by Brix and Virus, leaving Edsel to come out and lead the charge into the opening song, "Survive." Energy just poured off the stage. Edsel took a moment out to give some thoughts on putting together this tour, the collective distaste for the current political climate, but also for their steadfast support of our troops overseas. Now not wanting to get to political, so back to the music. They played all of their staples including "Burn," "You Spin Me Round," "B!tch," and "F**k tha Police." The crowd was nuts, the band was crazed. The performance was raw, primal, and tight. It was great hearing some of their new tracks live, on that note I must mention that the new album, American Apathy is excellent. They left the stage briefly, only to return to close out their set properly with "Die Motherf**ker Die." Great way to end the set and get the crowd ready for Mushroomhead.
Shortly after 11 PM, Mushroomhead took the stage. It was dark with a few beams of light aimed out over the crowd, leaving most of the stage in darkness, the opening song hit, the lights come up, and there is Jeffrey Nothing singing in the middle of the previously darkened stage. They ripped through "Kill Tomorrow" as the crowd went insane, bodies flying everywhere. Among other songs they played "Never Let it Go," "Bwomp," and "Xeroxed." These guys are tight, each time I have seen them, they have but on a killer set. The combination of the crushing twin guitars, low end bass, keyboards, samples, driving drums, and one of the best vocal duos I have ever witnessed is truly a sight to behold. On top of that, it is great to see a band bringing in the theatrics, but still having the musical ability to back it up. This time around they had grey jumpsuits and the white masks, the first time I saw them, they wore black masks. The masks, the face paint, the lights, it is truly an experience. They closed their set with "Solitaire/Unraveling" and "Eternal" and essentially holding the crowd in the palm of their hands. My writing can't adequately express how good this show was. It was a shame they couldn't go on for another hour.As I was leaving, I came across Edsel Dope signing autographs near the bar, not having much on me, I asked him to sign one of my business cards, which he graciously did. Also on the way out, Jeffry Nothing was signing tour posters for fans, so I was able to get one of them as well. Great way to end a night of metal.
I urge any metal fan who has the opportunity to catch the Music for FREEdom tour, do so. And something to keep in mind, military personnel with valid ID get into the shows for free! It is a way they are saying "Thank you" for all that you do and continue doing for us.
See larger versions of the above pictures, and many more HERE.
This is also posted at Blogcritics.org.
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