Alter Bridge slap Atlanta's Tabernacle with slab of grueling hard rock

Everybody, on a certain level, enjoys a good melodic hard rock song with a strong hook, unless you're one of those hipsters who only appreciates music if it's an 18 minute post rock song that sounds like the world's ending. And let's be honest -- if that's the case, no one likes you.

Whenever I need to get my fix for this, Alter Bridge are always one of my sure bets. They're not fancy but they do deliver powerful, hook filled sing alongs, with a level of instrumentation that puts them head and shoulders above your run of the mill 102.9 The Buzz radio rock band. The band's April 18 performance at Atlanta's Tabernacle was a showcase for their high, sweeping, fist pumping choruses.

Frontman Myles Kennedy's voice pierced through the during "Isolation" turning the massive, four story theatre into a gigantic sing along. In the same breath, they are also the type of band capable of blowing you away with technical prowess demonstrated best on cuts like "Ties That Bind." "Blackbird," meanwhile, delivered nearly 8 minutes the most inspired singing and guitar soloing in their catalog.

Other significant moments included the crowd singing Happy Birthday for guitarist Mark Tremonti, who celebrated his 40th birthday the night before. He capped it off by stepping behind the microphone for "Waters Rising," a cut from their newest album Fortress, and gave us a rare opportunity to hear his vox. What was curious was the fact that very little material was played from Fortress, despite this being the support tour for the album. Instead, the band stuck heavily to their well known hits and focused mostly on their critically acclaimed Blackbird album.

Mark Tremonti of Alter Bridge delivers passion on the mic and on guitar.

Whiskey Gentry and Animal Collective = scatterbrained weekend

I saw two shows last weekend, which leaves me in a bind. Which one do I cover for my monthly concert review? Why not both? Let's start with The Whiskey Gentry, who rocked Atlanta's Variety Playhouse Saturday night. There was a strong Christmas theme, due in part to the fact that this show was their 5th annual Merry Y'all Tide Celebration, which apparently they do in their hometown of Atlanta every year in December.

Blair Crimmins and Michael Smith find themselves in the holiday spirit.

Their basic sound is that of country mixed with folk, but what caught my attention with this band is they mix in gypsy/punk influences into the music. It's not exactly woven into the actual sound, but their demeanor on stage and the way they interact with one another has an almost punk mentality to it. And they're all practically virtuoso level on their instruments. There was a violinist, a mandolin player, a guy who played a banjo-tar, and they would all go nuts on their instruments cranking out crazy solo after crazy solo. There's a southern vibe to it to be sure, but it's almost as if New York or Boston was trying to emulate a Southern hoe-down.

Whiskey Gentry singer Lauren Staley rips it up.

It was also cool that they alternated singers. Lead singer Lauren Staley is a typical country/western girl, who
did have a great voice, but they let the violinist sing for one song and he impressed with his great, smooth tenor. They also had a big, unshaven guitarist who looked like he could have been from the Dropkick Murphys, who sang a song about New York in a rough bristling voice. The diversity of this band was incredible. Of course they did have their winey country tinged songs. There was song about getting drunk and making out with strangers, which was supposed to be a tribute to one of the singer's friends, and there was also this smartass song she wrote in response to one of her bandmembers who said she hadn't been writing enough songs.

But there was also the fact that this was apparently some sort of jubilee, and as such the band had several guests, all from other Atlanta area bands, that came out with them onstage periodically. There was a guy that looked like John Lennon who came out and sang a Christmas Carol with Staley, there was a lady who came out and did backup vocals on one song, and even a guy who came out and started playing crazy harmonica. During the encore, everyone came out on the stage, including Blair Crimmins, the opening act, along with his entire horn section. All told there were 15 people on stage at once all going nuts and singing, while confetti was raining down all over the stage. I'm not even from this town, and I was still feeling the vibes.


Animal Collective, on the other hand, was a completely different experience, for more reasons than the obvious. To be honest I was not really into this show. A few songs I liked, but as a whole I don't feel much of a connection with most of the material they have been playing on this tour. The setlist, which is dominated by their latest album, Centipede Hz, and tunes from a few obscure EPs, don't show off the band at their best. It's too noodly, too trippy, and spends too much time floating and wandering around without making much of an indelible impact. Opening with "Applesauce" was cool, but other cuts like "I Think I Can" and "Pulleys" just float around with too much abstract silliness and ambiance, that sound like it would be suited to sync up perfectly with an acid trip, but not everyone is into that.

Deakin of Animal Collective sets a dreary mood.

With their fanbase expanding, Animal Collective seems hard pressed to hold on to their status as the leading drug band which is what they seem to be trying to do. Merriweather Post Pavillion and Strawberry Jam are filled with great, challenging material that shows off various different components to the band than what they've played live recently, but judging by their setlists it's like they're trying to do as much as they can to disown those albums. It's like they're trying to maintain their indie/hipster cred by downplaying the fact they now have a successful/more accessible record and are trying to act like it doesn't exist. I respect they aren't selling out but it feels like they're going a bit far.

Certain songs did sound a bit different, which is a nice change. I didn't even really recognize "Lion in a Coma" until one of my friends pointed it out after the show. I did notice the song's trademark bouncing didgeridoos but wasn't sure if they were just trying to work those into the mix for some other song. The middle section of "Brother Sport" was also quite different from the recording, which was cool. I also appreciated "Amanita." The closing refrain of "I'm going to come back and things will be different/I'm going to bring back some stories and games" captures the childlike wonder that the band so masterfully captured during their early career. 
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Related post:

Animal Collective - Centipede Hz review

Atlanta Braves provide enough high octane to last for 15 innings

In lieu of my normal monthly concert review, let me instead tell you about the Atlanta Braves game I attended earlier this month. Right off the bat this wasn't your normal ball game. The starting lineups pitted hotshot pitchers Mike Minor from the Braves against Washington Nationals ace Steven Strasburg. In ordinary circumstances the table would have been set for a pitchers duel in which both guys pitched deep into the ballgame. However, neither pitcher survived the second inning. For Minor, it was simply a case of lousy performance, as he gave up four runs and hurled nearly 50 pitches in only 1 1/3 innings of work. Strasburg, on the other hand, was unable to pry himself from a from a feud that involved Braves pitchers plunking Nationals star Bryce Harper.

Strasburg opened the second inning by nailing Justin Upton with a letter high fastball, and then got the hook after throwing three straight pitches behind Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons. The entire scene played out in a jarring fashion. Strasburg seemed to be losing control of his pitches, and it appeared that he may have been pulled from the game due to some type of injury. Apparently the guys in the booth thought so too, as I heard them say so on the overhead speakers when I was walking in the concourse.

But it wasn't the night's only unusual occurrence. Right fielder Jason Heyward turned the game into a marathon with his two run homer in the bottom of the ninth, extending the game into what would eventually turn out to be a 15 inning slugfest. The Braves looked to be in winning position a few times throughout the extra frames, but it eventually came down to a former Brave -- Washington first basemen Adam LaRoche -- to jack a home run in the top of the 15th and shut off the lights for the evening. The Braves ran through their entire stable of vaunted relief pitchers and were forced to make the unorthodox move of inserting starting pitcher Kris Medlen into the game starting in the 13th inning. And it would be Medlen who suffered the loss.

The Braves had plenty of firepower going into the game. Chris Johnson came into the game as the National League's leading hitter, and Heyward had injected a new found electricity into the lineup after moving into the leadoff spot, but the Braves would do their damage only sporadically. Catcher Brian McCann, first basemen Freddie Freeman, and Heyward all went yard to help the Braves play catchup, but the team found itself unable to push runners across the plate when they needed them most.

Getting to see Turner Field once more was a treat. My last trip here was in 2006, when I was fortunate enough to catch John Smoltz out dueling the Milwaukee Brewers. In addition, for two of my friends that came along, it was their first experience attending a Major League Baseball game. Both seemed to enjoy it, although they wished it hadn't dragged on so long.

We decided to change our plans and drive back home directly that night. It was nearly 6 a.m. before my head hit the pillow, but it was well worth it and was a nice change of pace.

Braves pitcher Kris Medlen makes a rare relief appearance.

Prog rock kingpin Steven Wilson gets supernatural on latest solo tour

The only thing that needs to be done to get an idea of how multi-talented Steven Wilson is would be to just listen to a few of his compositions. But a gander at his live shows makes it even more obvious how much of a master he is in every phase of his craft. The British singer, songwriter, progressive rock musician, who is also the former frontman of Porcupine Tree, assembled a true feast for the senses at Atlanta's Variety Playhouse. He presented a feast not only for the ears but also the eyes as he seamlessly weaves together a true multimedia spectacle.

Steven Wilson bids farewell to the crowd, alongside bassist Nick Beggs.

He utilizes video projection in an innovative way to compliment the material being preformed onstage, bearing great similarity to the way Godspeed You! Black Emperor broadcasts video on to the backstage wall to provide a subtle background coloring and ambiance to the performance. The ticking of a clock, a bizarre face projected onto a screen -- it all provides a unsettling sense of tension that complements the spell Wilson is weaving.At times his show conjures the full bombast of swaggering British rock, at other times the band drifts through dark, brooding, visceral soundscapes, and sometimes he delves into meticulously arranged yet fluid and exotic jazz fusion. And of course there is a solid dose of humor and humanity stirred into the mix.

His excellent third solo album, The Raven that Refused to Sing (and Other Stories), was played in full. It's a uniquely structured album; each song is a vignette telling a story about a supernatural/occult being or incident. "The Holy Drinker" focuses on a cleric who loses his way, while "The Watchmaker" tells of how the titular character murders his wife. Blistering solos, demonic guitar scales, and gentle acoustic strumming provides a varied musical backdrop, but Wilson also shows he knows how to flow from one song into the next.

Following "The Watchmaker," the stage lights went down and there was a voice that sounded like an ancient dignified earth spirit. It reiterated the watchmaker's murder of his wife, and then proceeded to  announce that the next story was about someone who was "even more fucked up." This segued into "Index," which as he put it, was about a guy who can only relate to humans in the sense of organizing and collecting them. He may be a creep, but he has a hell of a soundtrack. Wilson is complemented by a brooding, electronic ambient backdrop as he weaves the collector's twisted tale. It concludes in a dark, oppressive whirl of overwhelming guitar, synth, and drumwork.

Aside from "Index," quite a few songs from Wilson's previous album, Grace for Drowning made the setlist. Perhaps most impressive was the 26 minute mini-marathon "Raider II," which he prefaced by explaining that he had originally written a Raider I. "It was shit!" he bluntly declared, which inspired him to write "Raider II." The tune itself tended to drag a bit on the Grace for Drowning album, but live it passes in the blink of an eye, and is an obvious easy showoff piece for Steven and the rest of his band.

The crowd goes wild for Wilson, Beggs and drummer Chad Wackerman. 

This brings us to the essential essence of what a Steven Wilson concert is all about. The stories themselves are well thought out and executed, but at the end of the day it's all about the instrumentation and composition. From Wilson's heartfelt performance on the beautiful piano ballad "Insurgentes" to Guthrie Govan's frenetic solos on "Luminol" and "Drive Home," to Chad Wackerman's clattering drum fills on "Index," Steven Wilson and his band know how to create moments that excellent concerts are built out of.

The sound itself was excellent, but one minor gripe was that it sounded like there were pre-recorded bits played through the speakers. During one of the early songs I heard a voice coming out of the speakers that sounded markedly different from Steven's. I thought it was someone singing along, but when I turned around no one was singing, and I could tell the singing was coming out of the speakers. It was very odd, to say in the least.
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Related posts:

Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing review
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning review

Kreator & Swallow the Sun bring soft/heavy dynamic to the Masq

Mille Petrozza, frontman of thrash metal outfit Kreator, will accept nothing less than the best moshing from his crowds.

"This is the part of the show where we ask everyone to form the biggest mosh pit possible."

It took some serious convincing on Mille Petrozza's part. The Kreator frontman looked over the sparsely populated floor of Atlanta's Masquerade and did his best to energize them. Attendance can be notoriously bad on Wednesday nights, but this is Kreator. They were one of the quintessential thrash metal bands of the 1980s, and built a huge name establishing speed metal legacy. Though there weren't many, the small throng that turned out to see them were full of fight.

Lights and fog machines were a big part of their set, but the German quartet still showed excellence in delivering intensity and bringing the best out of a crowd. Petrozza is a perfect example of a vintage 80s thrash frontman; his maniacal shrieks and yells made you feel like you were in a dingy L.A. metal club sometime around 1984. Eventually a sporadic pit formed. The moshers must have not been in good shape; they'd start raging for awhile then totally taper off, only to begin again later.

They were aided by Kreator old and new. Setlist staple "Extreme Aggression" is a buzzsaw packed full of sweat soaked adrenaline and rancor, which includes a verse riff that ranks up there with anything the Big Four ever put out. "Hordes of Chaos," a relatively newer number, got fans shrieking along with its "everybody against everybody" closing refrain and its hard edged slashing nature.

Petrozza is still vocally impressive. Most modern death metal growlers sound like copies of one another, but Petrozza's high pitched raspy shriek is all his own. He also took time to poke fun at Accept for skipping out on the show. Their fellow 80s metal titans were originally scheduled to headline, but dropped out for undisclosed reasons. Kreator still got to play to a diverse crowd. There were several metal chicks clad in leather, but there was also one massive afro dude with a glowstick who knocked nearly everyone else out of the way on his charge to get to the front.

Not to be overlooked were Finnish doom metallers Swallow the Sun, fresh off the release of their fifth LP, Emerald Forest and the Blackbird. Their set opened with the 10 minute title cut from that album, although it seemed to go by in half the time. This was my third time seeing them, and they keep getting more intricate. They're not a flashy band; you gotta pay attention to reap the full rewards of what they're sowing. But the beautiful lead melody of "Cathedral Walls" or the visceral, Bodom-like assualt of "Hate, Lead the Way!" are rich elements that anyone could pick up on.

Even now it's still easy to see lead guitarist/head honcho Juha Raivio onstage as he effortlessly conjures his flowing leads and melodies. Keyboardist Aleksi Munter is looking pissed off, while vocalist Mikko Kotamaki is in his trademark position, hunched over with head downturned, gripping his microphone stand while the band devours the earth before them in a ravishing vortex.

Swallow the Sun guitarist Juha Raivio injects subtle melodies and wining leads into his band's sound.

Katatonia brings taste of Swedish Metal to the Masquerade

There’s something about a metal concert that words just can’t quite capture.

There’s the thump that you feel in your heart every time the drummer hits the kick pedal. The basslines that you could never seem to make out on the CD become so dynamic and fluid as it pulses through the crowd. And then, there is the decibel factor. When you leave a show, your ears will still be ringing when you wake up in the morning.

I got a chance to witness three great bands perform at The Masquerade in Atlanta Monday night, each with their own distinctive style and background. Progressive Rockers Orphaned Land, hailing from Israel, Finnish Doom metallers Swallow the Sun, and Swedish hard rockers Katatonia. It was an unbelievable night of metal that I won’t soon forget.

Hell Hath no Fury Like a Concert Goer Cramped

First, a little about the venue. The Masquerade consists of two concert arenas; the upper level is called Heaven and down below is Hell. Makes sense, right? Heaven, from what I’m told, is a spacious venue where the major bands play. I got to witness these fine bands straight from the jaws of Hell.

Hell is smaller and much more cramped, but you get a chance to get closer to the bands. If you go up the ramp on the right hand side there’s a seating area to the side of the stage, and there’s literally nothing but a rail separating you from where the band plays. You can slap fives with the band, etc., between songs and sets, and it makes for a great atmosphere.

Everybody jump for Orphaned Land!

The show kicked off with Orphaned Land, whose influences range from Iron Maiden and Depeche Mode to the more traditional Middle Eastern music of their homeland. On their albums, they’re well known for using a diversity of instruments, but here they went with strictly a guitar/drums/bass setup.

They interacted with the crowd very well. The guys looked like they were having a great time on stage, and that energy transferred into the crowd – It was something they could feed off of.  Their vocalist, Kobi Farhl, would instruct the crowd to jump while the band played, trying to get them into it even more.

I also thought it was cool how the drummer really got into it to. He would stand up behind his kit and try to get the audience into it. 

Orphaned Land brings a taste of the Middle East to Atlanta

Swallow the Sun Swallows the Tempo

Next up was Swallow the Sun, a band I had the privilege to see perform at the Muse in Nashville in 2009, and I also met their vocalist, Mikko Kotamäki there. When they took the stage the lights dimmed which made for a more gloomy atmosphere. 

Swallow the Sun slowed down the pace from the frenetic, bouncing around tempo that Orphaned Land established, but it helped set the mood for their style: a much more slow, heavy , doom type metal vibe. They do a fantastic job of creating atmosphere. 

Vocalist Kotamäki is capable of pretty melodic vocals, but can also deliver deep growls – picture Mikael Akerfeldt type growls. And he also pulls off bloodcurdling shrieks. They have great melodic guitar leads and expert arrangements on keyboard . 

Drummer Kai Hahto was also impressive. He was keeping some complex beats on the drum pads while employing lightning fast double bass. 

Myself and Josh Rogers with Juha, Mikko and Aleksi from Swallow the Sun

Chill Out: It’s Time for Katatonia!

The last band of the night was the headliner, Katatonia. What amazed me about them was how they were able to go from having a very mellow, chillout vibe one minute to being heavy as hell the next. I can’t think of many bands who can combine that as well as Katatonia. 

Their sound is based on pretty, melodic guitar leads and flowing bass lines, while still bringing the intensity of a metal band. Katatonia was playing without guitarist Fredrik Norrman and bassist Mattias Norrman, who left in 2009.

Katatonia’s appearance got the crowd even more engaged than before; The audience began  energetically chanting for “Forsaker.”  Somebody threw a bra onstage. And then the moshing broke out. 

The last major metal concert I went to gave me the chance to get my first brush in a mosh pit. It was neat; I got a major scrape right under my chest. The moshing didn’t really get started until Katatonia got into the meat of their setlist, but when it did it became frenetic.

Katatonia brings down the house at the Masquerade Monday night.

After a short encore, Katatonia was done and it was time to head home. I mingled with members of Orphaned Land and Swallow the Sun, who had gathered down by the merchandise table. I also snagged some merchandise, took photos, and got an album signed. The experience put a considerable drain on my bank account, but it was worth it for the great time and memories made.

I said there are things about a metal concert that can’t be put into words, although I guess I tried my best here. The best thing I can say is get out to your local venue and support some bands if you get the chance. You’ll see what all the fuss is about.

Katatonia has officially achieved Rock God status.