My Jaxx Symphony X review...

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New Metal Member
Nov 24, 2002
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Norfolk, VA
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What can I say... First time seeing them and blown the hell away!!! These guys are great live - though I had to wonder why they were opening up for Blind Guardian? No offense to anybody that likes them - but Blind Guardian did absolutely nothing for me! Couldn't stand them and my friends and I left after the fourth song - so I feel like I gave them plenty of opportunity to show me what they had. I wish them all the best - I have mutual respect for them as musicians, but not my cup of tea. Little to fairy tail for me - and what's up with mother goose (i.e. the BG singer)? Didn't care for that whole tale telling narration thing he was doing. The guitar player with the Les Paul kinda got me going a little - that dude has some major energy! Other than that, couldn't get out of Jaxx quick enough - which, incidentally, described my feelings about getting in. I am not impressed with The Jaxx as a concert venue. I drove three hours from Norfolk, VA to see that show - and to have to stand outside for two hours was jacked up. Words cannot convey my irritation and disbelief that they handled things that way. Come to find out later from Michael Romeo - there were electrical problems and they couldn't get an electrician on scene to fix it until 5pm or so. I guess that is why Division got nixed - I was disappointed about that also as I had heard some great things about these guys. They were cool though - I got to meet the Matt and Mike from division as I was getting the tickets that they had assisted me with getting. Great
guys - I wish them the greatest success - it was nice running into those guys. I really loved Symphony X's show - they were amazing. I love the live CD, but it is even better to see them perform live. As was the case with most people - I couldn't really see a whole lot (and I was on the floor pretty close to the stage). The songs they played were great - wish they had played Inferno, though. I am looking forward to making the trek again in Jan/Feb to see them when they headline - hopefully they will come on down to Hampton Roads, VA - I am sure that they would receive a warm welcome down here as well! And we have great clubs here. Anyway, my friends and I drove up there for the sole purpose of seeing Symphony X and we were not let down. I even got to speak with Jason Rullo and Michael Romeo before they took off. My friends and I headed out back of the Jaxx four songs into Blind Guardian - on a whim - hoping that Symphony X would still be there. Jason Rullo was out there so we
started talking to him for a bit. After a few minutes, Michael Romeo cam out for a bit. I'll spare all the conversation tid bits, but I was very pleased to see how down to earth Michael Romeo was - great guy. It was amazing seeing him play the stuff that I was actually able to see him play. Tone was great and I didn't hear him miss any notes. He spoke with me like I was an equal and didn't exhibit any of that ego stuff that some guys have. He actually walked around the rest of the group to come up and talk to me - that was pretty cool. We shook hands and I got his autograph - and there was a few minutes of conversation before he had to take care of some stuff. All in all it was a great time and I will never forget my first Symphony X show and getting to
meet Michael Romeo. A great time was had by all - and you all should run out and see these guys if you get the chance!!! Later - MIKE
 
I was there too. All I have to say is Symphony X was pretty good but Blind Guardian was so much better. They were the reason I went. The only Symphony X CD i had was the odyssey. I didn't like what the singer was doing during "Wicked." When he did that Christina Aguilera thing three times in a row. What was up with that? They would just stop playing in the middle of the song. Other than that, I really enjoyed their set.

I am surprised you didn't like Blind Guardian. They are the best live band I have ever seen. I was going INSANE during "Into the Storm." I was pumping my fist, singing along, and headbanging like a maniac. Damn was that fun. I liked how he talked in between each song actually. The crowd was really into them and they sang along to alot of the songs. AHHHHH I loved that show so much. Its too hard for me to describe.
 
Originally posted by IcedEarth556
I didn't like what the singer was doing during "Wicked." When he did that Christina Aguilera thing three times in a row. What was up with that? They would just stop playing in the middle of the song. Other than that, I really enjoyed their set.
Click to expand...

A lot of people dont realize that Russ grew up as a blues singer. That "christina aguliera" thing is common in blues singing, so throwing that into the song, Russ is paying homage to his roots. I thought it was pretty cool...I like when powermetal bands throw in non-metal influences here and there, like the celtic stuff in BGs music or the brazilian percussion in Angra.
 
Hey Mike! This is Bob... the taller guy from Penn State who was standing behind you and the guys from Frameshift in that line in the freezing cold for 2 hours! Thanks to you and your friends for making it a rather enjoyable 2 hours. All the talk about metal and prog and whatnot was very interesting.

I did not like that venue at all. The stage was about 3 inches above the floor... the staff was rude... and they gave us a hassel about selling those extra tickets to those fans outside.

I too loved the Symphony X show... it was a dream come true for me. Can't wait to see them do a proper headlining show next year. I too thought they would play "Inferno"... that incendiary opening riff would have melted that venue. Oh well... I was really amazed how well "Wicked" came off... that groove devastated everything... everyone was thrashing around to that! I loved Russell's showcase at the end of that song. I wish I would have got to meet those guys.

Blind Guardian was mildly entertaining. I'm not a fan... but they put on a nice show.
 
Hey - it was great meeting and talking to you guys also! What a blast that show was - part of it anyway :p Maybe we will run into you guys during the headlining tour. Michael Romeo was so cool to talk to. Great guy and didn't talk to me like I was inferior - even though I am ;-) Great guy! Anyway, if you wanna see my take on the guitar transcription to that INFERNO intro head over to www.members.cox.net/tube-amped While you're there check out all my cool gear!!! Later - MIKE
 
I wasn't digging BG that much, either. I like some of their stuff, but most of it I could care less. The vocalist's wicked high pitched screams were cool, but then became over-used after a while. From where I was for the first few songs they sounded like they were a death metal band... kind of odd. But, after they played Nightfall (which was one of the few songs I actually knew), it was cool. I love how everyone sung along to the choruses and shit... that was fun. And then, when they came back for the "encore" (which seemed planned, compared with other set lists), they played Lord of the Rings... their sweetest song. I loved the amount of energy they put out, but I wasn't impressed AT ALL by their bassist (is he just filling in or something?) and their keyboardist or whatever the hell he was. The lead guitarist was sweet and gave off a lot of energy, while I didn't really notice the other one that much. If there was one person in that band that stood out it would be the drummer. He was really impressive. The vocalist could have done a lot better and there were people making comments about that... for one "sing the high notes" was rather amusing.

So, even though I don't like BG as much, I would say they put on the better show... or atleast the crowd was better. The chanting of Guard-i-an was sweet. But, I loved SyX and that little solo spot in Wicked that Russell did was awesome. He's a great singer.

Oh, and for the venue... it sucked. I got there at 7:45... got in at 9:30. What was up with the time it took to change sets? They played the whole Dark Tranquility CD in the time it took for them to plug in a few guitars.... Jaxx is a crappy venue and I hope they come down to Richmond or VA Beach or something (and hopefully on a Friday or Saturday night... my parents won't let me skip school the next day). I can't wait to see you guys again!
 
Actually the bassist is indeed filling in, as is any possible keyboard-player you might see: there are only four people in Blind Guardian after all (the two guitarists André and Marcus, the drummer Thomen, and then Hansi, who used to play bass himself but gave it up when BG's bass lines and vocal melodies became too complex to handle at the same time).
 
Blind Guardian's session bassist, Oliver Holzwarth, is actually quite amazing. Check out his work in the now-defunct tech-metal/rock band Sieges Even... one of my favorite bands.
 
Sieges Even kills

his brother plays drums in Rhapsody too.

you can see the "please kill me....why the fuck am I holding a sword?" look on his face in every picture.

they are both monster players.

too bad they have to play chugga chugga power metal to make a living.
 
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