The following review will be posted on Metal-Temple.com and is posted on USAprogmusic.com:
The Warehouse - San Antonio, Texas (USA)
March 20 - 21, 2009
Lineup: SEVEN WITCHES / VICIOUS RUMORS / KRUCIBLE / ASKA / IMAGIKA / SIX MINUTE CENTURY / THEOCRACY / ONE OF SIXX / SACRED DAWN / MINDWARP CHAMBER / AETHERIUS / HALCYON WAY / SILENCED WITHIN / METAVENGE
My second trip ever to the huge state of Texas included a lot of fun, driving, bbq, and mexican beer, but most importantly it included a heaping dose of Metal. I was interested to see how things were going to end up since it was spring break week for college students on the upside. On the downside of things that darn South By Southwest Music Festival was going on in Austin just a mere hour driving north. I hoped for the best on my long and arduous drive solo to Texas.
The first band up for the night was a local favorite and went by the name of Metavenge. They made a big splash out at the NAMM Convention just a few months earlier. These dudes are all super young with the oldest topping out at no more than 18 or 20. Their brand of metal is a relative hot bed right drawing a lot from the late 80s and early 90s Thrash scene. They can definitely shred and the vocalist certainly knows the right tones, but now it is a matter of them coming into their own. The sound and stage presence need to be tweaked slightly, but once they get their ducks in a row, Metal fans beware.
Some ProgPower USA Showcase veterans were up next, Halcyon Way. These guys really came through in the clutch at ProgPower USA VIII when Vanden Plas had to cancel and all the bands got moved up a slot. The band has a very unique sound, which sets them apart
immediately, the best way to describe them is Progressive Hard Rock mixed with dark matter making them heavy as f*&k. To contrast this awesome heaviness that the band has is Sean's more upper register voice that sounds stand just perfectly from the music. Its too bad that the sound from the venue didn't do them justice at all. This was a common occurrence amongst most bands for the weekend. One major thing that sets this band apart is the use of a mega phone, but not just stage, the d*^n thing was everywhere!!! In all seriousness these guys were a fantastic on and off the stage.
The Chicago natives Mindwarp Chamber took the stage next and they did everything but let me down. It was about this time that sound guy started to get the sound right for the venue. MwC have a more straight forward Progressive Metal sound, but that doesn't mean you should under estaimate the music that is there. So many "Prog" bands will just try to recreate old records or just recycle the same sounds, I thought MwC really set themselves apart. One of the aspects that I enjoy possible the most about the band is they feature a darker sound. This is attributed to Scott's vocal tone, the deeper sound of the guitar, and the "haunting" keyboards from Mike Portnoy's
doppelganger. When I do notice similarities they are to Pagan's Mind and maybe a little old school Queensr ÿche.
The one band that threw me off for the night was One Of Sixx, mostly because they lacked a bass player. I don't know if that was due to illness or if it is how it always is, but I found the band to be lacking in the sound overall because of it. i will say that the guitars had a great downtuned sound and solid as hell. They also featured two vocalists: one male and one female. The female did the back vocals and I found her to be more impressive then the duder. Not just in overall range, but also in the sound that was created.
One of the bands that I made the long drive for was Six Minute Century so to say I was excited to see them for the second time was an understatement. Just like last time they totally shredded! Don, even though he had some problems with his monitors, still sounded great and Darren beat the crap out of his massive drum kit. SMC has a great Prog Metal sound with tinges of Power and a certain darkness. They even played my favorite track by "Under The Moonlight", and the first notes were retorted by me with, "F%*^ING VAMPIRES!!!"
Local Texas boys Aska played a set to many cheers from the die-hard locals. Aska I guess was more prominent around the mid-to-late 90s. They have a very Traditional or True Metal sound ala Manowar. As a matter of fact I was calling them Texas' answer to Manowar all weekend. I was having a problem getting into them, and I think I was the only one. The even did some twin guitar work ala Judas Priest. I wish I would have heard their material before I had gone so I could have enjoyed them more.
Vicious Rumors was headlining the first night and took the stage to the most people that had been in the club all day. Now I have some of their discs but definitely not all so it was hard to know all the songs they played. I did recognize a few, couldn't recall names. This was an interesting performance since it featured semi-new vocalist Ronnie Stixx (ex-Shadowkeep). I thought he did a fantastic job with stage prescence as well as vocally. I will be honest I was expecting more from them, but perhaps if i had been more familar with the material it would have been more memorable.
The second day was supposed to start with Lunarium, but unfortunately they had to turn around while driving due to illness. As a replacement Silenced Within from Houston opened up. While the band is talented for sure, their music isn't really my cup of tea. It reminds me very much of a Nu Metal or Goth Metal, they even played a cover of a Korn song.
Aethurius a female fronted Prog Metal six piece from Boston. The singer I think suffered from the acoustics of the venue since I could tell she had a powerful voice. The metal walls of the venue just kept making her voice "ping" way too much. Their sound was comparative
to a Spheric Universe Experience kinda sound, but they lacked the catchiness of the aforementioed band. Give this band another release under their belt with some better acoustics and they will certainly come into their own.
Another big reason that I made the venture was Sacred Dawn also from Chicago. I showed up one song late due to needing to return to the hotel briefly. They played almost only new songs except for "White Road, Black Sun" and one other. The new songs are taking the band in a different direction. I was talking to the bassist after the set and told him they shouldn't sell they shirts with "Melodic Power/Prog" printed on them since they aren't doing that anymore. Their new sound is balls to the walls Heavy Metal and that's it. It is not overally complicated, but it is solid. They changed up drummers and guitarists so I assume that contributed to their new sound. My favorite new tune was something like "Demon Lover", but it featured Lothar actually growling and it was the fastest new song as well.
More ProgPower USA veterans were up next, Theocracy. I was able to sample their latest effort, "Mirror Of Souls", and it is a near speedier Melodic Power Metal masterpiece. It is absolutely fantastic. Their performance did not disappoint just like the album except for the first song or two that was riddled with sound problems. They probably had the best reaction out of the weekend with lots of fans singing along and chanting. Easily the highlight of their set was the new track "Laying The Demon To Rest", which featured crunchy guitars and epic choruses.
The big surprise of the weekend for me was Imagika from San Franscisco. The combine Power and Thrash probably better then most bands even dream about. I gotta say I was a fan before I saw Norman and co., but now they are a reason that I would travel and nothing would stop me if they are even remotely close. Norman had excellent prescence and range, the bassist his name escapes me now, but HOT DAMN could he rip the bass apart!! Henry on drums did not disappoint either really showing those skins who is boss and Steve put every one in a state of hypnotism from his never stopping fingers.
Krucible the final band for the weekend that I had seen previously. As with the previous times Krucible did not disappoint. Their set consisted of their "classics", "Reborn" and "The Legacy" and perhaps a new one. As standard they played their cover of Dream Theater's "Pull Me Under". Now when I say standard I have seen them three times and each time they played it, I dont know about their other performances. I think they continue to do this cover because they do it so well and basically everyone in the Prog Metal world knows it so its good for a sing-along.
After a weekend of waiting for the Seven Witches crew to totally own, they totally did. Their performance was awesome featuring some of my favorites such as "Mental Messiah", "Metal Tyrant" and "Camelot". James Rivera showed he still has it and Jack melted faces with his guitar in addition to making a variety of humorous faces himself. At the end of their performance they invited any of the singers up that had performed earlier. With various singers in tow they went through the classics of "Heaven And Hell" and "Victim Of Changes". Though some of the vocalists didn't know the words I forgive them since it was impromptu.
I gotta say thanks to John Cheeks, Texas Beth (sorry never got your real name), and Lance King for putting on such a great weekend as well as the bands for totally kicking ass.
The Warehouse - San Antonio, Texas (USA)
March 20 - 21, 2009
Lineup: SEVEN WITCHES / VICIOUS RUMORS / KRUCIBLE / ASKA / IMAGIKA / SIX MINUTE CENTURY / THEOCRACY / ONE OF SIXX / SACRED DAWN / MINDWARP CHAMBER / AETHERIUS / HALCYON WAY / SILENCED WITHIN / METAVENGE
My second trip ever to the huge state of Texas included a lot of fun, driving, bbq, and mexican beer, but most importantly it included a heaping dose of Metal. I was interested to see how things were going to end up since it was spring break week for college students on the upside. On the downside of things that darn South By Southwest Music Festival was going on in Austin just a mere hour driving north. I hoped for the best on my long and arduous drive solo to Texas.
The first band up for the night was a local favorite and went by the name of Metavenge. They made a big splash out at the NAMM Convention just a few months earlier. These dudes are all super young with the oldest topping out at no more than 18 or 20. Their brand of metal is a relative hot bed right drawing a lot from the late 80s and early 90s Thrash scene. They can definitely shred and the vocalist certainly knows the right tones, but now it is a matter of them coming into their own. The sound and stage presence need to be tweaked slightly, but once they get their ducks in a row, Metal fans beware.
Some ProgPower USA Showcase veterans were up next, Halcyon Way. These guys really came through in the clutch at ProgPower USA VIII when Vanden Plas had to cancel and all the bands got moved up a slot. The band has a very unique sound, which sets them apart
immediately, the best way to describe them is Progressive Hard Rock mixed with dark matter making them heavy as f*&k. To contrast this awesome heaviness that the band has is Sean's more upper register voice that sounds stand just perfectly from the music. Its too bad that the sound from the venue didn't do them justice at all. This was a common occurrence amongst most bands for the weekend. One major thing that sets this band apart is the use of a mega phone, but not just stage, the d*^n thing was everywhere!!! In all seriousness these guys were a fantastic on and off the stage.
The Chicago natives Mindwarp Chamber took the stage next and they did everything but let me down. It was about this time that sound guy started to get the sound right for the venue. MwC have a more straight forward Progressive Metal sound, but that doesn't mean you should under estaimate the music that is there. So many "Prog" bands will just try to recreate old records or just recycle the same sounds, I thought MwC really set themselves apart. One of the aspects that I enjoy possible the most about the band is they feature a darker sound. This is attributed to Scott's vocal tone, the deeper sound of the guitar, and the "haunting" keyboards from Mike Portnoy's
doppelganger. When I do notice similarities they are to Pagan's Mind and maybe a little old school Queensr ÿche.
The one band that threw me off for the night was One Of Sixx, mostly because they lacked a bass player. I don't know if that was due to illness or if it is how it always is, but I found the band to be lacking in the sound overall because of it. i will say that the guitars had a great downtuned sound and solid as hell. They also featured two vocalists: one male and one female. The female did the back vocals and I found her to be more impressive then the duder. Not just in overall range, but also in the sound that was created.
One of the bands that I made the long drive for was Six Minute Century so to say I was excited to see them for the second time was an understatement. Just like last time they totally shredded! Don, even though he had some problems with his monitors, still sounded great and Darren beat the crap out of his massive drum kit. SMC has a great Prog Metal sound with tinges of Power and a certain darkness. They even played my favorite track by "Under The Moonlight", and the first notes were retorted by me with, "F%*^ING VAMPIRES!!!"
Local Texas boys Aska played a set to many cheers from the die-hard locals. Aska I guess was more prominent around the mid-to-late 90s. They have a very Traditional or True Metal sound ala Manowar. As a matter of fact I was calling them Texas' answer to Manowar all weekend. I was having a problem getting into them, and I think I was the only one. The even did some twin guitar work ala Judas Priest. I wish I would have heard their material before I had gone so I could have enjoyed them more.
Vicious Rumors was headlining the first night and took the stage to the most people that had been in the club all day. Now I have some of their discs but definitely not all so it was hard to know all the songs they played. I did recognize a few, couldn't recall names. This was an interesting performance since it featured semi-new vocalist Ronnie Stixx (ex-Shadowkeep). I thought he did a fantastic job with stage prescence as well as vocally. I will be honest I was expecting more from them, but perhaps if i had been more familar with the material it would have been more memorable.
The second day was supposed to start with Lunarium, but unfortunately they had to turn around while driving due to illness. As a replacement Silenced Within from Houston opened up. While the band is talented for sure, their music isn't really my cup of tea. It reminds me very much of a Nu Metal or Goth Metal, they even played a cover of a Korn song.
Aethurius a female fronted Prog Metal six piece from Boston. The singer I think suffered from the acoustics of the venue since I could tell she had a powerful voice. The metal walls of the venue just kept making her voice "ping" way too much. Their sound was comparative
to a Spheric Universe Experience kinda sound, but they lacked the catchiness of the aforementioed band. Give this band another release under their belt with some better acoustics and they will certainly come into their own.
Another big reason that I made the venture was Sacred Dawn also from Chicago. I showed up one song late due to needing to return to the hotel briefly. They played almost only new songs except for "White Road, Black Sun" and one other. The new songs are taking the band in a different direction. I was talking to the bassist after the set and told him they shouldn't sell they shirts with "Melodic Power/Prog" printed on them since they aren't doing that anymore. Their new sound is balls to the walls Heavy Metal and that's it. It is not overally complicated, but it is solid. They changed up drummers and guitarists so I assume that contributed to their new sound. My favorite new tune was something like "Demon Lover", but it featured Lothar actually growling and it was the fastest new song as well.
More ProgPower USA veterans were up next, Theocracy. I was able to sample their latest effort, "Mirror Of Souls", and it is a near speedier Melodic Power Metal masterpiece. It is absolutely fantastic. Their performance did not disappoint just like the album except for the first song or two that was riddled with sound problems. They probably had the best reaction out of the weekend with lots of fans singing along and chanting. Easily the highlight of their set was the new track "Laying The Demon To Rest", which featured crunchy guitars and epic choruses.
The big surprise of the weekend for me was Imagika from San Franscisco. The combine Power and Thrash probably better then most bands even dream about. I gotta say I was a fan before I saw Norman and co., but now they are a reason that I would travel and nothing would stop me if they are even remotely close. Norman had excellent prescence and range, the bassist his name escapes me now, but HOT DAMN could he rip the bass apart!! Henry on drums did not disappoint either really showing those skins who is boss and Steve put every one in a state of hypnotism from his never stopping fingers.
Krucible the final band for the weekend that I had seen previously. As with the previous times Krucible did not disappoint. Their set consisted of their "classics", "Reborn" and "The Legacy" and perhaps a new one. As standard they played their cover of Dream Theater's "Pull Me Under". Now when I say standard I have seen them three times and each time they played it, I dont know about their other performances. I think they continue to do this cover because they do it so well and basically everyone in the Prog Metal world knows it so its good for a sing-along.
After a weekend of waiting for the Seven Witches crew to totally own, they totally did. Their performance was awesome featuring some of my favorites such as "Mental Messiah", "Metal Tyrant" and "Camelot". James Rivera showed he still has it and Jack melted faces with his guitar in addition to making a variety of humorous faces himself. At the end of their performance they invited any of the singers up that had performed earlier. With various singers in tow they went through the classics of "Heaven And Hell" and "Victim Of Changes". Though some of the vocalists didn't know the words I forgive them since it was impromptu.
I gotta say thanks to John Cheeks, Texas Beth (sorry never got your real name), and Lance King for putting on such a great weekend as well as the bands for totally kicking ass.
