Tucson Summer Slaughter Show Report
It was here:
http://www.rocktucson.com/
It started at 4:30. I came straight from work and got in the place about 5pm. I missed the first band, which I think was local and was called something like "A Breath Before Surfacing". I did hear the end of their last song from the parking lot. They sounded like they might have been good. I meant to make it on time, but I didn't.
Below is the order that the bands went on, what I did, what I saw, and my impressions. My impressions and/or memory may be off, having only been exposed to most of these bands for the first time, and it being live and loud, and sometimes hard to distinguish exactly what was going on.
The show was pretty full. I think The Rock is a smallish place, but not a hole in the wall. I have no idea of the numbers, but probably 300 or whatever. Crowd participation was overall relatively very good for all bands that I saw. I never really got into the pit. I just haven’t been jumping in at the shows I have been seeing lately. I still get the urge, but I haven’t acted on it. Maybe I am getting old.
BENEATH THE MASSACRE
I stood off to the side/back in front of the chain-link fence that separates the 21+ area from the rest of the place. It's like 2 steps higher than the floor, so the view is pretty good, except for the post that blocks a small part of the stage (about 1 band member). This band sounded like they were going for the technical death/grind type style, not unlike Necrophagist. They throw in breakdowns, which I am getting tired of. They seemed ok, but I was not really moved by their performance. The singer urged the crowd to action, which was met with some success.
THE FACELESS
I stood off to the side/back again.
They had keyboards and were a mix of styles. Death metal, some blackish vox, and I thought I caught a moment of that new American melo-death core stuff. At least one song was pretty long and their stuff seemed to have motion and direction. The keys were effective at times, and might have been twinkly at times, but it was hard to tell. They pretty much played and the singer really didn't see worried about telling the crowd what to do, which I like. Overall my impression was good, and they got the first scream/yell out of me that night. I may look into them further.
ION DISSONANCE
I started off to the side/back, but ended up outside. These guys are start/stop/breakdown metalcore which just annoys the crap out of me. I detected no motion or musicality, so I went outside.
ARSIS
I stood off to the side/back again.
This band and the next one kinda run together in my mind at this point, and I cannot specifically remember anything musically about them individually and/or to distinguish one from another. I think they were mostly death metal but used the ol' crowd pleasin' breakdown. I am not saying they are the same, I just can't remember, and I don't remember being overly impressed by either.
AS BLOOD RUNS BLACK
See above.
CATTLE DECAPITATION
I got right up front for this, basically at the front edge of the pit. Yeah I got run into regularly, but it was cool. I just stood there and watched the show, headbanging or whatever. When we would get hit the people in front of me would be turning around and looking, and standing there watching the pit (I assume) to see if any more hits were coming. I was thinking, “I will be the one who gets hit, why are you worried?”.
These guys put on a great show. The singer is just insane. Screaming his guts out, spitting in the air and catching it in his mouth, or in his hand and rubbing it on his shirt. He makes all kinds of insane faces while he is singing with his tongue all off to the side or whatever. Him (except when he is performing) and the drummer and the guitarist are skinny, mellow looking dudes, like they could be in Nirvana or Dave Matthews band or something. The bass player is of the “big bald guy with beard” variety. Killer crowd reaction without being prompted. This is my second time seeing them and my impression is that they are pretty killer, but I haven’t heard them on CD.
CEPHALIC CARNAGE
I stood in the middle/back for them about one layer back from the back of the pit. There was this tool wearing a Tool shirt and pushing the people in the pit hard when they came by him, and making fun of some of them. What a maroon. One time someone from the pit kinda came up behind him and pushed him in. That was funny. He stopped pushing for a little while. He got back into it and at one point the pit got real fast and his pushing got him “caught in a mosh”. He got swept away into the pit. That was awesome!
This band is weird, but pretty good. They had a lot of good crowd participation and a fun time was had by all. They made sure to encourage anyone who had weed to meet them outside later to get stoned.
DECAPITATED
I got right up front for this. Crowd participation started out slow and I wondered if people were just watching, or it was too metal for their tastes. But after the second song it got pretty lively and ended up being a lot of fun. Even a lot of movement within the layer between stage and pit. I wrecked my neck for much of this set.
Not a lot to say about the set. They are a killer band and somewhat lively on stage. They played their songs well and we were loving it.
NECROPHAGIST
Up front again. Overall the crowd was more subdued throughout this set, though there was still a pit at times, and some headbanging up front. I think a lot of people were just watching them play, plus their music is less predictable than most. I completed the destruction of my neck for this set.
These guys are a trip. The singer/guitarist just looks like any guy you would see at work or on a college campus. A semi-short guy with a nice regular short haircut and wearing a solid color t-shirt (black I think). He just stands there belting out those killer vox, blazing away at the fretboard. The other guitarist had long hair and pretty much stood there and played. There are times when they are playing the exact same thing, or at least a very similar thing at the same exact timing, and they were dead on. It was killer. The bass player, a shaved headed happy looking fellow, moved around more. The drummer was fantastic and did a pretty long solo. He really mixed it up with limb independent odd mixes of beats and wailing away on different areas of the kit (categorically and physically). It was awesome! I assumed they would do a less drum-intensive song next (do they have one?) but then they went right into another insane song and the drummer just kept going. He’s a maniac!
I think I probably enjoyed Decapitated's set slightly more than Necrophagist, but both were great. Good show!
ack
