I'm tired as hell from all the metal(and and all that driving)! but here are some thoughts on the shows I went to this weekend..
Gigantour(Merriweather Post Pavillion, MD):
High on Fire - Unfortunately missed them cause we got there late.
Job for a Cowboy - They sounded like every other death-core band out there, they were tight as hell however, which is good.
Children of Bodom - First disappointment of the weekend, the band was tight, however, they chose to play their chugga-chugga songs instead of their good material(barring Hate me and Downfall, which were awesome).
In Flames - I don't know what to say..they did the same thing CoB did, play chugga chugga music instead of their good songs. Can't say I blame them though, they got a good reaction on their new material, and the song Clayman, but they played Graveland from The Jester Race and there were a lot of confused faces in the audience. I hadn't seen this band live before and I am a huge fan of their music(up to Reroute to Remain) but it was very disappointing to see them turn into just another angry jock band..And the less is said about stage presence the better.
One interesting thing of note was Anders' comments about having to play to European audiences on their next tour and his complete disinterest in doing so....I guess European metal fans are more demanding and expect them to play their good stuff...
Megadeth - This is my fourth time seeing them and they did not dissapoint. Awesome from beginning to end. There were some mistakes here and there but they still showed the crowd, and the opening bands, why they are fucking Megadeth. By the way, the new guitarist is amazing, but we all new that.
The Invaluable Darkness Tour - Part 2: Legions of The Chosen Few(Club 9:30, DC)
Keep of Kalessin - Unfortunately missed them due to DC being a clusterfuck of streets with no visible signs(i.e. we got lost).
Behemoth - I am not the biggest death/black metal fan in the world, however, these guys put on a great show and I really enjoyed their songs.
Dimmu Borgir - I had not seen these guys live before and I have to say they impressed the hell out of me. Amazing show with a great setlist covering most of their albums.
Pagan Fest(Jaxx, Springfield, VA)
Silveth and Apothys - These bands were pretty good openers imho, but I really don't have much else to say about them.
Eluveitie - Holy Shit! This band was great. Some songs reminded me of At The Gates, mixed with European folk music. There were around 7 people on stage at a time and they all sang or played some instrument. Great stage presence from all the members, they were moving around everywhere on that small stage. Props to the girl in the audience who came dressed up as a medieval maiden, she kept dancing to Eluveitie's more folky songs!!
Amazing band, can't wait to see them again!
Tyr - Compared to Eluveitie, Tyr seemed kinda boring and bland, however, their brand of Viking Metal was way better than Amon Amarth's(Imho).
Turisas – Goddamn!! Anyone who likes metal needs to see this band at least once. I would say they were the highlight of the whole weekend. This band was nuts. They made people dance, mosh, then dance again, then mosh again! They completely kicked everyone's asses that night, which was unfortunate in a way because Ensiferum(the headliners) seemed like they would have a hard time following up after these guys! At first I thought Turisas' brand of folk/Viking metal would come off as too cheesy, coupled with their attire and face paint, however, the opposite was true. The crowd completely ate up all they had to offer.
Ensiferum – They did not have the crazy attire or Braveheart-esque face paint as Turisas, however, they had better songs and their sound was amazing. Petri(vocals) did a great job in keeping the crowd pumped, although it was more than clear that people were already too exhausted from all the previous bands(more so because of Turisas). Still, they played most of my favorite songs, and played them tight as hell.
to all of you, you HAVE to go see Pagan Fest, it's the most fun show I have ever witnessed.
Good Metal needs to be supported!
Gigantour(Merriweather Post Pavillion, MD):
High on Fire - Unfortunately missed them cause we got there late.
Job for a Cowboy - They sounded like every other death-core band out there, they were tight as hell however, which is good.
Children of Bodom - First disappointment of the weekend, the band was tight, however, they chose to play their chugga-chugga songs instead of their good material(barring Hate me and Downfall, which were awesome).
In Flames - I don't know what to say..they did the same thing CoB did, play chugga chugga music instead of their good songs. Can't say I blame them though, they got a good reaction on their new material, and the song Clayman, but they played Graveland from The Jester Race and there were a lot of confused faces in the audience. I hadn't seen this band live before and I am a huge fan of their music(up to Reroute to Remain) but it was very disappointing to see them turn into just another angry jock band..And the less is said about stage presence the better.
One interesting thing of note was Anders' comments about having to play to European audiences on their next tour and his complete disinterest in doing so....I guess European metal fans are more demanding and expect them to play their good stuff...
Megadeth - This is my fourth time seeing them and they did not dissapoint. Awesome from beginning to end. There were some mistakes here and there but they still showed the crowd, and the opening bands, why they are fucking Megadeth. By the way, the new guitarist is amazing, but we all new that.
The Invaluable Darkness Tour - Part 2: Legions of The Chosen Few(Club 9:30, DC)
Keep of Kalessin - Unfortunately missed them due to DC being a clusterfuck of streets with no visible signs(i.e. we got lost).
Behemoth - I am not the biggest death/black metal fan in the world, however, these guys put on a great show and I really enjoyed their songs.
Dimmu Borgir - I had not seen these guys live before and I have to say they impressed the hell out of me. Amazing show with a great setlist covering most of their albums.
Pagan Fest(Jaxx, Springfield, VA)
Silveth and Apothys - These bands were pretty good openers imho, but I really don't have much else to say about them.
Eluveitie - Holy Shit! This band was great. Some songs reminded me of At The Gates, mixed with European folk music. There were around 7 people on stage at a time and they all sang or played some instrument. Great stage presence from all the members, they were moving around everywhere on that small stage. Props to the girl in the audience who came dressed up as a medieval maiden, she kept dancing to Eluveitie's more folky songs!!
Amazing band, can't wait to see them again!
Tyr - Compared to Eluveitie, Tyr seemed kinda boring and bland, however, their brand of Viking Metal was way better than Amon Amarth's(Imho).
Turisas – Goddamn!! Anyone who likes metal needs to see this band at least once. I would say they were the highlight of the whole weekend. This band was nuts. They made people dance, mosh, then dance again, then mosh again! They completely kicked everyone's asses that night, which was unfortunate in a way because Ensiferum(the headliners) seemed like they would have a hard time following up after these guys! At first I thought Turisas' brand of folk/Viking metal would come off as too cheesy, coupled with their attire and face paint, however, the opposite was true. The crowd completely ate up all they had to offer.
Ensiferum – They did not have the crazy attire or Braveheart-esque face paint as Turisas, however, they had better songs and their sound was amazing. Petri(vocals) did a great job in keeping the crowd pumped, although it was more than clear that people were already too exhausted from all the previous bands(more so because of Turisas). Still, they played most of my favorite songs, and played them tight as hell.
to all of you, you HAVE to go see Pagan Fest, it's the most fun show I have ever witnessed.
Good Metal needs to be supported!
