Minnesota MetalFest Concert Review

Minnesota MetalFest: Primal Fear, Atheist, Novembers Doom, Destroy Destroy Destroy, Gnostic, Avian, Gracepoint, Grand Demise Of Civilization, Avalon

Monday, September 7, 2009

Station 4, St. Paul, MN

The Minnesota MetalFest was resurrected once again this year, featuring perhaps the most diverse lineup ever. Held on Labor Day, things got off to start early in the afternoon. I arrived late in the afternoon and caught the last couple songs from locals Gracepoint. They seem to straddle the line of aggressive technical metal and did a decent enough job of keeping the early crowd interested. The final local band up was Avian, easily the best and most professional area band going right now. Avian played a short selection of songs from both of their albums, From The Depths Of Time and Ashes And Madness, to rousing applause. This was the first show to feature their new guitarist, who stepped up and admirably replaced the big shoes left by Bill Hudson (ex-Cellador). Fans of Iron Maiden and Savatage would be well advised to check out this amazing band.

Atlanta’s Gnostic then took the stage and played with unbelievable intensity. Featuring three members of Athiest, Gnostic plays insane, jazz-fused technical hardcore that almost defies categorization. Fans of Athiest and Cynic may be put off by the screaming vocal style, but Gnostic is certainly forging their own musical style. I found it to be a little too much at times, but they’re certainly an interesting band. I was thrilled at the inclusion of Destroy Destroy Destroy on the bill, and they didn’t disappoint fans of their Children Of Bodom-influenced thrash metal. They blitzed onto stage looking like redneck Vikings, and received a huge response from the crowd as they stormed through songs from Battle Sluts and Devour The Power. Despite their keyboard player missing this tour, the band played along to tapes to replicate their massive sound. Destroy Destroy Destroy has huge potential, and a larger record label would be wise to discover this excellent band.

The biggest surprise of the day was Chicago’s Novembers Doom. I had never paid attention to this band after not liking their first album some years ago, but I was blown away at how great they sounded. The closest similarity I can draw is to the heavy, crushing doom of Swallow The Sun. Their hour-long set was quite different from all the other bands, and I hope that they can make to these parts for shows in the future. Athiest was a bit of a let down following Novembers Doom’s set. The band, especially vocalist Kelly Shaefer, came across as a bit too relaxed and lackadaisical. A selection from all three of their ground-breaking albums was performed with excellent delivery, but the band seemed to be having an off night. This was definitely better than the disappointing show from Cynic I saw earlier this year, but I still felt like I wasn’t seeing Athiest at their best.

Last up, after nearly an hour-long wait, was headliner Primal Fear, here from Germany on the opening night of their first American tour. The band had to be disappointed by the turnout, as it didn’t seem the size of crowd had grown since late afternoon. Despite this, Primal Fear churned out 90 minutes of power metal that left no one disappointed. Highlights from their new album, 16.6 – Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead, were played (“Killbound”, “Six Time Dead (16.6)”, “Riding The Eagle”) alongside older fan favorites such as “Nuclear Fire”, “Fighting The Darkness”, and “Metal Is Forever”. Vocalist Ralf Scheepers is an imposing force on stage, both physically and sonically. He let loose screams with ease that showed why he nearly became the singer for Judas Priest. The entire band was tight, and seemed to be having fun on stage. Primal Fear was an exceptional end to a long day, and the entire audience stuck around to show their appreciation. All in all, the day was an enormous success with a diverse, unique bill. Let’s just hope that the promoter’s financials worked out to warrant continuation of a superb festival-style experience in a club.