Concert Announcements - June 14, 2014

The Deafheaven, Pallbearer, and Wreck And Reference show on Monday, June 23 at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis is now SOLD OUT.

Pov’s 65 in Spring Lake Park has a big night of local metal on Saturday, July 12 with Blue Felix topping the bill along with Immoralis, Left 4 Dead, Endless Reign, and Lysergic.

Sludge band Weedeater will play Minneapolis at the Triple Rock Social Club on Sunday, July 13. No openers have been announced, and advance tickets are on sale now through Ticketfly.

Following an appearance at the Warped Tour in Shakopee on Sunday, July 20, acoustic-punk band Divided Heaven will take over the What’s Up Lounge in Mankato on Thursday, July 24 with Braden Saulsbury as support.

As announced a couple days ago (see tour announcement here), rock band He Is Legend from North Carolina will play St. Paul at the Amsterdam Bar & Hall on Sunday, August 17 with support from Maylene & The Sons Of Disaster and Wilson. Advance tickets are now on sale through Ticketfly.

Arch Enemy, in tow with new vocalist Alissa White-Gluz (ex-The Agonist), play Mill City Nights in Minneapolis on Tuesday, November 18 with Germany’s Kreator and Huntress. Tickets go on sale Friday, June 20 at 10:00 am through AXS. The tour announcement with complete dates is here.

Dark Tranquillity and Insomnium are pairing up for a tour that brings them to the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis on Friday, January 16, as reported a couple days ago here. Advance tickets and VIP packages are on sale now through The Vault.

Tours: ARCH ENEMY Return to North America with KREATOR, HUNTRESS, and STARKILL; Play Minneapolis November 18

Arch Enemy performing January 30, 2010 at The Rock in Maplewood. Click the photo to see more pictures from this show (23).

Swedish melodic death metal band Arch Enemy have lined up a North American tour during October and November to promote their new War Eternal album, the first with former The Agonist vocalist Alissa White-Gluz. Lined up for support are legendary German thrashers Kreator, Huntress, and Starkill on select dates. The package arrives on Tuesday, November 18 in Minneapolis at Mill City Nights. Tickets for the Minneapolis concert go on sale Friday, June 20 at 10:00 am through AXS; Starkill will not play this date. The full list of tour dates follows.

Starkill performing August 17, 2013 at The Oxford Theater in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Click the photo to see more pictures from this show (15).

October 23 – Baltimore, MD, Baltimore Soundstage

October 24 – New York, NY, Best Buy Theater*

October 25 – Worcester, MA, The Palladium

October 26 – Clifton Park, NY, Upstate Concert Hall

October 27 – Montreal, QC, Metropolis

October 28 – Quebec City, QC, Imperial Theater

October 29 – Toronto, ON, The Opera House

November 1 – Winnipeg, MB, The Garrick Centre*

November 2 – Regina, SK, Riddell Centre*

November 3 – Calgary, AB, Macewan Hall Ballroom*

November 4 – Edmonton, AB, Union Hall*

November 6 – Vancouver, BC, Commodore Ballroom*

November 7 – Seattle, WA, Studio Seven*

November 8 – Portland, OR, Hawthorne Theater*

November 10 – San Francisco, CA, Regency Center

November 11 – West Hollywood, CA, House of Blues

November 12 – Anaheim, CA, House of Blues

November 14 – Tempe, AZ, The Marquee

November 15 – Albuquerque, NM, Sunshine Theater*

November 16 – Denver, CO, Ogden Theatre

November 18 – Minneapolis, MN, Mill City Nights*

November 19 – Joliet, IL, Mojoes

November 20 – Grand Rapids, MI, The Intersection

November 21 – Detroit, MI, Majestic Theatre

November 22 – Cincinnati, OH, Bogarts

November 23 – Cleveland, OH, House of Blues

*No Starkill

Kreator Album Review

Kreator – Hordes Of Chaos

Steamhammer/SPV, 2009

7/10

I think of Kreator in the same vein as Overkill – a great band that reliably releases strong, consistent albums, most good and some great. Hordes Of Chaos is a very Slayer-ish sounding thrash album, all the way from riffs to vocal style. While still an excellent album, it’s somewhat of a letdown following the exceptional Enemy Of God in 2005. There’s not much fault to be found with the individual songs, but there’s nothing here that compels me grab the volume knob and crank the hell out of these songs. The riffs are fast and the playing is tight, all of the elements you expect from Kreator. “Radical Resistance” is probably the best of the lot, but otherwise the remainder of the album flows by without capturing my attention. Hordes Of Chaos may not be among the best Kreator albums, but it’s still a solid effort whose level of interest will depend upon your love of German thrash.

Kreator will be appearing at Station 4 in St. Paul on Sunday, March 14. Support will come from Voivod, Nachtmystium, Evile, and Lazarus A.D.

New Concert, Album Reviews On The Way!

A slew of new concert and albums reviews will be posted by the end of the week. Look for concert reviews, pictures, and video from the recent Arch Enemy/Exodus/Arsis and Epica/Threat Signal/Blackguard/Gracepoint/Echoterra shows and album reviews from Alice In Chains, Karnivool, Kreator, Eluveitie, Overkill, Priestess, and Scar Symmetry.

Barren Earth EP Review

Barren Earth – Our Twilight EP

Peaceville, 2009

7/10

Barren Earth should attract immediate interest due to the fact that their lineup sports current and former members of European underground luminaries such as Amorphis, Kreator, Swallow The Sun, and Moonsorrow. The band has no North American tour plans that I know of, but I thought I’d review their debut EP since many of the members’ main bands will be coming through St. Paul this year. The biography of Barren Earth describes their sound as progressive death metal, and this isn’t too far off the mark although immediate comparisons will be drawn to Amorphis and Swallow The Sun. The material here is slow, depressive death metal, and an edited version of “Our Twilight” opens the proceedings with heavy, poundings rhythms that lead into a cleanly sung chorus. “Jewel” is an outtake from 2009 recording sessions, and features liberal use of piano and organ to give this song its prog sensibilities. The final two tracks, “Flame Of Serenity” and “Floodred” were recorded in a 2008 session and have a sound that’s a bit denser, but sound a little heavier than the first two songs. There’s a lot of promise shown here, and Barren Earth would likely appeal to fans of early Amorphis and other slow, progressive-sounding death metals bands. The debut full-length album will be released in April in the United States.

Kreator will be appearing at Station 4 in St. Paul on Sunday, March 14. Support will come from Voivod, Nachtmystium, Evile, and Lazarus A.D.

Moonsorrow and Swallow The Sun will be appearing as support to Finntroll at Station 4 in St. Paul on Saturday, April 17. Additional support will come from Survivors Zero.

Kreator Concert Announcement

German thrash metal gods Kreator have announced a North American tour for March. This tour will bring them to Station 4 in St. Paul on Sunday, March 14. Supporting bands will be Voivod, Nachtmystium, Evile, and Lazarus A.D.

Upcoming Shows in 2010!

SwordLord Productions posted a message its Twitter page cryptically revealing some shows planned for 2010, with the hint to "unscramble for a sneak peak! RIMLAP RAFE, ROTREAK, ACEPI, ONSTAA CARCATI". This translates to Primal Fear, Kreator, Epica, and Sonata Arctica - looks like some great shows will be announced soon!