Concert Review: AGALLOCH and OBSIDIAN TONGUE in Minneapolis

Agalloch, Obsidian Tongue

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, MN

Click on the picture to see additional photos of Obsidian Tongue (11).

Upon arrival at the Triple Rock for this greatly anticipated show, Obsidian Tongue was wrapping up their first song and the club was packed near capacity. Obsidian Tongue is a two-piece black metal band from Massachusetts, and their guitar and drums combination packs a surprisingly strong punch. Being that their songs hover around ten minutes each, they were only able to play four songs, two from each of their albums. Their set was good, but the constant barrage of primitive, chainsaw guitar riffs and howling, screeching vocals made for difficult listening.

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of Agalloch (32).

This was Agalloch’s first show in the area, and the place seemed abuzz with anticipation as the band took the stage to the strains of the introduction, “(Serpens Caput)”, and began the set with “The Astral Dialogue” and “Vales Beyond Dimension”. Agalloch is American black metal at its finest, and the band stayed focused on their playing while on stage and maintained little interaction with the crowd, even between songs. Half of the ten-song, nearly 100-minute set was drawn from the latest album, The Serpent & The Sphere, with the remainder a representative selection from each of the previous four albums. Slower, moodier songs such as “Limbs” and “The Melancholy Spirit” offered no respite from the intensity of the show, and the audience treated the band as welcoming heroes. The whole affair was exhausting for everyone in the room, and the band looked drained by the time the show ended with “Into The Painted Grey” from 2010’s Marrow Of The Spirit. Everyone wanted more, and the band obliged with an amazing 16-minute version of “Plateau Of The Ages” for the encore.

As a live band, Agalloch more than delivers on the promise of their recorded output, and everyone at the show seemed to feel like they had witnessed something special. Adding to the unique atmosphere of this show was the one-time availability at the bar of Serpensblod, a smoked red ale inspired by Agalloch, and brewed especially for this show by Hammerheart Brewing (yes, it’s named in honor of the Bathory album!). I snagged one pint before the tap went dry and I was blown away by the smooth intense aroma and flavors. Hammerheart has a Nordic-inspired lodge-type taproom just north of the Cities in Lino Lakes, and if Serpensblod and the Hokan’s Brown Ale I also imbibed that night are any indication, the short jaunt to the brewery would be well worth it!

Concert Review: BLACK FLAG and GREG GINN & THE ROYAL WE in Minneapolis

Black Flag, Greg Ginn & The Royal We

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, MN

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of the respective band over at my Flickr site.

Way back in the summer of 1985 I had a ticket to see the Henry Rollins-fronted Black Flag play at a boathouse in Cedar Falls, Iowa; I missed the show due to a family vacation, sold my ticket to a friend, and never once did I ever again think I’d have the chance to see this iconic punk band play live. Nearly 30 years later, founder, guitarist, and only constant band member Greg Ginn assembled a new version of the band. Other ex-members of the band have been touring as Flag, but Greg Ginn’s version is the real deal.

Greg Ginn using a theremin.

I missed opener Cinema Cinema, but arrived in time for Ginn to walk on stage to introduce his solo project, Greg Ginn & The Royal We as “sensitivity training” before seeing Black Flag. Ginn’s other bands and projects have always veered into eclectic territory, but The Royal We was a real head scratcher. All instrumental, the set consisted of Ginn playing along to prerecorded tracks with a cold, mechanical feel accompanied by a TV monitor that ran a mix abstract images, black and white movie clips, and World War II footage. When not playing guitar Ginn fooled around with a theremin, an old, hands-free, noise-generating instrument capable of producing all sorts of spooky, bizarre sounds. It was interesting at best, and the crowd responded with mild, yet respective applause.

It didn’t take long for Black Flag to take the stage with a short instrumental introduction that led into “Rise Above”, one of the band’s signature fast anthems that immediately worked the crowd into a frenzy. Current vocalist, professional skateboarder Mike Vallely, rarely spoke to the crowd, and the band seemed intensely focused throughout the set, as if they had something to prove after being away for so long. The entire performance was tight, and audience went nuts as the band ripped through expected classics like “Gimme Gimme Gimme”, “Six Pack”, “Slip It In”, and “TV Party”. A great selection of songs was brought out; my personal favorites being “Black Coffee”, “Annihilate”, and “Damaged”. All told, Black Flag played 20 songs before being called back for the encore of “Louie Louie”, which had Ginn swap his guitar with bass player Tyler Smith to become Dale Nixon (the name credited to his bass playing on albums). Ginn passed the bass off to Vallely near the end of the song to hop into the audience, where he remained after the show to speak and take pictures with fans.

The half-filled room was a disappointment (shouldn’t this have sold out??), but the fiery, take-no-prisoners performance was everything I had hoped for. Legal disputes with Flag (settled out of court in Ginn’s favor) seem to have divided Black Flag fans. Sarah Stanley-Ayre published a harsh, negative review of this show over at City Pages that left me befuddled. It would seem logical that as the band’s founder, primary songwriter, and only consistent member, Greg Ginn should have the sole right to the Black Flag name and any associated images and logos. To say that the current version of Black Flag “wasn’t Black Flag”, and that “The whole thing felt like watching a cover band who was incredibly well-practiced” is probably exactly how I would describe Flag (if I gave a crap about seeing them). I take issue with too many of the inaccuracies and descriptions of this review to detail them all here.

What Flag did—assemble a cast of fleeting ex-members, bring along a hired gun guitarist, ape the band’s logo, use the four-bars symbol on merchandise, and even call themselves Black Flag at a “reunion show”—is embarrassing and insulting and disrespectful to fans. In the metal world, this would be like ex-Megadeth members Nick Menza, James Lomenzo, and Chuck Behler hiring Gamma Ray/Helloween guitarist/vocalist Kai Hansen to take the place of Dave Mustaine, calling themselves “Deth” (stylized in the Megadeth logo), and selling T-shirts with mascot Vic Rattlehead. Sounds ludicrous doesn’t it?

Black Flag returns to the area on Sunday, July 20 for a show at the Amsterdam Bar & Hall in St. Paul with support from Greg Ginn & The Royal We and Cinema Cinema.

Concert Review: WHITEHORSE, WAR MASTER, VULGAARI, and PESTIFERE in Minneapolis

Whitehorse, War Master, Vulgaari, Pestifere

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, MN

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of each respective band.

It seemed like a miracle to arrive early enough to a show to catch the local bands, and I’m sure glad I did. Pestifere from Minneapolis plays a more melodic style of black metal whose complexity and maturity took me by surprise. The band is currently mixing their first full album’s worth of material for release, so keep an eye out for this great, promising band.

Rising doom/sludge band from Minneapolis Vulgaari took the stage next, and proceeded to crush the growing crowd with a nice selection of tracks from their debut album. While it was a little disappointing that no new songs were debuted, hearing favorites such as “Lies” is always welcome. Although Vulgaari’s three-guitar attack may seem like overkill, you really can distinguish all three guitarists (Brent Hedtke, Todd Haug, and Zack Kinsey, who also handles vocals) playing distinct riffs that are mesmerizingly layered upon one another.

Houston’s War Master then stole the show with a frenzied, manic performance of their Bolt Thrower-inspired death metal. Although their music may lack some originality, War Master makes up for it with an energetic live show that proves these guys are the real deal. Vocalist Rahi had the crowd laughing between songs with his offbeat, growling banter, and even brandished a sword while chugging beers during part of the set. The band has a West Coast tour lined up in July, culminating in an appearance at the 2014 Grindcore Festival in Los Angeles on July 12, so don’t miss War Master if they play near you.

The crowd seemed drained following War Master, and Australia’s Whitehorse just couldn’t capture what energy the audience had left. Out to support the new Raised Into Darkness album, their slow, droning dirges left me bored. The band was putting their all into it with bear-like vocalist Peter Hyde bellowing from the depths of his imposing girth, but it wasn't enough to inspire much beyond grudging respect.

Tours: DARK TRANQUILLITY and INSOMNIUM Team Up for North American Campaign, Storm Minneapolis on January 16

The tour announcements keep pouring in! Swedish melodic death metal veterans Dark Tranquillity have announced a month-long North American tour for January 2015. Support on all dates will come from Finland’s Insomnium. Minneapolis makes the cut with a stop at the Triple Rock Social Club on Friday, January 16. Advance tickets and VIP ticket packages are available now at The Vault.

January 4 – New York, NY, The Gramercy Theatre

January 5 – West Springfield, VA, Empire

January 6 – Philadelphia, PA, Trocadero Theatre

January 7 – Worcester, MA, The Palladium

January 8 – Quebec City, QC, Chez Dagobert

January 9 – Montreal, QC, Les Foufounes Electriques

January 10 – Ottawa, ON, Mavericks

January 11 – Toronto, ON, Opera House Concert Venue

January 12 – Pittsburgh, PA, The Altar Bar

January 13 – Cleveland, OH, Agora Ballroom

January 14 – Kokomo, IN, Centerstage Bar and Grill

January 15 – Joiliet, IL, Mojoes

January 16 – Minneapolis, MN, Triple Rock Social Club

January 17 – Winnipeg, MB, West End Cultural Centre

January 18 – Saskatoon, SK, Louis’

January 19 – Edmonton, AB, The Starlite Room

January 20 – Calgary, AB, Republik Nightclub

January 22 – Vancouver, BC, Venue

January 23 – Seattle, WA, El Corazon

January 24 – Portland, OR, Hawthorne Theatre

January 25 – San Francisco, CA, Slim’s

January 26 – Anaheim, CA, City National Grove of Anaheim

January 27 – Tempe, AZ, Club Red

January 29 – Dallas, TX, Trees

NEGURA BUNGET Cancel North American Tour

Negura Bunget performing in St. Paul on April 30, 2012 at Station 4. Click on any of the pictures to see more photos from this show (47).

Before getting to some new concert announcements and news, I first wanted to bring attention to a couple of things that deserve some attention. Some unfortunate news kicks things off - Negura Bunget, the fantastic black/folk metal band from Romania, was recently forced to cancel their entire North American tour on the eve of the first date in Albany, New York on May 8. Fellow Romanians Grimegod subsequently also canceled their participation as direct support for the tour. This massive tour was to last through most of June, and included a stop here in Minneapolis on June 13 at the Triple Rock Social Club.

Negura Benget's official statement from their Facebook page posted on May 7 states:

"We are deeply sorry to say it, but we are forced to cancel our entire US and Canadian tour as of this moment. Some visa complication completely beyond the band’s control are forcing us to do this in the last moment, despite the fact that we’ve been working on this tour plan for over one year and we already secured our work permits months ago. Needless to say we invested a huge amount time, energy and money into making this tour happen, so we are taking a huge loos now. But we are still here, and we will return! Meanwhile we’ll focus all our frustration energy into completing the last details of the new album TĂU."

The little good news from this is that affected date in Minneapolis will still soldier on with local black metal bands False, Atrum Inritus, and Pestifere.

Pestifere performing May 15, 2014 at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis.