It’s difficult to revel in the dark when you’re always bathing in the light – and such is the problem with Los Angeles. There’s no such thing as a grim vibe here, ever. We have to create it ourselves. That’s why thrash thrives and most black metal gets quashed as the setting sun reflects off the iridescent billboards.
The House of Blues is smack dab in the center of all the Hollywood fluff. Despite all this, I’m usually excited for metal shows here. But tonight’s bill should have been far, far away from Taco Tuesday at the Cabo Cantina.
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Everyone was curious about Weapon. There was an endearing awkwardness to their first few minutes onstage; only half the band was in corpse paint and they had a few timing issues. After a song or two, they tightened up into a confident machine. Vetis Monarch’s gruffness is real and that carries this band.
Withered were the least hyped on the bill, but they came out with a more polished offering – as if that means something when it comes to black metal. Deep within the black muck, they weave in the melancholy of doom and the groove of death. Dylan Kilgore and Mike Thompson both lend their growls for a dual attack. Their sonic balance lifted us to a small pedestal of safety before we plummeted again.
. . .
The familiar reddish, swampy aura of 1349 withdrew me from my surroundings. I stepped into the pit in hopes of crowding my field of vision with that red glow. Looking up at the stage, everything snapped into place. Ravn’s wirey frame can make him look like a scarecrow from hell, barking blasphemes from atop his perch. Below, we waited for the moment when we could bark along with him: I am abomination!
Some of us already knew about Frost’s absence; others weren’t expecting to see blonde hair behind the kit. With corpsepaint and frantic eyes, Job for a Cowboy’s Jon Rice looked the part. 1349’s blasting compositions make it impossible to ignore the drummer, and fucking hell, Rice never missed a beat.
. . .
Marduk commanded attention, but relentless 1349 were tough to follow. Black metal interrupted too often with talking isn’t as mind-numbing or as memorable as that which takes us away wholly, and forcefully, for the entire length of the set. It wasn’t for Marduk’s lack of energy, though. Mortuus threw himself into the classics. Evil and Devo reminded us why we were there. When Marduk were knee-deep in a song, they were uncompromising.
I made a valiant effort to exit the venue without losing my grip on the aura noir. After a show so heavily dependent on atmosphere, sometimes it feels right to go home right away, if for no other reason than to give inspiration an opportunity to knock.
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That was a strange show. The bands delivered for the most part (1349 sounded amazing with Rice behind the kit) but the energy in the room was pretty weird. Like you say in the review, it’s the weird juxtaposition of a glossy, corporate venue in the middle of the Sunset Strip with a bunch of black metal bands (“blackish” in the case of Withered).
I’m just glad there’s a photo of Orange Beanie up there. Dude’s presence was definitely felt in the pit!
The question is, then, what venue in L.A. works well for a black metal show of some stature?
I’ve heard good things about Black Castle. I reckon the Black Twilight Circle plays there whenever they feel like it.
Black Castle’s a weird one. It’s fairly big, and they definitely squeeze a few hundred people more than any fire inspector would allow, but it’s more of an overgrown DIY space. I can’t imagine it holds more than 400 kids, and that would be way overstuffed. House of Blues holds over 1000.
The Troubadour could almost work (great venue in general), but that’s a bit smaller too (575 capacity). While House of Blues exists and is willing to do these kinds of shows I doubt we’ll get a reasonable alternative anytime soon.
Now that I think about it, some of the bigger theater venues might be the best options, if only they’d relinquish and start doing more metal shows. El Rey holds 770 and is reasonably decent if they pull the chairs up, while the Fonda / Music Box holds 1300, which probably would have been perfect for something like Death to All, which was completely full and sold out well in advance. Ah, logistics!
I love the Black Castle. There’s a little sense of danger – it’s in a weird part of town, often packed to the gills, it’s got a beer trailer, drug room, horrible loo. Everything’s sticky and there’s usually a fight. If that’s not atmosphere, I don’t know what is!
I think the orange beanie/leather vest/khaki pants combo is beautiful proof that that article about all metalheads dressing alike was dead wrong.
Orange Beanie (that’s his name on Facebook too) is no mere metalhead. You rarely see him with his shirt on at all.
I have never, NEVER, seen a bad show from either Marduk or 1349.
Kudos for Rice for getting the nod to fill the iron throne for this tour. And also to Withered, a band I have always wanted to see live.
Withered have spent the last decade quietly making some of the best death metal in the U.S. If they were from NYC or the Midwest they would have graduated from opening slots years ago. Memento Mori is a modern classic.
Memento Mori was in my cd player for awhile when Mike gave me a copy way back.
Weapon is quite possibly one of the best occult death metal bands right now, up there with Antediluvian, Mitochondrion and Necros Christos. Drakonian Paradigm was a crusher of an album, but From The Devil’s Tomb just brings a world of next level hellishness. Ajna wins right there.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Thnw-PpttbQ&feature=relmfu
So bummed i missed Weapon. It would have been weird to see on a big stage in front of an empty room (it didn’t fill in until halfway through 1349), but who cares.
Vetis Monarch’s interviews in Terminal Diagnosis #1 and Chips & Beer #3 are a must read.
I caught this show very luckily in Ottawa while I was there on vacation. I’m never 100% sold on black metal played live, but I enjoyed this for the most part. Weapon was a treat,and played everything twice as fast. Marduk and 1349 were both so-so to me,but they both had fiddly sound issues and the guitar was too quiet.
I had never heard Withered but was totally blown away. The way they positioned the drum kit/back up vocal’s mics created a very neat aesthetic. The drummer was absurdly intense, the kind of performance where you expect him to slump over dead after, and the band’s whole sound was massive. You could almost feel it pushing you away. Awesome!
I prefer 1349 with Frost behind the kit. They sounded MASSIVE when they played with Triptykon 2 years ago, although Tony Laureano more than capably filled Frost’s role on that Celtic Frost tour 6 years ago.