The Thrash and Burn Tour tore it up at the Lincoln Theatre…
On August 7, 2009, the Thrash and Burn Tour descended upon Raleigh, NC with 9 bands and a 6 1/2 hour show resulting in nothing less than satisfaction for local NC metalheads!
Out of the 9 bands that played, the 4 that I was really stoked to see (or see again) were Thy Will Be Done, MyChildren MyBride, Emmure, and DevilDriver. The other bands that were played were Periphery, Oceano, For The Fallen Dreams, Veil Of Maya, and Despised Icon. Overall, these 9 bands put on a sick show!
Opening the show at 4 pm was Thy Will Be Done. Once again, I was stoked to see these guys play and I definitely wasn’t let down. Being on the of the straight up Metal bands in the entire show, it was great to see them get a pretty decent crowd response, but I definitely would have liked to see a little better reaction. But, hey, what can one guy do, right? Moving on, I don’t remember the exact order in which the line-up went between TWBD and Emmure, but Periphery was pretty decent, Oceano was brutal, but not exactly my normal cup of tea, and For The Fallen Dreams was pretty good. The one band that was there that I didn’t know what they sounded like that I enjoyed was Veil Of Maya.
Just like most of the bands there, Veil Of Maya was in the category of either Deathcore, which basically means that they included breakdowns in their music instead of playing straight up Metal. Seeing as how I like well executed breakdowns, Veil Of Maya was right up my alley and their overall sound was definitely tight. I enjoyed their overall set and I’ll definitely have to check out some of their recorded stuff for my arsenal. After Veil Of Maya, it was time for MyChildren MyBride to play. Honestly, these guys were one of my favorites of the whole night. I had already heard a couple of their songs, so I knew what their sound was like, but they still blew me away. I was really impressed with how tight their overall live sound was and it was nearly identical to their recorded sound. To me, those are traits of an excellent band. Plus, I like the fact that they are a Christian Metalcore band; that’s a bonus in my opinion. Next after MyChildren Mybride was Despised Icon. Being a big name in Metal these days, I had heard of these guys, but I had never listened to them before. Just as with some of the other bands that night, they were good, just not my cup of tea.
Next to play was the actual direct support band for the tour, and one I had seen before…Emmure. As usual, these guys tore the house down with their well executed breakdowns, bass blasts (provided by the ever loved 808 module), and overall performance. Most of their set came from their album The Respect Issue, but they also played a track or two off of their upcoming release Felony. Overall, I was just as impressed with their performance as the first time I heard them on CD and the first time I saw them live. If you’re ever looking for a band with sick breakdowns and the ability to pump up an entire room with no problem, Emmure is the band to see.
Last, but mot definitely not least, to play was tour headliner DevilDriver. Just as with Emmure, this was the second time I got the great opportunity to see DevilDriver live and I certainly hope it’s not the last! With four full length releases under their belts, they had plenty of great material to choose from for their set list and I believe they threw together a pretty well balanced list of songs from all of their albums. I was really hoping they might play a bit more from their newest release Pray For Villains, but like I said, they had a well balanced list and I can’t complain with them playing any of their songs. After all, they ARE one of the bands that really got me into newer Metal.
All in all, I’m glad I got the concert tickets to go to this show. The overall line-up was sick, the atmosphere was great (despite most of the show being played while it was still light outside)…it was a great day for Metal!
Emmure – The Respect Issue
Victory Records
(5/5)
Strap on your seatbelts and hold on tight for one of the best breakthrough artists from 2007 continuing through 2008, Emmure! Rolling off their incredible debut album Goodbye to the Gallows, Emmure is releasing their second full length album entitled The Respect Issue. Honestly, I can’t put this album down! Tracks 1-4 are basically one HUGE breakdown before you are shown to another side of Emmure through parts of tracks 5 and 6. Tracks 7, 8, and 10 are all heavy in their own aspects, but the real shocker of the album is track 9 (“Dry Ice”). “Dry Ice” is simply an instrumental track that is slow, soft, and really doesn’t have much to do with the album. Overall, every track on the album has a significant purpose to making this one of the most exciting albums I have heard from Victory Records, but there were a few that stuck out. The one that had the MOST impact on me was “False Love in Real Life” (track 4). As soon as this track ended the first time I heard it, I had to start it over! The breakdowns in the track are UNBELIEVABLE! These breakdowns mark a new era for breakdowns with the slow and heavy effect they have. They are absolutely out of this world! On top of that, vocalist Frank Palmeri does an incredible job absolutely murdering this track. Every thing about it is insane! Really, every track on this album had some sort of incredible effect on me, but “False Love in Real Life” really hit me hard. To get a good glimpse of Emmure’s, more, Progressive sounding side, “Chicago’s Finest” (track 5) and “Tales From the Burg” (track 6). These two songs really combine different feelings and styles to get your heart pumpin’ and your fists movin’! And once again, the breakdown in “Tales From the Burg” is RIDICULOUS! Overall, I don’t think I could’ve asked for a better album out of these guys! All five members did an incredible job keeping up the intensity of their debut album sound. So, if you’re looking for an album to get you pumped and ready to punch someone in the head, check out The Respect Issue by Emmure ASAP!
Darkest Hour takes Wilmington venue by storm…
On February 1st, 2008, Victory Records band Darkest Hour headlined the second show of their current tour, The Doomsayers 2008 Tour with supporting bands Cephalic Carnage, Emmure , and Whitechapel. Having the interesting mix of styles in that small venue made for one explosive night!
The first band to hit the stage was Deathcore band, Whitechapel. Although Deathcore (or Death metal for that fact) is not my favorite style of music, I thought their set was pretty good. With the venue as packed as it was, it was hard to see what was really going on during their set, but they definitely seemed to have the makings for a good Deathcore band with pretty good stage presence. Again, they weren’t my favorite, but worth seeing if you’re into Deathcore or Death metal.
The next band to take the stage was Victory Records band, Emmure. These guys were pretty amazing on stage! Their music was great, their stage presence was awesome…this was a band worth seeing. If you saw these guys outside of a show, you might not actually think they were in a Metal band because of the way they dress and whatnot, but they easily proved that they have talent in the area of playing Metal while performing!
The third band to play that night was Death metal band, Cephalic Carnage. To be honest, I didn’t really like them at all! There was obvious talent in a couple of the members, but together they were HORRIBLE! It sounded like a bunch of noise. There was maybe one part in their entire performance that made any sense at all. I’m not just saying this because I’m not really a Death metal fan, but I am speaking from what I saw. However, some people who were there did like their set, so they must be doing something right. I didn’t see whatever it is they are doing right, but maybe it’s just me. Perhaps it was also a bit hard to look past the fact that two of the members looked old enough to be my dad!! The vocalist looked like a Death metal version of Carlos Santana with a beer gut! Oh well, it was only a wasted 30 minutes of life. I can go without that.
Finally, it was time for DARKEST HOUR!!! If there is one word that can describe their show, it’s AMAZING! This five-piece had everything it takes to be a great band. They had awesome music, great stage presence, top notch skills…they have it all. They really made it worth 3 hours of driving to go see them at their only NC stop on the tour. I was fortunate enough to catch up with them after the show to hang out for a few minutes and get an interview with their drummer, Ryan Parrish. In getting that interview, I found out that Ryan’s influences actually came from listening to Death metal when he was around the age of 12. these guys were awesome to see live and they’re all great guys to hang out with. If you ever get the chance to see them perform live, do it!
All in all, the whole night was great and I had a really good time being back in Wilmington to witness this great show!
