By Andrew Bansal
May 7th 2013, Five Star Bar, Los Angeles CA: After scoping out venues on the Sunset Strip and a few other places over the past 15 days, I was back at the good ol’ Five Star Bar in downtown LA. I used to live a few blocks away from this place in the past, and this was one of my favorite hangout spots. I love the weirdness and intimacy of the venue, and it has been host to some interesting shows. Last night it was Toronto-based classic heavy metal band Cauldron stopping by on their ‘America’s Lost’ tour. They’re on their first full North American tour since the last time I saw them open for Holy Grail in 2011, and this time they’re headlining with local support in each city. I’ve enjoyed them every time I’ve seen them, and was looking forward to see them as a headliner for the first time ever.
The doors opened at 8 and the show started at 8.30. Meth Leppard are on the flyer but they didn’t play the show. The band Livin Alive was first to take the stage. What they were playing wasn’t anything new, but this wasn’t the kind of show where people came out to discover bands that reinvent the wheel. It was all about fitting in to the classic metal theme of the night, and Livin Alive certainly did that. These four kids looked like they were playing their hearts out, and that’s what endeared them to the crowd. Singer/guitarist Wowie put on a great show, both music-wise and in terms of his interaction with the crowd. They turned out to be the perfect opener for this show and I’d be definitely in touch with their upcoming shows to check them out next time as well.
Night Demon were up next. Another band that kept the classic speed metal vibe going, much to the delight of the crowd. The trio came across as genuinely good musicians. While watching them I somehow got the feeling that I’ve seen them somewhere before, but for the life of me I can’t remember where, when or with whom. Anyway, for me they were the best support band last night and did all things right. For the traditional heavy metal fans in attendance last night, it was near impossible to not enjoy this Night Demon performance. A lot of people in the LA scene often sound jaded and keep saying that local music is dead, there aren’t any good bands coming up anymore, and all of that stuff. But as long as LA gives us bands like Night Demon, we have nothing to worry about and plenty to rejoice.
The show was going so excellent thus far, I feared there had to be something amiss. It couldn’t just be perfect all the way through. And sure enough, the next band Brain Dead stuck out like a sore thumb. When I saw them setting up on stage and two of the members wearing Slayer shirts, I got an inkling that they weren’t going to fit. And unfortunately I was right. Their music seemed like a hybrid of Slayer and Pantera with a touch of punk thrown in. Yeah, not the kind you’d want or expect to hear at a Cauldron show. Some people in the crowd started leaving the venue to have a smoke outside. When every band on a lineup is different from each other, then it’s fine, but when all other bands follow a certain theme and one band sticks out, it’s not a good thing. I have nothing against Brain Dead’s performance itself though. I just feel this was a wrong show for them to be on, that’s all.
Everything was going as per schedule so far, and the mighty Exmortus came next as the main support act. This is a band that’s been around for a number of years now, playing tons and tons of local shows, eventually breaking out on tours, and gaining a following of their own in the process. Frontman Conan absolutely ripped on his guitar with some scorching neo-classical influenced leads and solos, with able assistance from band mate David Rivera. To be honest, I’ve been a fan and admirer of their goofy, cheesy, fun-filled approach to metal and I enjoyed their set for a good while last night. But after 25 minutes or so, it was getting a bit tiring to hear the same style of shredding continuously. They played a 45-minute set which I felt was a bit too long for a show that was supposed to be Cauldron’s. I get that Exmortus probably has an equally big or even bigger following than Cauldron in LA, but their set definitely cut into what could have been a longer Cauldron set. Nonetheless, an entertaining-as-ever performance by Exmortus.
At midnight, it was finally time for bang heads to Cauldron‘s awesome classic metal tunes. After a rather prolonged and exaggerated intro, they tore into their set with the opening song ‘End of Time’ from the new album Tomorrow’s Lost. So the impact of the new material was felt on this crowd straightaway and despite the greater prominence of the guitars as compared to previous albums, the catchy Cauldron choruses and melodies were still very much intact. The new stuff blended greatly with the old, as End Of Time was followed by Frozen In Fire off of the Burning Fortune album. I wanted to get a close look at what they were doing on stage, so the PA speakers on either side of the stage were almost alongside me rather than facing me. Hence I wasn’t hearing the full volume of the vocals but I’m sure it was heard absolutely fine a little further back in the crowd. Three more new songs ‘Nitebreaker’, ‘Summoned To Succumb’ and ‘Burning Fortune’ (not to be confused with the previous album’s title) were played, and it’s safe to say that Cauldron made best use of the short time they were given in promoting the new album as well as keeping fans of the old material happy. Talking of old material, ‘Frozen In Fire’ and ‘Rapid City/Unchained Assault’ sounded as good as I remembered them. Rapid City is such an instant classic when it comes to Cauldron live shows, I don’t think it should ever leave their set. In typical Cauldron humor, they asked if anyone in the house was a Rush fan, and then played a cover of Venom’s ‘Die Hard’. They ended the short and sweet set with Conjure The Mass and All Or Nothing.
I certainly felt robbed of at least 15 minutes of Cauldron as they played for only 45 minutes, doing just 9 songs as opposed to the usual 11 or 12 they’ve been doing on this tour. Nonetheless, it was a pleasure to see them perform at the peak of their musical powers yet again. I will never understand why this band isn’t bigger or more popular, but as long as they release good music and put on good shows, they have a fan and supporter in me.
Overall, a mightily amazing show for a meagre price of 5 bucks. If you’re even remotely an old-school metal fan, go see Cauldron as soon as they visit your town!
Related: Photo Gallery
Set List:
1. End Of Time
2. Frozen In Fire
3. Nitebreaker
4. Summoned To Succumb
5. Rapid City/Unchained Assault
6. Burning Fortune
7. Die Hard (Venom cover)
8. Conjure The Mass
9. All Or Nothing
Remaining Dates:
May 08 – Fullerton, CA – Slidebar (FREE)
May 09 – Las Vegas, NV – Bunkhouse
May 10 – Mesa, AZ – Nile Theater Underground
May 11 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad (w/ TORTURE VICTIM)
May 15 – St. Louis, MO – Cusumanos’
May 16 – Indianapolis, IN – Indy’s Jukebox
May 17 – Columbus, OH – Kobo
Jun. 08 – Detroit, MI – Orion Music + More festival
Jul. 05 – Richmond, VA – TBA
Jul. 06 – Raleigh, NC – The Maywood