By Andrew Bansal
May 13th 2013, The Joint, Los Angeles CA: The last time Finnish grindcore band Rotten Sound visited North American shores was on the Finnish Metal Tour, where they were on the fourth band on a bill consisting of Finntroll, Ensiferum and Barren Earth. They released an album called ‘Cursed’ at the end of that tour, and two years on, they’ve put on their new ‘Species At War’ EP. They’re back in the States as a headline act this time, with a rotating support slot filled by the likes of Black Breath, Early Graves, Enabler, Abigail and Speedwolf. I enjoyed their set on the Finnish Metal Tour last time around, so I was stoked for this show and wanted to find out how they cope with being the headline act and what kind of turnout they got here at the Joint in West LA, on a Monday night.
I entered the venue at 9 o’ clock, and by the time I finished doing my interview with Early Graves frontman John Strachan, the band on stage, Orange County-based grindcore act Semtex Vest were more than half-way into their set. Based on the duration I got to see them for, I thought they sounded pretty solid with all the necessary elements of ‘grind-olence’ as they like to describe it. I was rather amused to see Steve Nelson up there on the guitar and vocals. He truly is LA’s most multi-faceted underground musician, as a member of bands like Destroy Judas, EvilDead, Winterthrall and 600 others, and this was yet another avatar of him I had never seen before, and honestly didn’t even know about. Good stuff, would love to check them out in greater detail next time.
Destroyed In Seconds, the last local opener for the show, took the stage next and kept the same kind of vibe going, although their sound had a bit more of a crossover element at certain times. I enjoyed their vocalist’s on-stage energy, and it was funny to see him trying to find room to move around on that tiny stage. He jumped down into the crowd at one point but that didn’t work for too long so he went back up, and towards the end of the set, he was like, fuck this, and jumped on the bar adjacent to the stage instead. I could really feel that he was trapped by the limited space he was given. Music-wise I actually enjoyed their slower parts, the breakdowns and interludes more. I tend to be saying that a lot these days. I don’t know, may be I’m enjoying slower music in general now, specially when it comes to bands I’m already not too familiar with. Their fast bits were repetitive, but fun nonetheless. Solid set by D.I.S., and it’s no surprise that they are one of the stalwarts of the SoCal underground.
The show was moving along quite swiftly, as Early Graves were ready to explode soon after D.I.S. were done. The first time I saw this band was in fact their first show with John Strachan on vocals, after the tragic death of original vocalist Makh Daniels. This was the Power Of The Riff festival at the Echo/Echoplex in LA in August 2011, and The Funeral Pyre frontman fit right into Early Graves from the get-go. The band’s latest release ‘Red Horse’ was further proof of that, and last night they split their set equally between Goner and Red Horse, showcasing the thrash, hardcore and crust elements of their devastating sound.
The bearded five-piece group brought on their A-game not only with the music but with their energy as well, constantly head-banging throughout the set. As if the music alone wasn’t alone to get you pumped, all you need to do is take a look at them performing on stage. The guitars were sounding sweet, heavy and rid of any unnecessary distortion, while the rhythm section dictated the pace of the songs. Just like the D.I.S. singer, John also seemed restricted by the lack of space on stage and was doing his best to hold back his inner demons. The last two songs ‘Rot’ and ‘Quietus’ together formed the best part of the set, specially the outro they played after John left the stage. This is the kind of performance I would have normally gone apeshit to if I didn’t have a long week ahead of me. I really had to try very hard to control myself. Overall, kiler set by Early Graves.
Set List:
1. Skinwalker
2. Goner
3. Give Up
4. Wraiths
5. Red Horse
6. Pure Hell
7. Rot
8. Quietus
After much deliberation with the monitor levels and making sure everything sounded perfect to them on stage, Rotten Sound finally began their short, precise and powerful set. For a headliner to play just 30-35 minutes, the set has to be all about the impact and substance, and not so much about the quantity. This kind of music demands it, and Rotten Sound sure as hell supplied it. I remember the last time on that Finnish Metal Tour, it was amusing to see the stunned faces in the folk-metal audience as they rammed through a 15-minute set of pure brutality. Of course, the response they got was much different last night and people were generally appreciative. This one guy started the moshpit in an otherwise dull crowd, and got the promise of a free t-shirt from frontman Keijo Niinimaa as a reward.
Even when a show is going absolutely perfect, there is always that one single element threatening to ruin it for everyone. And believe it or not, last night it wasn’t anyone from the band, it was the guy with the video camera on stage. He was filming all the bands tonight, and sure enough, he got up there for Rotten Sound too. He was much too intrusive for his own good, and to the dismay of the band members. He was shoving that big video camera of his right in the faces of the musicians up there even as they were busy performing, and the poor guys tolerated him but only up to a certain point. He was knocking down drum mics and doing everything he wasn’t supposed to do. Besides annoying the hell out of Keijo and his bandmates, he was obstructing the view of the audience too. No one wants to see a guy like that taking up all the space on such a tiny stage. Keijo looked like he was about ready to smash his camera into pieces, but finally he got out of the way and the set continued as normal. Besides that unwanted disturbance, Rotten Sound proved their worth as a headlining act touring the States. Their new music sounded as crushing as anything they’ve done in the past. The sudden tempo changes and stop-start moments were a lot of fun. This is a band that will get more and more popular during the course of the near future. If you dig grindcore and haven’t checked out these guys yet, please do.
In terms of the venue, I liked the way everything was run, except for that video guy. The sound was really good, the locations of the bar and merch stand were appropriate, and in general it was a good vibe for metal. I hope there are more shows taking place at this venue. The crowd last night was really dull though. I’m not sure whether that’s the kind of crowd this place attracts or whether it was the Monday night factor. A grind/crust show of this nature could have been a whole lot more fun if the crowd got more involved. Nonetheless, it’s more important that the venue and promoters are supporting this music and bringing out these bands for us to see.
All in all, a solid show put on by the lethal combination of Rotten Sound and Early Graves, well backed up by the local openers.
Remaining Tour Dates:
14 – San Diego, CA – Club Soda (with Early Graves)
15 – Phoenix, AZ – Rhythm Room (with Early Graves)
16 – Chicago, IL – Reggies (with Enabler)
17 – Detroit, MI – TBA
18 – Toronto, ON – Hard Luck
19 – Montreal, QC – Il Motore
20 – Boston, MA – Elks lodge
21 – Philadelphia, PA – The Barbary (with Hellshock, Krömosom, Nomad, and The Wake)
22 – Brooklyn, NY – The Acheron (with Hellshock, Krömosom, Nomad)
24 – Baltimore, MD – Maryland Deathfest
26 – Richmond,VA – Strange Matter (with Abigail)
27 – Raliegh, NC – Kings Arcade (with Abigail, Speedwolf)
28 – Atlanta, GA – 529 (with Abigail, Speedwolf, Kromosom)
29 – New Orleans, LA – Siberia (with Abigail, Speedwolf, Kromosom)
30 – Houston,TX – Walters on Washington (with Abigail, Speedwolf)
31-June 2 – Austin, TX – Chaos in Tejas (with Absu, Integrity)