By Andrew Bansal
November 12th 2015, The Whisky-A-Go-Go, West Hollywood CA: The world of heavy metal is so unfathomably vast, even to this day, that just when you think you’ve seen and heard everything, there comes something you’d never seen before, something that instantly floors you and makes you wonder how or why you weren’t previously aware of its existence. For many, Canadian classic heavy metal veteran band Thor, led by former body building champion turned heavy metal vocalist, Jon Mikl Thor, is one such entity. Holder of Mr. USA and Mr. Canada titles in his body building days, Jon Thor started this band in the mid ’70s, retired a decade later, but returned in 1997 and has continued releasing albums and playing live since. ‘I Am Thor’, a documentary based on his life and that of the band, is set to release on Video On Demand on November 20th 2015, and to promote the film as well as the latest album ‘Metal Avenger’, Thor is currently on a short US tour, screening the film and performing live. The Whisky-A-Go-Go in West Hollywood got treated to this unique spectacle last Thursday November 12th 2015, and old-school metal nerds and diehards turned up in anticipation of a glorious evening.
One thing worth mentioning about the Whisky is the incredible rate at which it converts from being dead and empty to completely packed. Fans trickled in small numbers around the time doors opened, but by the time the movie screening was about to commence, the place was appreciably packed. With chairs and tables being set out on what is usually the general admission floor, the Whisky was at a reduced capacity for this event and seats were sold at a premium, but there was still plenty of standing room for the regular ticket holders.
At 9:45, the screening began, with ‘I Am Thor’ projected via a DVD player onto a temporary screen set up at the edge of the stage. For fans it was special to get an opportunity to watch the film and the live band on the same stage, and the smooth flow, fast pace and entertaining nature of the movie pumped everyone up that much more for the arrival of the band later. In addition, the inclusion of the movie as part of this event also attracted folks that might not have been familiar with Thor. The movie turned out to be a great introduction of all things Thor and took the audience through a journey from Jon Mikl Thor’s childhood, right up till the band’s very recent past. Aside from being an informative documentary, it also came across as a roller coaster of emotions and expressions as it depicted the successes and failures of the band, along with the brightest and darkest moments of Jon Mikl Thor’s life and personality. But above all, it’s a total laugh riot and had this entire audience in splits for the majority of its duration. The movie certainly possesses the power to endear viewers towards Thor and instantly turn them into fans. The screening ended at 11:15, and this gathering was more than ready for some live Thor.
Shortly after, veteran Los Angeles metal personality DJ Will came up on stage for a very short introduction to Thor, and cleared the way for Jon Mikl Thor, voted one of the top 100 greatest heavy metal frontmen of all time, to arrive in full costume. Thor went on to play a short but high-impact set comprising older gems such as ‘Keep The Dogs Away’, ‘Anger’, ‘Let The Blood Run Red’ and ‘We Live To Rock’, along with tunes off of the new album ‘Metal Avenger’. Although Jon Thor did not perform his classic steel-bending stage antics which were seen in plenty in the movie, he sounded fantastic and employed a variety of costumes and props, living up to his legendary cult status with an exemplary exhibition of heavy metal frontmanship. The show also included an appearance by a Los Angeles legend in her own right, Betsy Bitch. What’s more LA metal than Betsy Bitch? Absolutely nothing. Betsy Bitch contributed guest vocals on two tracks on the ‘Metal Avenger’ album, which also includes Henry Rollins, Scott Carlson and Fast Eddie Clarke as guest musicians and was released on October 30th 2015 via Cleopatra Records. Thor and Betsy Bitch performed the song ‘Taste Of Victory’ as part of this set, Bitch effortlessly delivering her signature vocal stylings and bringing her unmistakable presence onto this stage.
The older songs were sung along loud by this enthusiastic audience, as most of them crowded as close to the stage as they possibly could. Heads were banging, the energy levels were high, and whenever you have that one dude thrown out by the Whisky security staff for ‘moshing too hard’, you know it’s a good show. Aside from the early material, ‘Thunderhawk’ was a great singalong highlight, and ‘Lightning Strikes’ was the only glaring omission from the set. All in all, witnessing Thor was quite a religious experience for the old-school metalheads in the house. Straight after the end of the show, Jon Mikl Thor came out to do a free meet-n-greet and attendees flocked towards him. For anyone and everyone that claims to be a fan and connoiseur of this sub-genre of heavy music, a Thor live concert and the ‘I Am Thor’ movie are both strongly recommended.
‘I Am Thor’ screening + Thor remaining dates:
11/14 – San Antonio TX @ Housecore Horror Festival
11/16 – Chicago IL @ Reggie’s
11/18 – Detroit MI @ Small’s
11/20 – Philadelphia PA @ Philamoca
11/22 – New York NY @ Saint Vitus
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