Review & photos by Andrew Bansal
March 20th 2016, Complex, Glendale CA: Doom metal and Sundays go hand in hand at Complex in Glendale, and on March 20th, the Los Angeles area underground/stoner/doom metal faithful got their eardrums shattered by a show that featured UK trio Conan, with Seattle-based Serial Hawk as support, and Yidhra as the local opener. Complex regulars have attended their fair share of loud shows, but none louder than this one.
Proceedings began at 9:15 as Los Angeles-based stoner metal quartet Yidhra took the stage to once again prove that they get stronger with every live performance, retaining their status as one of LA’s best kept secrets. Riding high on the recently released ‘Cult Of Bathory’ EP, Yidhra put forth a set that the crowd found extremely easy to enjoy, and the songs with frontman Ted Vennemann playing guitar sounded heavier and richer in particular. Tunes like ‘Witch Queen’ and the ‘Cult Of Bathory’ title track stood out, but the entirety of the set was stellar in every aspect, complete with Vennemann’s signature theremin exploits. Unlike the two bands that followed Yidhra on stage at this event, Yidhra did not need loudness as their shtick, and musically, turned out to be the best band of the show by a long distance. They made a major contribution to this show, and without them, attending this show would have been a largely pointless exercise from this writer’s perspective.
It took a while for the changeover after Yidhra’s set, and that was because of this rather ridiculous wall of amplification. Serial Hawk played their set, and it was all about the decibel level because no other element of the performance could possibly be noticed. The devastating effect of the amp wall could clearly be felt no matter where you were in the room, and if you didn’t have earplugs, you were suffering. But this wasn’t even close to the peak volume that could be achieved with this setup, and for that we had to wait till the headliner hit the stage.
Conan played with the exact same backline setup, and if you thought Serial Hawk was loud, Conan embodied pure sonic destruction and were not too far behind from causing an actual earthquake. That being said, this did not come across as a positive aspect by any means, and the band sounded disconcertingly and unnecessarily loud, specially in a room as small as Complex. Besides, the cymbals on the drum kit were the loosest and most down-tuned one would ever get to see. The Liverpool-based Conan have been in existence for a decade, drew a large turnout here, even on a Sunday night, and undeniably enjoys a fan-base, but in all honesty, their ultra high-decibel interpretation of doom failed to impress, and it was extremely hard to fathom its appeal.
Overall, this was the loudest show that’s ever taken place at Complex, and if not for Yidhra, it would have also been the most boring one.
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