By Andrew Bansal
March 14th 2016, Silver Lake Lounge, Los Angeles CA: In 2015, Los Angeles-based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jonah Nimoy started Furiosa, an all-encompassing rock project that pushes the envelope and knows no boundaries. He singlehandedly writes all the songs and records all the vocals, guitars, bass, drums and synth/keys, and also designs the artwork. But he recruited a group of seasoned hometown musicians to present Furiosa live. The band made a successful debut at the Viper Room in West Hollywood in late 2015. Last Monday March 14th 2016, Furiosa played a gig at the Silver Lake Lounge, and yours truly was fortunate enough to be in attendance.
As none of the opening acts succeeded in creating any kind of impression, the wait and anxiety for Furiosa, the last band of the evening, intensified. Finally at around 11:15 PM, Jonah Nimoy, fronting the live version of Furiosa on guitar and lead vocals, took the stage with his three bandmates, a lineup that featured drummer extraordinaire Matt Starr. Having plied his trade with the likes of Ace Frehley and in bands such as Mr. Big and Bang Tango, Starr is no stranger to the LA rock fraternity, but made a rare Silver Lake appearance here. Aside from witnessing the talents of Nimoy himself, getting a chance to watch Starr in action was quite the treat, as his effortlessly fluid drumming lent its own flavor to the music.
Furiosa played a pleasantly lengthy 45-minute set, and the songs played presented quite a variety of styles and sub-genres, covering a gamut comprising proggy tunes, laid-back bluesy rock jams, classic hard rock, and of course, a touch of heavy metal for good measure. The musical diversity within the set was tremendous, as was the performance of the musicians on stage, and attendees got the feeling of witnessing something special here. Furiosa’s music cannot be pinpointed or pigeonholed, and this project has emerged as a one-of-a-kind entity that deserves attention and acclaim from the heavy music community, local and otherwise. This is not just another thrash/stoner/death/black metal band, and thank goodness for that, because LA is littered with countless bands pursuing said genres, a majority of them aren’t very good and play too many shows. Furiosa has already risen above the mediocrity that surrounds it, and as it self-proclaims, is here to save the day.
(If you like what you’ve read, support Metal Assault and buy a shirt!)