Metal Assault: Gig Reviews

Review by Andrew Bansal
[Photos by Brad Worsham]

August 6th 2014, Pacific Amphitheatre @ OC Fair, Costa Mesa CA: Back in the late 60s and early 70s, long before heavy metal was defined the way it is today, Deep Purple became the quintessential heavy metal band, writing music that was undeniably heavy but firmly rooted in bluesy rock ‘n roll. They not only went on to formulate a legendary career for themselves but along their journey they influenced a ton of younger bands, paving the metal genre in the process. Today in 2014, a whopping 45 years after they formed in England, they’re still soldiering on, and have been on a touring run following the 2013 release of their 19th studio album ‘Now What?!’ Currently they’re trekking North America, and played at the Pacific Amphitheatre as part of this tour, in the final week of the 2014 OC Fair along with American rock veterans Blue Oyster Cult as support act. Continue reading “Deep Purple Rocks OC Fair”

By Taylor Younani

August 4th 2014, The Lyric, Los Angeles CA: At the beginning of the summer I graduated from school in Santa Barbara and returned home to the city of Los Angeles to begin the next chapter of my life. Living in the city for the past four years with a population of roughly 80,000, very few shows made their way to my neighborhood, so it has been a while since I actually got to enjoy some heavy metal. What better way to celebrate my return to my home city than with a show incorporating several of my favorite musicians and a night of with some good friends? With Glass Cloud and Scale the Summit co-headlining and support from progressive metalcore giants ERRA, UK tech metallers in Monuments, and the young talent in Reflections, the night was sure to pack a punch. Continue reading “Glass Cloud, Scale The Summit, Monuments & Others Play At The Lyric”

Review by Andrew Bansal
[Photos by Brad Worsham, video by Arturo Gallegos]

August 4th 2014, Five Star Bar, Los Angeles CA: Bringing an end to their ‘Warriors Of The West’ US West Coast run with Canadian old-school metal band Iron Kingdom, Ventura CA-based Night Demon played a homecoming show at the Five Star Bar in downtown LA last night. Los Angeles’ undisputedly finest NWOBHM flag-bearers, Night Demon have had a tremendous year with their first ever European tour and signing to SPV Records for Europe. It’s rather ironic but not surprising that Night Demon are better known in Europe than in the Los Angeles metal scene, as that seems to be the case with several bands that pursue this style of music. But regardless, thanks to the efforts of local promoters Church Of The 8th Day and Thee Static Age, along with the staff at the Five Star Bar, last night’s show was made free of cost and left no reason or excuse for true metalheads (aged 21 and over) to not attend this one. Continue reading “Original Metallica Guitarist Lloyd Grant Jams With Night Demon”

By Riju Dasgupta

I’m home after a gruelling week in Europe, and I already have quite a few messages asking me how Wacken Open Air was. I think it’s time to come out of review-writing hibernation and write down my Wacken experience in a gist. These are just my thoughts and observations, so if you disagree, feel free to let me know what you feel, and rest assured that I will take no heed of your opinions because I’m a pompous asshole.  Continue reading “Wacken Open Air 2014: The Good, The Bad & The Epic”

Review & photos by Chad Alexander

July 29th 2014, Marquee Theater, Tempe AZ: Orange County glam/Christian metal veterans Stryper played an incredible gig at the Marquee Theater in Tempe AZ last Tuesday night. Just as the several times I’ve seen them since 1985, they didn’t disappoint. Touring on their latest full-length release “No More Hell To Pay” which was produced by Michael Sweet and released via Frontiers Records in 2013, Stryper played a set wherein the new material was well represented, along with older selections and some choice cover tunes. Stryper’s AZ fan base came out in large numbers to the Marquee to support the band and revel in a full 21-song headline set, which aptly began with ‘God’, the opening track from the album ‘Revelation’. Continue reading “Stryper Headlines Marquee Theater In Tempe AZ”

By Andrew Bansal

July 25th 2014, The Echoplex, Los Angeles CA: Richmond, Virginia crossover thrash legends Municipal Waste have been inconspicuous over the past couple of years as they’ve laid low, allowing members to partake in other bands and projects. But they flew out to Los Angeles for a one-off gig at the Echoplex, put together by Pabst Blue Ribbon and DoLA. The show was limited to people aged 21 and over, but thanks to the beer company’s sponsorship, the ticket price was brought down to a mere $6 with RSVP. Considering the amount of PBR that gets chugged down at metal shows nowadays, it only seemed a matter of time before the company took notice and started supporting events such as these. The line outside the venue extended through the block and around the corner, the atmosphere was festive and with the added bonus of Venice punk ‘n roll cohorts The Shrine as support act, it promised to be quite the party. Continue reading “Municipal Waste & The Shrine Destroy Echoplex”