Metal Assault: Gig Reviews

By Jason Williams

October 15th 2013, The Constellation Room (inside the Observatory), Santa Ana CA: Needing no introduction to death metal fans, Dying Fetus have been bringing their brutal slamming riffs and vocals of the gutteral kind for the past 22 years. Hailing from the depths of Annapolis, Maryland, guitarist, vocalist and founding member John Gallagher has kept the band alive through thick and thin. Even with his entire band leaving in 2001, Gallagher still sought out to make the band better and more brutal. Now, with a consistent lineup of masterful drummer Trey Williams and bassist/vocalist Sean Beasley, fans know what to expect when Dying Fetus rolls into their town. And tonight, at The Constellation Room in Santa Ana, CA, moshing and brutality was in store. Continue reading “Dying Fetus Bring Havoc To The Constellation Room”

By Andrew Bansal

October 14th 2013, The Echoplex, Los Angeles CA: One of Savannah, Georgia’s finest music exports in the past decade, psychedelic stoner/sludge outfit Kylesa released their sixth studio album ‘Ultraviolet’ earlier this year via Season Of Mist Records, and following an early summer North American tour with Blood Ceremony, White Hills and Lazer/Wulf, this month they are touring here again to promote the new album, along with support bands Pinkish Black and Sierra. I’ve seen the band twice in the past, the first time as part of the eclectic Metal Alliance Tour lineup at the House of Blues in early 2011, and then as a headliner at the Troubadour later that year, and in all honesty, the Kylesa live experience was fantastic on both occasions. With the prospect of hearing tunes from a new album like Ultraviolet which is so adventurous in its sound, there was plenty to look forward to for anyone who stepped in through the doors of the Echoplex last evening. Continue reading “Kylesa Headlines The Echoplex”

By Andrew Bansal

October 12th 2013, The Joint, Los Angeles CA: A non-profit organization based out of Los Angeles, Furry Tails Rescue works towards rescuing animals from shelters, putting them up for adoption and providing them real homes. Local underground metal promoters Hate War Productions put together a gig last night at the Joint in West Los Angeles to help raise money for this great cause, and the lineup for the show featured five hometown bands Dreaming Dead, Destroy Judas, Scrapmetal, Harlequin and Taking Over. Besides the incentive of supporting the cause, there was plenty to look forward to for the local metal concert goer, with bands like Dreaming Dead and Destroy Judas having not played Los Angeles shows in quite a while and taking part in this gig on a Saturday night. I arrived at the venue a few minutes before the doors opened at 8 PM, and anticipated a great show. Continue reading “Dreaming Dead, Destroy Judas & Others Play ‘Furry Tails Rescue’ Benefit Show At The Joint”

By Andrew Bansal

October 10th 2013, The Troubadour, West Hollywood CA: Based out of the riff factory that is the city of Portland, Oregon, stoner rock quartet Red Fang is the kind of band that outshines everyone else on a multi-band lineup, even as a support act. I saw them rip Mastodon to shreds when they opened for that band at the Wiltern a couple of years ago, and all my other experiences of seeing Red Fang as an opener have been quite similar, no matter what the headline act was. These four awesome dudes have built upon the success of their first two albums and the relentless touring to come up with a brilliant new album called ‘Whales And Leeches’, which is set to officially release on October 15th via Relapse Records. To coincide with the release, they have set foot on yet another tour, this time as headliners themselves, along with support acts Helms Alee and Wild Throne. The tour began in Sacramento on October 9th, and visited the Troubadour in West Hollywood last night. The place was packed, and all was in readiness for a great show. Continue reading “Red Fang Play Rifftastic Show At Troubadour”

By Andrew Bansal
[Photos by Chad Alexander] 

October 7th 2013, City National Grove Of Anaheim, Anaheim CA: German power metal veterans Helloween hadn’t visited North America on a proper tour for a long, long time, and much to the delight of their die-hard fans, earlier this year they announced a return to North America for a 10-show tour in late September through early October. After months and months of anticipation, the day had finally arrived for Helloween fans in Southern California as the band arrived at the Grove of Anaheim last evening for the final show of this ‘Hellish Rock Part II’ tour. It was their first tour since 2008, and during this five-year period they’ve released two new studio albums ‘Seven Sinners’ in 2010 and ‘Straight Out Of Hell’ in January of this year. So they were expected to bring a sizable amount of new material, along with some of their well-known classics. Continue reading “Helloween Make Long-Awaited Return To Southern California”