Metal Assault: Gig Reviews

By Andrew Bansal

August 30th 2013, Gibson Amphitheatre, Universal City CA: The Los Angeles metal faithful gathered at the Gibson Amphitheatre for one final time last night, as Danzig celebrated his 25th anniversary with a special appearance from ex-Misfits guitarist Doyle, and opening acts Scar The Martyr, Cherie Currie and Huntress. Having seen such great shows as the Judas Priest British Steel 30th anniversary tour in 2009, the ‘Clash Of The Titans revisited’ tour with Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax in 2010, and the Alice Cooper/Rob Zombie show in the same year, I’ve always had fond memories of this venue and heard and read a lot about the historic shows it’s had before my time. To see it being eaten up by corporate greed and cast a spell on by Harry Potter of all things, it’s sad to say the least. So, I attended this show for one last hurrah at the Gibson, to soak in its atmosphere for one last time, not really expecting any great things from any of these bands but keeping an open mind and willing to appreciate good performances. Continue reading “Danzig Brings 25th Anniversary Show To The Gibson With Doyle, Cherie Currie & More”

By Andrew Bansal

August 28th 2013, The Satellite, Los Angeles CA: We as fans of heavy music in the Los Angeles area have always been well appreciative of what Scion A/V has done for our genre, sponsoring live events free of cost to the public, funding album releases and music videos, and generally taking good care of the bands they choose for these endeavors. The Roxy was the regular venue for their rock shows until a couple of years back, after which they moved it to the Glass House for a little while, and then they took a bit of a break from doing the LA rock events. Now, they are back with a new series of events simply called ‘Scion Rock Show’, which kicked off with its first event at the Satellite last night featuring the bands Fu Manchu and Moab. It was an interesting choice of venue, and even though I had a feeling it would fit the musical style of the two bands, I was still curious to find out how it would turn out, and what Scion A/V is doing differently this time around. Continue reading “New ‘Scion Rock Show’ Event Series Kicks Off With Fu Manchu & Moab At Satellite”

By Andrew Bansal

August 26th 2013, House Of Blues Sunset Strip, West Hollywood CA: It had been quite a while since I visited the House Of Blues Sunset Strip on a Monday night for a show that wasn’t Steel Panther. Those shows are such sure-shot guarantees for the venue in terms of the turnouts that for them to book a different show on a Monday night has to mean it’s a hugely popular event, and last night it sure was as Finnish epic metal band Wintersun returned to LA as part of their first ever proper North American headline tour, promising a ‘special set’ for all of their eagerly awaiting fans. Along with them they brought the rapidly rising symphonic extreme metal band Fleshgod Apocalypse from Italy, Virginia tech-death group Arsis, and Starkill from Chicago. The doors opened early at 6 PM, the crowds flocked in, and the stage was set for a great evening. Continue reading “Wintersun’s North American Tour Visits House Of Blues Sunset Strip”

By Avinash Mittur

August 25th 2013, The Greenhouse, Concord CA: As the years go by, I seem to find myself in increasingly random places to see shows. On Sunday night I dropped by a small house in Concord, CA to attend a truly special heavy rock concert. Though I’ve been to shows in all sorts of places and settings, this was my first house show, a glimpse of the Bay Area’s underground music community. The show was one stop on an extensive West Coast tour for Oakland’s Ovvl, who brought Portland, OR’s Crag Dweller along for some of the dates. This concert was certainly unlike any I’ve ever seen or attended- it’s also probably the most intimate and personal show I’ve ever been a part of. Continue reading “Ovvl Brings Down House In Concord”

By Andrew Bansal

August 21st 2013, The Whisky, West Hollywood CA: Over the 20 years of their existence thus far, InsideOut Music have prided themselves on being a progressive rock specialist record label, and on the occasion of their 20th anniversary, they fittingly decided to put together a lineup of bands filled to the brim with prog goodness for two special anniversary celebration shows in Los Angeles and San Diego. The first of these shows took place last night at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood. Upon reaching the venue at 6:45 PM, I observed the already sizable queue and also noticed that for a change I was in the minority for wearing a black shirt. According to the flyers the event was slated for a 7 PM start, and there was mass confusion in the queue when word broke out that the show was pushed back by more than an hour. But eventually, doors opened at 8 and Edgel Groves from InsideOut Music appeared on stage at 8:40 to announce the start of the show. Continue reading “InsideOut Music Celebrates 20th Anniversary With Spock’s Beard, Randy George Band & Jolly At The Whisky”

By Andrew Bansal

August 18th 2013, Five Star Bar, Los Angeles CA: As they say, whenever someone or something goes missing for a while, you start to realize their importance, you truly miss them, and you want them to come back, even though you took them for granted when they were actually around you. For me, the same can be said about Los Angeles-based extreme metal band The Funeral Pyre. Ever since vocalist John Strachan joined Early Graves, The Funeral Pyre has been a bit on the back burner, and don’t get to play shows anywhere near as regularly as they used to, even around the LA area. In the meanwhile, Early Graves guitarist Chris Brock also joined The Funeral Pyre. Last night, the band played their first show in a long time, and for me it was the first time seeing them since they played with The Secret at the good ol’ Blvd in April of 2011. The venue appropriately chosen for this occasion was the Five Star Bar, and in support were Primitive Man, Reproacher, Skinfather and Humanerror, for a show once again brought to us by the tireless local promoters in Thee Static Age. For fans of The Funeral Pyre and for the LA underground faithful, it was time to get stoked. Continue reading “The Funeral Pyre Headlines Five Star Bar”