Metal Assault: Gig Reviews

By Andrew Bansal

August 13th 2016, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: Southern California stoner rock giants Fu Manchu have been tremendously influential and have enjoyed a cult following over the three decades of their career thus far. Aside from 11 studio albums, they also have a long list of singles and EPs to their name, and are about to add further to it with the August 19 2016 release of the ‘Slow Ride’ 7″ single, featuring their take on the Foghat classic of the same name, and an original tune called ‘Future Transmitter’ as the B-side. But prior to the official street date, they played a special one-off headline show last Saturday August 13th in conjunction with the Viper Room’s 23rd anniversary celebrations, and put up the ‘Slow Ride’ single as well as shirts on sale exclusively for attendees of this show. The sole support act was Venomous Maximus, and the gig was sold out in advance, as ticket holders lined up outside the venue in anticipation of an eagerly awaited event that promised to be one for the ages. Continue reading “Maximum Riffage: Viper Room Celebrates 23rd Anniversary With Sold-Out Fu Manchu + Venomous Maximus Show”

By Taylor Younani

August 13th 2016, The Regent, Los Angeles CA: When asked about modern prog metal bands, it is practically impossible to not mention Washington, D.C. based Periphery, and the groovy, innovative jams that they have released over the last several years. With Periphery touring in support of their latest full-length release ‘Periphery III: Select Difficulty’, the crowd at the Regent Theater in downtown LA were more than keen on the opportunity to hear some of the band’s latest material in the flesh. Continue reading “Modern Prog Masterclass: Periphery Bring ‘Sonic Unrest’ Tour To Los Angeles”

By Andrew Bansal

August 12th 2016, The Novo, Los Angeles CA: The tenth edition of the annual North American extreme metal touring festival Summer Slaughter started off on July 23rd 2016, promising to turn up the heat in already searing temperatures, as always. This time boasting a package headlined by Cannibal Corpse with Nile, After The Burial, Suffocation, Carnifex, Revocation, Krisiun, Slaughter To Prevail, Ingested and Enterprise Earth in support, Summer Slaughter strived to outdo its own previous efforts with what was potentially their most brutal lineup ever on paper. As per the tradition every year, the announcement of the lineup was accompanied by metalheads across the States complaining about their favorite band being too low on the bill, some of them also extremely upset that the tour was not going to visit a venue less than one mile from their house on a weekend. The tour arrived in downtown Los Angeles for a gig at the Novo in the L.A. Live entertainment square, and despite the internet outrage, death metal fanatics turned up early and in good numbers to enjoy this endurance-testing 12-band marathon. Continue reading “Extreme Metal Meltdown: Tenth Summer Slaughter Tour Blazes Through Los Angeles”

By Andrew Bansal

August 9th 2016, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: Swedish stoner/sludge trio Monolord created a positive first impression on many through their North American tour opening for Windhand and Danava in late 2015, and this summer, they’ve returned to these parts for a four-week headline run, with fellow stoner rockers Beastmaker and Sweat Lodge supporting them. In the first week of this tour, the three bands arrived in the Los Angeles area for a gig at the Viper Room in West Hollywood last Tuesday August 9th 2016, with local heavy-hitters Ironaut as the opening act. Even though many in the LA hipster/underground scene claim to be too cool to attend shows on the supposedly too mainstream Sunset Strip, the Viper Room is fast becoming a hotbed for stoner rock shows, and despite the absence of the underground crowd, the Viper Room enjoyed a great turnout for this show, as riff worshippers gathered in high anticipation of what promised to be an all-killer, no-filler event. Continue reading “Raining Riffs: Monolord, Beastmaker, Sweat Lodge & Ironaut Set The Viper Room Quaking”

By Andrew Bansal

August 8th 2016, The Griffin, Los Angeles CA: The doom metal genre is as popular and prevalent as it has probably ever been, and as a result, is spreading its wings to span newer territories everywhere. Even within the Los Angeles area, doom has its favored spots such as Complex in Glendale, Five Star Bar, Lexington and Redwood in DTLA and the Roxy and Viper Room in West Hollywood, but it’s also rapidly spreading to other parts of town, as evident from the show at last Monday August 8th 2016 at the Griffin, a bar located in the Atwater Village/Los Feliz neighborhood. Denver, Colorado quartet Khemmis and LA six-piece group Taarkus joined forces to put forth the loudest show this place had ever hosted, and many in the LA underground community were in attendance to witness it. Continue reading “Monday Gloom: Khemmis & Taarkus Perform At The Griffin”

By Andrew Bansal

August 6th 2016, Pershing Square, Los Angeles CA: What are we doing featuring a band like Kansas on Metal Assault, you might ask? The answer is quite simple: they began as one of the earliest perpetrators of progressive heavy music, and a lot of what we hear in prog rock/metal bands today is directly or indirectly influenced by what Kansas did in their early years. So, it’s often worthwhile witnessing a veteran band of this nature, to rediscover the roots of some of what we listen to and like today. And it helps when the show is free and open to the public. As part of this year’s Saturday night summer concert series on the outdoor Pershing Square Downtown Stage, right in the heart of DTLA, the prog luminaries played last Saturday August 6th 2016, to an all-ages crowd of several thousand. Building up to the September 2016 release of their 15th full-length studio album ‘The Prelude Implicit’, their first in 16 years, Kansas are currently in the midst of an extensive U.S. tour, and in Los Angeles, they pulled out all the stops to deliver a show to remember. Continue reading “Keeping Classic Prog Alive: Kansas Rocks Pershing Square”