Metal Assault: Gig Reviews

Photos by Robert De Anda

June 7th 2017, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: Our fifth event at the Viper Room, a.k.a. Metal Assault Night Vol. 5, took place last Wednesday. It was an event we had been excited for ever since we booked it, and it did not disappoint one bit. As soon as it was decided that this night would be based on a modern/prog metal theme, four bands immediately came to mind, and we were delighted to be able to get all of our first-choice bands for this lineup. Socionic, who have been excellently flying the flag for prog in LA for the past 9 years, were the headliners, while Edge Of Paradise provided main support with their epic brand of modern metal. Grungy hard rock newcomers Fallen Suns opened the show, and prog youngsters Aeonic Impulse closed the night. If you weren’t there,  you missed something special, but our photographer Robert De Anda captured these amazing stills to give you a glimpse of what transpired. Enjoy the images below. Continue reading “Photo Gallery: Metal Assault Night Vol. 5 @ The Viper Room”

By Andrew Bansal
(photos by C. Jones)

May 29th 2017, The Regent, Los Angeles CA: Following a successful first outing in North America as an opening act for Sonata Arctica and Delain in 2014, German epic symphonic metal group Xandria returned for their first headline tour across the continent, also featuring Kobra and the Lotus and Once Human on a lineup of all female-fronted bands, an increasingly popular trend for touring packages coming through. Xandria are out on the road supporting their seventh and latest album ‘Theater of Dimensions’, and both opening acts are also touring to promote brand new albums. On the penultimate night of the tour, the three bands arrived in Los Angeles on Memorial Day, i.e. May 29th, to present their new material as well as older tunes in front of a reasonably sized crowd. Continue reading “Metal Prevails: Xandria & Kobra and the Lotus perform at The Regent on Memorial Day”

By Rosie Walker
(photos by Brian Wyner)

May 26th 2017, Exit/In, Nashville TN: Elliston Place is one of the best spots to be in Nashville, Tennessee on a Friday night. West of downtown, it’s a few blocks of bars and restaurants that host some of the best nightlife in the whole city. Nuzzled next to Nashville’s trending neighborhood, is the historic venue, Exit/In. Established in 1971, this club gave this area the nickname “Rock Block”. Over the years, many legends have taken its stage. From Johnny Cash to the Ramones, it’s a place that celebrates and supports good music. Painted all in black, it’s ominous in appearance, but considering its hospitality and alternative option to country music, it’s a haven to many. To have a place separate from Nashville’s nauseating plethora of honky-tonk music is special. This pillar of the scene in Elliston Place is an ideal setting to host quality, heavy metal shows. So it was not surprising to find out that the legendary Suffocation was playing there. Continue reading “Ear-Piercing Madness: Suffocation, Revocation rage in Nashville”

By Jason Williams
(photos by Samuel Ware)

May 26th 2017, The Echoplex, Los Angeles CA: Moscow, Russia. Through the history books, assumed stories, and what we’re told about it as kids, Russia was something unlike most other places. Destined snowfall, frigid weather conditions, vodka, vodka, vodka, and Matryoshka dolls. Oh, and I forgot to mention, vodka. We know little about the country of Russia. There are aspects I do know well from it: Fedor Emelianenko, the most accomplished heavyweight to ever grace Mixed Martial Arts. The other? Pagan folk metal’s finest from Moscow, the band Arkona. For 15 years and counting, Arkona have graced our metal hearts and passions with some of the finest complexity, bringing forth passionate traditional Russian style folk, as well as intense black metal on the roaring front. The provocative nature of the lyrics, Russian mythology, legendary tales, and various folktale Paganism cannot be denied, which simply brings this band to life in a rare, blissful way. Coming off a high-profile tour supporting Epica and Fleshgod Apocalypse last fall, Arkona are playing a special 15th anniversary set on their current North American headline tour. What’s more, this is also the first ever US tour for Norwegian symphonic/gothic metal group Sirenia. This evening was a highly anticipated one for the folk metal crowd, and I couldn’t wait for the metal to flow. Continue reading “Folk Metal Fury: Arkona brings 15-Year Anniversary show to Echoplex with Sirenia, MindMaze, Graveshadow”

By Andrew Bansal
(photos by Matt Nielson)

May 24th 2017, The Regent, Los Angeles CA: Swedish doom metal legends Candlemass have arrived in the United States for an appearance on this year’s Maryland Death Fest in Baltimore, but following their MDF announcement, they also booked three special headline shows in the lead-up, in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver. It is extremely rare for this band to be playing in the United States at all, and headline shows on the West Coast are even rarer. The Los Angeles show was slated to take place at the Regent, combined with an altogether different tour featuring Taake and Gost, on Wednesday May 24th. Taake canceled due to visa issues, Gost was forced to cancel as a result, and some people sought refunds for this reason, but Candlemass fans in LA came through in huge numbers to ensure that the show itself still went ahead as scheduled, with local openers Volahn and Arizmenda. Those who did not seek refunds were rewarded in full with a worship-worthy deliverance by the Gods of doom. Continue reading “Psalms of Doom: Candlemass plays Rare Los Angeles Headline Show”

Photos by Matt Nielson

May 21st 2017, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: Our fourth event at the Viper Room, a.k.a. Metal Assault Night Vol. 4, took place last Sunday and we were happy to host a great old-school metal lineup featuring Resistance (LA), Thrust (LA), Alchemy (Tijuana, Mexico) and Livin Alive (San Gabriel Valley). Alchemy started things off with a ferocious set, followed by glorious performances by Thrust and Resistance, both bands flying off to Greece this week to play the Up The Hammers festival, and closing the night in true rip-roaring style was Livin Alive, with their blend of metal, rock n’ roll and crossover thrash. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who attended the event. Here are our man Matt Nielson’s photos, just to give you a glimpse of what transpired. Continue reading “Photo Gallery: Metal Assault Night Vol. 4 @ The Viper Room”