Metal Assault: Gig Reviews

By Andrew Bansal

April 30th 2015, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: In 2015, Los Angeles hard rock quintet Future Villains have stayed busy working on new material and remained selective about their local appearances, not saturating themselves in the LA scene and building up towards a North American tour instead. This run, christened the “Shake Rattle ‘N Roll Tour”, begins on May 8th and will include headlining shows as well as dates with Steel Panther. But a week before hitting the road, Future Villains returned to one of their most favored local spots, the Viper Room, for a gig last Thursday April 30th 2015. Continue reading “Future Villains Warm Up For Tour With Viper Room Gig”

By Andrew Bansal

April 30th 2015, The Whisky-A-Go-Go, West Hollywood CA: Having undergone a period of forced exile since their 2013 North American tour with Kreator and Overkill and the following European tour with Iced Earth, Southern California thrash tyrants Warbringer have returned with a revamped lineup and a new album in the works. Touring relentlessly for five years prior to the hiatus and releasing four excellent studio albums in the process, they developed a fan-base from the ground up and always played with the right bands. Still led by vocalist John Kevill and featuring original member Adam Carroll on guitar, Warbringer stepped foot on a stage in Los Angeles for the first time in nearly two years for a gig at the Whisky-A-Go-Go last night, heading a lineup that included LA shred kings Exmortus and longstanding metal quartet Desecrate, among others. Continue reading “Warbringer Plays Comeback Gig At The Whisky With Exmortus & Desecrate”

Review & marquee photo by Andrew Bansal, live photos by Carsten Steinhausen

April 29th 2015, The Palladium, Hollywood CA: Continuing on the touring cycle for their 2014 full-length release ‘Once More Round The Sun’, Atlanta GA stoner rock heavyweights Mastodon are in the midst of a North American co-headlining run with Maryland rock luminaries Clutch, with Swedish purveyors of all things vintage, heavy and psychedelic, Graveyard, serving as the opening act. The ‘Missing Link’ tour visited Los Angeles for a well-attended gig at the Palladium in central Hollywood last Wednesday April 29 2015. None of the three bands had a brand new release to promote but Mastodon were expected to delve deeper into their latest as well as older albums while Clutch and Graveyard promised to give attendees a taste of their upcoming albums. Those that had seen these bands several times in the past knew what to expect and the show eventualized exactly as imagined. Continue reading “Clutch & Graveyard Rock Hollywood Palladium, Mastodon Induce Snooze”

By Andrew Bansal

April 24th 2015, Complex, Glendale CA: Following their signing to Metal Blade Records and the early 2015 release of their debut full-length album ‘The Revenant King’, Salt Lake City traditional metal flag-bearers Visigoth embarked on their first ever tour as a band this April. Starting out with a hometown gig and making their way through their conquest of the West Coast, they arrived in Los Angeles for a headline show at Complex in Glendale, put together by Church Of The 8th Day and Thee Static Age and also featuring local openers Mutants Of War, Soulera and Tower Guard. Visigoth have developed a cult following among genuine fans of all things old-school and traditional in heavy music, and their first visit to Los Angeles was expected to be a real treat for those in attendance. It was an evening filled to the brim with tales of warriors, kings and steel, and was accompanied by copious amounts of head-banging. Continue reading “Visigoth Perform In LA On First Ever Tour”

By Andrew Bansal

April 23rd 2015, The Wiltern, Los Angeles CA: In the leadup to the release of their seventh full-length studio album ‘Sol Invictus’, San Francisco experimental rock veterans Faith No More embarked on a North American headline tour in April 2015, and arrived in Los Angeles for three nights at the Wiltern, each night featuring a different set list and opening act. The second of these shows took place on Thursday April 23rd and was sold out in advance. Ticket holders started lining up in the early evening, and all was in readiness for a potentially fascinating event. Continue reading “Faith No More At The Wiltern: Unconventionally Compelling”

By Andrew Bansal

April 20th 2015, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: Hailing from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, stoner rock quartet Crobot started out in 2011 and within three years built themselves up towards a stellar debut full-length album ‘Something Supernatural’ released in 2014, and an unmistakably impressive live show to go with it. They successfully completed their first ever US West Coast headlining run last summer, including a high-octane gig at the Viper Room, and in the leadup to a massive spring 2015 North American run with Volbeat and Anthrax, they returned to the scene of the crime in West Hollywood for another headline show, this time aptly marking the 420 occasion and serving up not just free rolling papers but also a very heavy and hesher-friendly 60-minute set. Continue reading “Crobot At The Viper Room: The Perfect 420 Celebration”