Amon Amarth, Sabaton & Skeletonwitch Begin North American Tour in Riverside

Review & photos by Andrew Bansal

September 25th 2014, Riverside Municipal Auditorium, Riverside CA: Following two successful North American tours since the 2013 Metal Blade Records release of their ninth studio album ‘Deceiver Of The Gods’, Swedish viking warriors Amon Amarth have returned to the continent for another extensive run, with fellow Swedish metal group Sabaton as main support act and Ohio blackened thrashers Skeletonwitch as openers once again. The tour began in grand style to a packed house at the Riverside Municipal Auditorium last night, with the gig drawing fans from nearby areas as well as all other parts of Southern California, this being the first visit to this venue for most in attendance. Continue reading “Amon Amarth, Sabaton & Skeletonwitch Begin North American Tour in Riverside”

Skeletonwitch Returns To The Roxy With Mammoth Headline Set

By Andrew Bansal

September 23rd 2014, The Roxy, West Hollywood CA: It was the eventful and memorable night of February 11th 2010 when Athens OH blackened thrashers Skeletonwitch played a free headline show here at the Roxy courtesy of Scion A/V. At the time, they played a 16-song set comprising material from only two albums ‘Beyond The Permafrost’ and ‘Breathing The Fire’, and played to a packed house. Four-and-a-half years, two albums and several high-profile tours later, Skeletonwitch returned to the scene of the crime, attracting an equally sized turnout, only this time it was not a free show. On their current headline tour which leads into a support run with Amon Amarth, they have brought along support acts Ghoul and Black Anvil with them, and this Roxy show also included local opening act Doesn’t Matter. Thinking back to that 2010 show and the smaller headline/support gigs I’ve seen Skeletonwitch do over the past five years, it was great to see the number of people walking in through the door as soon as it opened at 7:30 PM, and the anticipation level was high.  Continue reading “Skeletonwitch Returns To The Roxy With Mammoth Headline Set”

Palms & The Beta Machine Perform At Troubadour

By Darshun

September 22nd, 2014, The Troubadour, West Hollywood CA: Los Angeles-based rock group Palms, featuring Deftones vocalist Chino Moreno and three members of Isis, returned once again to a sold-out Troubadour last Monday night, and the show also treated the audience with an opening set by The Beta Machine which features Matt McJunkins (A Perfect Circle) on bass and vocals and Jeff Friedl (A Perfect Circle & Puscifer) on drums. Continue reading “Palms & The Beta Machine Perform At Troubadour”

Sunset Strip Music Festival 2014: A Detailed Recap

Review by Andrew Bansal
[Photos by Brad Worsham & Andrew Bansal]

September 20-21 2014, Sunset Strip, West Hollywood CA: The seventh annual edition of the Sunset Strip Music Festival was held this past weekend in West Hollywood across three outdoor stages and the Roxy and the Whisky-A-Go-Go within the Sunset Boulevard street closure between San Vicente and Doheny, and joining the illustrious list of previous honorees Ozzy Osbourne, Slash, Mötley Crüe, The Doors and Joan Jett, this year it was the turn of Jane’s Addiction to be honored with the Elmer Valentine award which they received in a ceremony at the House Of Blues on Friday night. They took the main outdoor stage on Saturday to perform their 1988 album Nothing’s Shocking in its entirety as the headline act of this festival, amidst a diverse spectrum of artists spanning a multitude of genres. SSMF has always been a celebration of Los Angeles music, invariably features LA-dominant lineups, and while some of the early SSMFs brought plenty for the hard rock and heavy metal fans to cheer about, the 2013 edition was largely devoid of the rock ‘n roll element. So the onus was on SSMF to redeem itself this year. The revelation of the 2014 lineup raised eyebrows and garnered bewilderment as the majority of LA locals seemed unfamiliar with most of the participating acts, but any music festival has the potential for a fun outing regardless of its lineup, and with that thought I ventured to see how this one turned out. Continue reading “Sunset Strip Music Festival 2014: A Detailed Recap”

Arsis Bring ‘A Celebration Of Guilt’ To OC Music Hall

By Jason Williams

September 20th 2014, OC Music Hall, Anaheim CA: For the past 14 years, Virginia’s technical melodic death metal veterans Arsis have been providing listeners with their blend of intense and catchy death metal. “A Celebration Of Guilt”, their first album released 10 years ago and considered by many, including this writer, to be their best work; was to be played in its entirety on their headlining tour. Joining Arsis were Allegaeon, Colorado’s most misspelled death metal band and Exmortus, who have really been making their name out there on more recent tours. The Music Hall held the successful 2014 OC Death Metal Fest last week, making this the second awesome Orange County show myself and those in attendance could be part of. Continue reading “Arsis Bring ‘A Celebration Of Guilt’ To OC Music Hall”

Samhain, Goatwhore, Kyng & Night Demon Perform At The Wiltern

By Andrew Bansal

September 19th 2014, The Wiltern, Los Angeles CA: Horror punk/heavy metal group Samhain have reunited once again and are celebrating their 30th anniversary with a handful of US headline shows wherein they’re playing a large portion of the debut album ‘Initium’ along with other selections from the band’s catalog. They took the stage at the Wiltern in downtown Los Angeles last night with a stellar support cast comprising Goatwhore, Kyng and Night Demon. For many Samhain/Danzig fanatics who never got a chance to see Samhain in their initial 1983-87 phase and the short-lived reunions thereafter, this was an eagerly anticipated event and there was a feeling of genuine excitement amongst attendees upon the realization that the moment had finally arrived. Continue reading “Samhain, Goatwhore, Kyng & Night Demon Perform At The Wiltern”