Dimmu Borgir, Nevermore, Children of Bodom, Hypocrisy
Rating: 4.67 Skulls
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Dimmu Borgir, Nevermore, Children of Bodom, Hypocrisy
Rating: 4.67 Skulls |
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Abyss' Review (12/12/03, L'Amour, Brooklyn, NY):
A December to DismemberThere must be some freaky alignment to the planets or something, because things have been going a little too easily. My X-mas shopping is just about done (Over a week early! This is unheard of.) and Dream Theater actually came out with a good album (Even more unheard of!!). And to top it all off, I went to a show at L'amour in which I didn't miss a band I liked and didn't have to sit through six crappy local acts. I did miss one song from Hypocrisy because some jackass bouncer made me wait ten minutes to go inside, for apparently no other reason than because he could. Perhaps he relished the moment because it's the only form of control he has over his poor, miserable slice of life. His kids are thugs, his wife's a slut, but at least he can control some longhaired kids for a few minutes! Life is sweet.
Anyway, L'amour's was packed this night. The show was apparently sold out, as there was a horde of miracle seekers waiting outside in the cold, moaning and pouting with puppy-dog eyes at everyone with access inside. It was almost as bad as a Phish show.
Hypocrisy
Photos by SabbathI spent a good deal of Hypocrisy's set making my way toward the bathroom (it's mathematically impossible to have a couple of beers at home in Manhattan and make it to this club without almost having an accident -happens every time.), but traffic was moving slow enough that I was able to take it all in. Hypocrisy ruled, as always, but their set was pathetically short, maybe only five songs. Peter was a little more sober than the last time I saw him in Brooklyn (at North Six), but he still should work on his stage banter a bit because I couldn't help but laugh at the cheesiness of him saying they would end the night by playing "Brooklyn 47" (Jeez, I know you're a KISS fan, so am I, but they're not the band you should look to for stage talk).
I was very excited to see Children of Bodom. I've never had the pleasure of seeing these guys before, and I was very interested at how they would pull off their overly technical material in a live setting. I enjoyed the set thoroughly, but the guitar was mixed way too low and the keyboards were mixed way too high (I could've guess that would happen even before they took the stage). But no band sounds all that good at this venue, and they commanded the crowd, who were voracious and accommodating. Of course, I had a little trouble taking Alexi Laiho seriously, he just looks so feminine. Does he dye his hair that color? If so, he should stop, and if not, well...I don't know - good luck. Keyboard player Janne Wirman also stood out because he just looked soooo bored. He would step up, play a few leads, then step back again and drink his beer. Granted, there isn't much a keyboard player can do without looking stupid-move too much and you just end up looking like Darryl Hall, but at least look like you're paying attention.
Children of BodomNevermore, with a sober Warrel Dane, is an impressive beast on stage. It took me awhile to warm to Mr. Danes girly vocals, but now I can't get enough of them. The combination of high pitched, but powerful vocals, and the thick, rhythmic pounding of the guitars and drums just make the whole live experience exquisite. While I understand that these guys aren't everyone's cup of tea (I wonder if Redwolff has stopped bitching about them yet...), they are great for metal - a sound that incorporates everything that was important back in the day into a cutting edge sound. Dane grabs everyone's attention, but the riffs are what make this band.
Dimmu Borgir seemed like the only band that got a decent amount of stage time, and they well deserved it. While they are maligned by many, the simple truth is that they are one of the best and most consistent bands in metal today. I'm a big fan of their live presentation, which is as professional as their immaculate studio work, but allows a little more rawness in. The notes all remain in key, but have a little more desperation to them, and the growls sound a little more feral. They could easily look hokey with all of their makeup and costumes, and maybe they do, but one thing is for sure: you get your money's worth every time you see them. One word review: Killer.
Sabbath's Review (11/28/03, The Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA):I ended up going to the San Francisco show because I wanted to see this tour more than once - in all its glory. I went to the House of Blues show the previous night on Thanksgiving Day, but had to leave early, so I decided to make the trip up to good old San-Fran-Cisco to see this show fully. Both nights were packed completely, and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely.
Hypocrisy was first on the bill, which was surprising. Last time I saw Hypocrisy was in the summer of 2002 when they were on tour with Soilwork. Anyone who is a melodic Metal fan should like Hypocrisy due to their excellent sound, not to mention their talented leader - legendary Peter Tagtgren - and his ingenious capabilities. They played "Fire in the Sky," "The Pleasure of Molestation," "Roswell 47," "The Final Chapter" and one more song, I believe. I was fairly disappointed that they did not play "Apocalypse" or "Until the End." Those 2 songs are incredible to see live. All in all, Hypocrisy's set was short, but deliciously sweet!! Get to this show early so you do NOT miss these Swedish rockers!
HypocrisyNext up, fucking CHILDREN OF BODOM!!! Before I get into their actual performance I have to say one thing - these Finns fulfilled all my expectations about seeing them live - absolutely 100%. I highly anticipated seeing them the most, and to my fulfillment they were everything anticipated and more. This is their first full United States tour, so needless to say they were having a very good time. Their stage presence was awesome and Alexi sure knows how to bring the best out of the crowd. Their performance and debut in the U.S. has been highly looked-forward to, and in L.A. and San Francisco people were left dumbfounded and speechless after they played. Unfortunately, their set was only about 30 minutes long which only allowed them to get in "Needled 24/7" "Silent Night, Bodom Night," "Every Time I Die," (a personal favorite of mine) "Hate Me," and "Downfall." I can see exactly why this band is loved all over the world, and has such a vast diversity of fans. I personally think Children of Bodom stole the entire show, even though the rest of the bands on this bill are very good as well. After the success of this tour, they need to get their ARSES back to the United States very soon!
Thirdly, was Nevermore. I am not a huge fan of Nevermore, but they do put on a great live show. They are extremely fun to watch on stage, and their outfits are superb. They do have a heavy fan base, and the crowd was certainly pleased with their performance.
Children of BodomFinally, DIMMU BORGIR took stage. Dimmu have risen from the pits of hell in Norway to become one of the leading Norwegian Black Metal bands of all time. They have a highly devoted fan base, and are well liked throughout the 50 States. This was the fourth time I have seen Dimmu play, and they are outrageously great every time. Their set was about an hour and a half, which was very satisfying - it included "Stormblast," "Mourning Palace," "In Death's Embrace," "Kings of the Carnival Creation," "Spellbound" and a few others. I admire Dimmu's stage presence, and their passion for making music the majority enjoys. Their performance was predictable, of course in a very good way!
Note: I did not get a chance to take pictures of Nevermore or Dimmu Borgir due to my digital eating up batteries like crazy, so I apologize for that. In addition, the House of Blues security are a bunch of Nazi's, even though I had a Photo Pass, they would not allow me to take flash digital photos - so there was not much I could do about this.
This show was the fucking best I have seen all year, and I mean that genuinely! The line-up was unbelievable, the venues were better than most, and the energy was astounding. I wish we could see a line-up like this more often, and more people at every show such as these two nights!! Although I thought all the bands played fantastic sets, I still think Children of Bodom stole the show, and the hearts of everyone witnessing their live performance. I do not think I have to tell and/or remind anyone to make it to this show while they are on tour for another 3 weeks. Anyone who has half a brain and who loves Metal will surely be attending this show. I can say with pure confidence that NO ONE shall be disappointed!!! Our Metal Judgment skull rating system WILL NOT adequately rate this event - so keep that in mind - because this tour was far beyond a 5!!!
Solomon's Review (12/12/03, L'Amour, Brooklyn, NY):Ah, L'Amour, everyone's favorite venue that all the Manhattan-ites always complain about because it's conveniently located way the fuck out in south Brooklyn. When I was still in Bay Ridge, it really was my favorite venue, as I had to hop a couple trains and be there within thirty to forty-five minutes. Now that I'm way the fuck out in Long Island (short stay, hopefully), it still kind of sucks, and I'd only go there if the offerings were tasty enough. Last Friday night, they were. Think about it: Dimmu, Nevermore, COB and Peter's crew all on the same bill. The metal gods have been kind, the stars are in alignment, blahbiddyblahblah. Now, I was intending on taking photos of this one-of-a-kind event, but somehow in my retarded mindset, I missed the "list" guy at the front door and went right past him with my ticket. Bummer, I say? Not really, considering people were packed in there like...like...ah, fuck it...sardines! No way I was going to try to maneuver around this room and risk stepping on some big metal dude's toe and winding up with my camera sticking out of my ear (if I was lucky).
Children of BodomMan, something's weird here. Doors had opened and within forty-five minutes, openers Hypocrisy had hit the stage. Normally at L'Amour gigs, you won't even see a top-biller wonder around looking for a guitar cable until about midnight. Whew, was I lucky, just got in the door and ten minutes later, the Swedish shiz-nit had started. A young lady asked me who it was that was about to play, and when I told her it was Hypocrisy, she started to get really excited, like it was Christmas morning or something. Ah, those sexy death metal guys, they get all the chicks! Ok, guess someone knew what was going on, and judging from the crowd's response, Hypocrisy was no mere "opener." The band kicked it all off with tride-and-true "Fractured Millennium" and proceeded to carpet bomb the natives with "Killing Art," "Pleasure of Molestation," "Destroyed" and the uber-wicked "Fire In The Sky." Sweden's finest also treated the throng to a new track, "Eraser." It's tough to judge new material in a live situation because all the little nuances are often garbled by volume and less-than-stellar mixing, but if this was a taste of what is to come, I'm looking forward to the next Hypocrisy record (like I wasn't already). It was dark and groovy, bringing to mind stuff off the last album and the self-titled classic. Of course, no Hypocrisy set is complete without "Roswell 47." Damn, no "Adjusting The Sun" or "Carved Up" again, but there's always next time! The set was WAY too short to do the group justice. It seemed like they left as soon as they got there, but I hear they may be coming back this way next year. We'll see....
Lest the information I have received is deceitful and in error, Bambino Di Bodom have never graced American shores before this tour. [Ed. - Children of Bodom's first U.S. appearance was at Milwaukee Metalfest in 2000; this is their first U.S. tour.] Welcome, and I salute you, Finns of the Apocalypse! (Okay, I'm getting sick and my state of mind is weird, bear with me). My impression of my first live COB show was favorable. I was not completely blown away by them, but they played "Everytime I Die," so I'm happy right there. COB, like pretty much every band that night, suffered from the venue's general poor acoustics and relatively low volume level. It's a little depressing when you go to see this big-time band (ok, big time for metal, anyhoo) for the first time and the circumstances make them sound less like "AAAGGGHH!" and more like "Hey, we're here to play for you, that cool?" Of course, Abyss/Redwolff/me stayed near the back where the beer is kept, not that beer has anything to do with a Metal Judgment review. The sound would have been better near the front, but hey, why mess up the great view? Where was I...."Silent Night, Bodom Night," "Needled 24/7," "Hate Me" and "Downfall" were all in there for good measure. Verdict: COB is a winner, but hopefully they'll get to come back again as well and get more time to showcase their kick-ass, melodic/black/death/whatever catalog. Oh, yes, Abyss and I also commented on how Mr. Beyond Abilities looked like he wasn't sure if he was supposed to be there half the time. Eh, that's not fair, I guess, when you're in a metal band and you have to go "Okay, what cool thing do I do before my part comes in?"
Children of BodomI have to say Nevermore's new album is not bad, but it is not the greatest either, and frankly I was probably less enthused about seeing them than any other act that night. Still, I do consider myself a big Nevermore trooper, and I consider myself a defender of Warrel-worship against the heathen anti-Warrelist faction. Yeah, I can see how some people get turned off (or outright hostile, watch that middle-finger, Red!) by Dane's high-pitched, air-raid siren, but I think most of the time, unless he's really in the stratosphere, it is kewl. For some reason, Nevermore sounded louder than the first two acts, which was good for them, as I think they actually played a better set than anyone up to this point. You can't go wrong with the metal stalwart of Sheppard, Loomis (God) and Williams pounding out one American-bred, progpower metal anthem after another, from "Narcosynthesis" and "Seven Tongues of God" to "The River Dragon Comes" and the rather unrecognizable cover of "The Sound of Silence." The set was a little light on the Politics stuff, unfortunately, but they have a lot of ground to cover at this point in such a short time frame. Actually, the newer stuff like "I, Voyager" and "Enemies of Reality" have more punch coming from the stage.
After much "Is this mike on?" and "Why does the little light on the footswitch keep blinking," the Norwegians from Hell finally took the stage in melodramatic fashion amidst a nifty laser light display. Dimmu Borgir's commanding presence as a band was somewhat offset by the rather puny stage L'Amour had to offer, but they carried on in full infernal majesty, just the same. Starting off with the brand-spanking new "Lepers Among Us," DB barreled through a charged evening rounded out by the likes of "Cataclysm Children," "Vredesbyrd," "Progenies of The Great Apocalypse," "In Death's Embrace," "Kings of the Carnival Creation" and "The Insight and the Catharsis." The encore included a cool track I didn't recognize, damn it, something off Stormblast maybe? Of course, this final treat also included "Spellbound (By The Devil)" and one of metal's defining moments of grand evil, "Mourning Palace." The Viking-worthy clean vox of Vortex is always a welcome highlight in Dimmu's music but, due to the sound situation and the fact he appeared to be backing off the high notes a tad, some of the impact on "Insight" and "Progenies" was lost. Whatever, Dimmu is always a pleasure, and tonight was the underground metal event of the year.
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