Another weekend ends, and the herald is invited back to Red Gate, where more offerings await him. After a raucous and delicious offering last night, the herald is bruised from so many kicks to the shin but is always prepared to collect that which He so demands.
As often happens, the herald arrived late, and the opening offering was already going. He slipped past the growing throng to the front, where he began his divinely commanded flailing.
BOY MODER
The first up was a trio that had made their first offering long ago. They dosed out a pop/emo blend that would fly into punk/hardcore blasts. At many points throughout the set, a song would be going along at a groove/pace, then abruptly shift into something different, done very smoothly and impressively.
There were a handful of chill songs, though even these were mixed in with crunchier/heavier parts, as no song kept the same flow throughout. Those drums had my feet moving nicely, with a wide range of grooves to move to as things kept shifting.
I dug the lead vocals, especially the great scream they often employ. Their clean voice was strong, carrying their passion wonderfully. Add in some thickly distorted guitar noise, and it was a great opener.
It’s a good-sized crowd, especially for a Sunday night. They were right into the set, flailing and grooving as I slipped into the front two songs deep. There was no moshing or bouncing; instead, a good-sized crowd all flailing to themselves. I love the energy so far tonight.
SLOWICIDE
A repeat offering from this quartet gives us high-energy good times in the form of garage/punk pop jams. For this offering, they invited an impromptu violinist to their line-up, who added a nice dimension to this temporary quintet.
Their songs were primarily high-energy bangers, with that dirty garage rock sound, punk attitude, and pop catchiness; the few slower spots that appeared were there only to facilitate the ball kicking before or after.
There were a handful of covers, but like the sign of a good band, I found their originals much more engaging and compelling. I’m looking forward to more originals to crowd out the covers from this emerging band.
Great guitar work throughout made all sorts of killer noise into my earholes, and those fun and bouncy drums kept the crowd moving. The violin added a subtle folk sound, though it was a tad quiet, and its speed and energy matched the band’s vibe.
As their set ended, the crowd chanted, ” One more song,” which the band readily provided. However, as only the second band on a four-band bill, abiding by the crowd’s demand for an encore is bad form. The only response to the “One more song” chant should be “Two more bands.”
Despite their poor understanding of show decorum, this crowd did not miss a beat between sets as they continued their high-energy flailing. We even saw the first appearance of a mosh pit pop up a few times as the set went on.
FELISHA & THE JAZZ REJECTS
A long-time provider of many delicious offerings, this quartet always gave a crowd-pleasing dose of alternative rock, with a Latin influence giving them that extra flavor. They are all rocking, bounce-around good-time jams with a great set punctuated with a handful of real hard kickers.
The lead singer and band namesake is as charming and endearing as a human can get. With their bright personality, they connect with the crowd beautifully, as shown in the solid following they always attract, who love everything they do.
The lead guitar absolutely kills it up there, especially during their handful of solos. They have a beautiful tone that just shoots right into the ear holes with much pleasure. Their wonderful blend of passion and skill is always a delight.
In every review of this band, I can’t help but rave about their instrumental song where the three “rejects” get to flex their muscles. It is such a fantastic piece of music, full of grooves, changes, and hardness. The bassist really opens up on this track, showing mad skills.
At the end, the crowd again tried the encore chant, but the lead singer correctly pointed out that there was still one more band.
The crowd was bouncing and flailing, moshing and singing along. Such a massive boost to the band to see the crowd that into your shit. Watching people’s faces as they belted out the songs was fucking rad. Great crowd.
MATH BAT
Another regular supplicant, this trio offered up a stellar show that blended emo with grungy punk. Some of the songs were outright ball-smashing. Their last song, in particular, was a full-throttle, chugging rocker with all the energy to finish the night.
A number of the songs had that heart-wrenching emo style, though they never let it feel down for long. Between kicking it up and getting rocking and the gorgeous solos coming off the lead guitar/singer, there was a good mix of fantastic components to keep things interesting.
The bass and drums combine spectacularly, tight and focused, allowing the lead to do their thing. They always put forth great jams, never meandering, and serve the songs well. A lot of great energy came off them, especially the lead singer, who even bounced down to mix it up with us flailing peons.
The crowd had thinned out a bit, as expected on a Sunday night with a four-band bill, but those who remained kept that bouncing groove going, leaving me with ample room to do what was demanded of me.
Another fine set of offerings accepted by Him.