Archive for the ‘concert reviews’ Category
Philm, Unmothered and My Education Concert Review, Austin, TX 110311
Philm is a project that has been around since the mid-1990s according to their drummer, Dave Lombardo. It 
remained pretty dormant until the time(s) he wasn’t with Slayer and apparently they jam a bit. I had seen some of the YouTube stuff and I was pretty underwhelmed by it. When I saw that they were playing Austin, I was a tad excited about it because, hey, it’s Dave Lombardo. While I could never claim him as an influence on my drumming, he was certainly an inspiration. The guy is a beast of a player and given the chance to see him play outside of Slayer seemed pretty rad.
Originally this show was $15 but a few days beforehand they made it a free show. Slayer is in town this weekend for the FUN FUN FUN Fest so I guess Dave decided to try and float his other band here.
The opening band was called Unmothered from Austin. They were pretty good and I’d certainly go see them again. They were a 3pc sort of droning thing. There was a weird dark almost black metal undertone but this was no black metal band. Worth checking out again for sure.
Up next came My Education, also from Austin. Apparently they are considered “post-rock”, another sub-genre of rock. They were all instrumental and had a viola player through most of it. It was slightly prog and gave me somewhat of a Kansas (band) vibe. They weren’t awful by any means, but a bit boring to watch. Perfect background music, though. My friend made a good observation by saying that if they had some sort of film projection along with their live performance, it’d be more palatable in a live setting. AGREED.
Up next was Philm. By the time they came on, there may have been 150 at the show. I’ll go ahead and say it first, they 
were very underwhelming. Sure Dave did some cool stuff here and there, but it was pretty boring. I think if they went all instrumental it would have been a bit better. The singer killed it for me, not to mention that the music was rather generic. It was cool to see him do his thing on a tiny drumset though. Apparently he came out for a few minutes after they played. A few friends met him. I didn’t bother as I got to meet him while he was on tour with Testament back in 2000. It was cool because I got to meet his wife and kid too.
Rumors were flying around that Slayer was going to show up and do an impromptu set after Philm. I think it was all a set up to get more people to the show and sell some drinks. Slayer never played. That was unfortunate as it would have been cool seeing them do a few tunes on a barebones stage.
C’est la vie, eh? At least I got to see another one of my musical idols play again this week.
Yngwie Malmsteen Concert Review, Dallas, TX 110211
Lucky me. Twice in one week I got to see another one of my all-time favorite bands/musicians. Yngwie! I think this was 8th time I have seen him since 1986 (Triumph/Yngwie). Even though many of his recent albums have been a bit lackluster, he’s still quite entertaining live and just being able to watch him play is worth it.
I’ve been working out of town during the week in Dallas for the last 3+ months and haven’t really explored the music scene up here much and regrettably missed some quality shows, but there was no way I was going to miss this one. I bought my ticket on Monday at Wal*Mart of all places. They were the nearest Ticketmaster hub to my hotel. I don’t like going there and it just felt weird buying a concert ticket there. But no bother.
Last night’s show was at the House of Blues in downtown Dallas. I went down right after work and it only took a few minutes to get there from the office. It was a bit odd, though. Downtown Dallas is huge but last night it seemed like such a desolate place. Other than the parking lot outside of the venue, I didn’t see anyone out and about. Maybe the cold front that blew in that evening kept some folks away. I liked it down there, though. I love city living…concrete and steel for me!
Doors opened to the venue at 7PM and I got there around 6PM. Because of the storm that was brewing, I decided to just eat there. Wasn’t too bad but of course a bit overpriced.
Checked out the merch booth and didn’t see anything that really caught my eye.
Opening band went on promptly at 8. They were called Little Green Men and hailed from Fort Worth. While they played a tight set and there were some good guitar solos, the band was not my thing, not in the least. I was pretty bored and just wanted them to stop playing. Just give me some Yngwie!
After clearing the stage, you could see the full Yngwie stage setup. The drums were set at the back left corner of
Marshall City!
the stage almost behind the wall of Marshalls…17 cabinets and 27 heads. No, really! I think that was the biggest setup I’ve seen him use ever. Of course most are only for show, but still…80s excess at its finest! The keyboard player was at the far left of the stage almost completely out of sight and the bassist hung around that side as well. I mean, c’mon. This IS the Yngwie show, right?
The lights die down and you hear the keyboard intro to Rising Force (From Odyssey), then the drums kick in and the band hits the stage and kicks into the song full force. For as much as I have slagged Ripper Owens over the years, he sounded pretty good going into the set, much better than he sounded when I saw him with Yngwie in San Antonio a couple of years ago. The setlist stuck with a lot of newer material and I think that’s mostly because Ripper can’t sing a lot of the Joe Lynn/Jeff Scott Soto era stuff. Not many can. He did sound good on Never Die as well.
They got to Dreaming mid-set and for the first half of the song, Ripper sounded great. I was shocked…then after
Yngwie unleashing the fooking fury!
that, I don’t know happened, but for the last part of that song, he sounded like he was singing something different. Sure, the lyrics were right but he had gotten so out of key that it was painful to hear. Not sure if he lost his inner-ear monitors or what, but the end of that song was horrid. It then kicked into Gates of Babylon and he sounded fine in that.
I’m sorry, but he can’t carry the Turner/Soto stuff. I really wish Yngwie could find someone else who can handle all eras of the band vocally. Not to mention that Ripper sounds so “enhanced” on the last 2 Yngwie albums.
Patrick Johansson is a killer drummer, unfortunately all you could hear was his kick and snare. He had toms, but they were so low in the mix that they didn’t matter. Same with the keys and bass. There were a few moments where Yngwie and the keyboardist were playing together and you could hear him somewhat and the guy was really good. The bass was practically non-existent, which is typical for an Yngwie show.
Now we get to Yngwie. The giant Swede. The man took what Uli Roth and Ritchie Blackmore and created a whole new genre. Sure, in recent years he plays fewer riffs and just solos everywhere, but he’s still incredible and fun to watch. The last 3 times I have seen him, he really seems to be having fun on stage. He has mastered the art of kicking guitar picks into the crowd. I think Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick is the only person to throw out more picks.
I stayed back by the soundboard for the show. Attendance seemed to be around 300-350, not too shabby, but seemingly small for a club that holds 1700.
It was a fun show. Not my favorite show that I’ve seen of his, but still quite enjoyable. I try not to miss him if I can help it. I’m glad he’s still out there touring and still glad I’m able to see it.
Setlist as I remember it:
Rising Force
Never Die / Shot Across the Bow
Overture
Critical Mass
Badinerie
Far Beyond the Sun / Star Spangled Banner
Enemy Within
Red Devil
The Damnation Game / Baroque & Roll
Live To Fight (Another Day)
Dreaming / Gates Of Babylon
(Rainbow cover)
Into Valhalla
Trilogy Suite Op: 5
Red House
Fugue
Heaven Tonight
Encore:
Black Star / Cherokee Warrior
As Above, So Below
I’ll See the Light Tonight
Anthrax, Testament & Death Angel Concert Review 092911
It’s really amazing what music can stir up in a person. You know how it is. You hear a song on the radio/iPod/etc that just shoots you back in time. Last night’s show at the new Emo’s East did just that. It was a high school flashback for sure.
I first saw Anthrax and Testament together in 1987 at the now defunct Boathouse in Norfolk, VA. To this day that hails as one of the greatest shows I have ever seen. Anthrax was on their Among the Living Tour and Testament was promoting their debut album, The Legacy. Just an awesome show.
Death Angel opened the show and I’ll readily admit that I am not a fan. Not for lack of trying, mind you. About every 10 years I’ll listen to their first 3 albums to see if they sound any different to me and they never do. I just couldn’t get into them minus a few songs like Mistress of Pain and Room With A View. My friends here kept saying that I had to see them live and it would change my mind. Well, it didn’t. I went in open-minded (no, really, I swear I did!). They just didn’t do it for me. Sure, they were solid but their brand of thrash just doesn’t settle with me. Rob Cavestany is a fine guitarist, though. He was shredding it up last night. I did get to meet Mark Osegueda at my favorite bar a while later after the show. Fun guy for sure. Super nice. Shots!
I’ve lamented for years that Testament is the greatest live band ever. They never disappoint and last night they surely didn’t. They had Gene Hoglan behind the kit and as always he was perfect with ever hit, every beat. The guy is the greatest metal drummer alive and certainly the most versatile in my opinion. I was hoping to catch up with him and say hi but it wasn’t in the cards, unfortunately. Testament’s set was really strong. They played a good mix of their back catalogue. Chuck was in fine form. Skolnick, while playing great, seemed a light bit bored, like he was going through the motions. I know he is really into his jazz trio these days and maybe playing the metal is taking a back seat, but again, he shredded it perfectly. The whole band was on it, as always.
Anthrax…I’ve been a fan since I first bought a used copy of Spreading the Disease on cassette for $3.99 at Unicorn Records in 1986. They were a band that I had read about but not heard yet and Spreading is still my favorite album of theirs to this day. Thanks to the Internet, setlists of previous shows get posted instantly and I was able to see what they had been playing on this tour recently. Great list! The main part of their set had been consistent for most of their shows with the closer changing up a little. Only and Medusa had been played recently and I was really hoping to not hear Only and hear Medusa. You see, they didn’t play Medusa when they were in San Antonio within the last year and I was a little disappointed. Last night, instead of Medusa, they gave us Be All, End All. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Seriously? Man, I really wanted to hear that one badly. But alas, no dice. I will admit that I left when they started their encore. The went into N.F.L. and I was out. My feet were killing me. Anthrax kills me, though. With a band whose Belladonna era has some really great material, they continue to throw in Antisocial and Got The Time in their set. I would’ve been happy with Belly of the Beast from Persistence of Time and something else a little more obscure like Raise Hell (yeah right, I know I’m dreaming) or even A.I.R.
There were a few times during Anthrax’s set that I really felt like it was 1987 all over again. It was a great feeling, albeit a strange one. Stirred up all kinds of stuff. So glad I got to see this show and so glad I got to see most of my favorite Austin folks there. It was quite refreshing.
I need more shows like this. NEED!
Death Angel setlist:
I Chose the Sky
Evil Priest
Claws In So Deep
Relentless Revolution
Seemingly Endless Time
The Ultra-Violence
Thrown to the Wolves
Testament Setlist:
The Preacher
The New Order
The Persecuted Won’t Forget
Envy Life
Over the Wall
Souls of Black
Into the Pit
Electric Crown
Henchmen Ride
More Than Meets the Eye
D.N.R. (Do Not Resuscitate)
3 Days in Darkness
Disciples of the Watch
Anthrax Setlist:
Earth on Hell
Fight ‘Em Till You Can’t
Caught in a Mosh
Madhouse
Antisocial
(Trust cover)
I’m Alive
The Devil You Know
Indians
In the End
Got the Time
(Joe Jackson cover)
Be All, End All
Encore:
Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.)
Metal Thrashing Mad
I Am The Law
Chuck Billy...THRASH!
Gene Hoglan. (Photo by Brooks M)
Yours truly, Mark Osegueda, T.A.
Eric Johnson & Sonny Landreth Concert Review 09/30/2011
I was introduced to Eric Johnson’s music when Ah Via Musicom was released in 1990 by my friend Mike W. Mike enjoyed he “shredders” like I did and dubbed the cassette for me. I liked it a lot and went back and bought Tones as well. We were excited to see him at the Boathouse in Norfolk later that year. It was a great show all around. I didn’t follow Eric’s career, probably because of the time in between the follow-up which was 6 years. Out of sight, out of mind, eh?
I live in Eric’s hometown now and he rarely plays here but it’s not uncommon to see him do a guest spot when other guitarists roll through town. He recent jammed with Dweezil Zappa and I’ve seen hm hit the stage with Oz Noy. I hadn’t see EJ live since that 1990 show and was pretty excited to finally catch him last Friday. I think he may have done 1 or 2 shows in the last 5 years here (I could be wrong) and I missed them all for one reason or another.
We had good seats and day of the show I was pretty excited about it, even after driving home 3 hours from Dallas.
The opener was Sonny Landreth who I had never heard of until this show was announced. I was really impressed with his set. He’s a very unique rock/blues/jazz fusion/country-ish player. He predominantly uses a slide but does a lot of intricate harmonic techniques and chord structures with both hands. It was pretty neat to see. The guy has been around for a long time and had played with John Hiatt and Jimmy Buffett (blech!). It was a good set and his drummer was great. I think the bassist was good too, but I couldn’t hear him due to the mix. The Paramount Theater has strange sound and I think I may try to get seats further back in the venue next time.
There was a short intermission and then EJ and his band took the stage. It started out with him just doing a few acoustic pieces, one of which was a Paul Simon lullabye. The band comes out he’s got the phenomenal Chris Marsh on bass. The drummer was some young guy named Mark something-or-other. Solid player, obviously schooled. Eric’s set consisted of a lot of newer material and some covers, including John Coltrane’s Mr. D, which was awesome. I will be up front and say that I was rather bored with EJ’s set as there wasn’t much of his rock stuff. So bored as a matter of fact that I left about 3/4 through his set. I was sitting there about to fall asleep. As good as EJ is, his stuff does get a bit “samey” sounding and I tend to get bored quickly.
Chris Marsh was certainly the highlight for me. He’s an astonishing bassist, effortless and awesome.
Other than seeing him sit in with other players, I doubt I’ll go see him live again.
Sade & John Legend – Austin Review 9/7/11
I had to turn in my metalhead membership card for a night. May I have it back now? Thanks.
Last night was Sade and opening act, John Legend. What a show. I’ve been a fan since her 1984 debut album Diamond Life. What a voice. Smooth, unique, beautiful. She doesn’t tour often and when she did in the past, the opportunity never seemed right for me to see her. That is until this show.
Earlier this year her tour dates were announced and the closest one to me was Houston. It was a weeknight and once again I didn’t go, this time because of work. I would have had to take a day and a half of vacation that I didn’t want to spare. After the tour had started, more dates were added with Austin being one of them. AUSTIN! Even better it was scheduled at a venue 6 blocks from my house.
The day of the presale I wasn’t able to find a code to use and a friend on Facebook let me know that Citicard was one of the companies offering presale tickets. Just so happened that I have a Citicard that hadn’t been activated yet. Luckily the presale accepted my number and BOOM, I got 3 front row center tickets. My friends got the next 3 seats. We were set. Finally I was going to see one of my favorite vocalists ever. Just a week and a half earlier I got to see Odin in Hollywood, a band that I had waited 25 years to see. I’m a pretty lucky fella for sure.
The day I bought the tickets, I called my buddy Mike who I knew was a huge fan and offered him one of the tickets for face value. Mike is one of the biggest Sade fans I know and a phenomenal singer in his own metal right. Mike sings for Texas metal legends Militia. Mike instantly accepted and my other ticket was to go to whomever I decided to take with me. That ended up being my best friend, Amelia. I missed her birthday and thought that this would be a good belated gift. She was pretty excited when I asked her to go.
Now, on to the show! The 3 of us walked to a restaurant for a quick dinner then into the Frank Erwin Center to get our seats. It reminded me of the old days going to shows at Hampton Coliseum and Norfolk Scope except none of the shows I saw back then were reserved seating. Apparently there was some weird problem with the seating in the front row but security got it straight and we were able to remain in our spots. Sweet!
John Legend was originally scheduled to go on at 7:30, but I think the problem with the seating and some other issues
John Legend
delayed him until 8:30. I’ve never heard one song by the guy and didn’t know anything about him. I had no expectations but generally was disinterested in seeing his performance. All I can say is that I was pleasantly surprised when he started. He’s a really good singer and pays the piano pretty well. While I don’t think I’d ever buy any of his music, I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing him live again. He’s a solid performer and his backup band was pretty badass, especially the drummer and guitarist. You could have inserted those dudes into any metal band and they would be able to hold their own just fine.
Being right up against the stage, we didn’t get the cleanest mix. I don’t think I heard any of the bass and most of the drum sounds I got were straight from the kit, which was nice actually. Same with the guitar, we got most of his stuff from his small Fender-copy stage amp. There were times when you could hear John’s voice coming at us naturally, mainly when he would stand in front of us at the edge of the stage. We were literally 10’ from the edge of the stage. It was quite incredible, really. Nice show, John Legend!
After his set, everything is removed from the stage completely and it was completely empty. I noticed that her stage setup was under the stage and most things would be moved up and down with hydraulics. Bob Marley’s One Love started playing and that has apparently been her intro music for years.
All of a sudden some spotlights come on and Sade appears as does her band, opening with Soldier of Love. She is still
Sade
quite beautiful and her voice seems unchanged. There were professional video cameras in the stadium. We were asked before the show to sit during the performances of Jezebel and Pearls, obviously for video purposes. When she did Jezebel, she sat on the edge of the stage right in front of us. It was quite incredible for me. The whole night. Her set was a good mix of her hits as well as some lesser known songs (unless you’re a big fan).
There were a few quick wardrobe changes but it was no detraction at all. She’s still got “it”…whatever “it” is. She’s got a good sense of humor as well and that woman’s smile could easily melt glaciers. Stunning.
Three of the guys in the band have been with her since her first album, which is pretty impressive. They also had a band called Sweetback, whose first album is pretty good. All of these guys have some serious chops at their respective instruments.
The sound up front was a little better, but the bass and keyboards were still pretty low because of our location to the 
mains. No biggie. Like during Legend’s set, there were time where you could hear Sade’s natural voice when she was at the edge of the stage and the music was low. Incredible. She belted out a few notes here and there that certainly gave me chills as did her performance of No Ordinary Love. Easily my favorite song of hers and it was spot on beautiful last night.
Because of the pre-show delays, her performance didn’t end until almost 12:30AM. I got up at 6:30AM for work and it took me forever to wind down from the show and finally fall asleep last night. I’m tired but it was worth every effort. I’ve seen a lot of shows since I first started attending concerts in 1985, but this one I think is in my top 10 all time and easily top 2 of all non-metal/hard rock shows. It was a great night all around with great friends and wonderful music. If she ever tours again, I’ll certainly try to be there and will certainly try for front row again!
- Soldier of Love
- Your Love Is King
- Skin
- Kiss of Life
- Love Is Found
- In Another Time
- Smooth Operator
- Jezebel
- Bring Me Home
- Is It a Crime
- Love Is Stronger Than Pride
- All About Our Love
- Paradise
- Nothing Can Come Between Us
- Morning Bird
- King of Sorrow
- The Sweetest Taboo
- The Moon and the Sky
- Pearls
- No Ordinary Love
- By Your Side
- Cherish the Day (Encore)
Ticket and fake rose petals that fell from the ceiling
The Metal Files 
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