Posts Tagged ‘austin’
Paul Di’Anno – Concert Review – 2/10/10
So Paul Di’Anno played last night at the Red Eyed Fly in Austin, TX. I had expectations but they weren’t set too high as I 
know of enough about Dianno these days to not expect miracles.
A few weeks back I went to the Red Eyed Fly to get an advanced ticket. When I asked the booking guy for the club about it, he said they weren’t on sale yet and he didn’t know the price. So he created his ticket list and I just handed him $20 and said let me know if it’s more or less. The guy knows me so he had no worries of me paying if it ended up being more than $20. Ultimately it was $12. $12!
There really wasn’t that much buzz around town about the show but I tried telling everyone as much as I could. I’m moving in a block away from the venue so after taking a load of stuff to the new place, I decided to walk over to the venue and see if they were hanging out. Icarus Witch was the opening act and they also served as Paul’s backup band. Paul was back at the hotel. Jason McMaster and I hung around for a bit and watched the soundcheck. Jason and Paul’s tour manager are old pals so they got to catch up for a bit. We left to grab a bite to eat and came back right before Icarus Witch was about to take the stage.
Now…I think the club had only sold about 15 pre-sale tickets and I didn’t think many more would show up. i think they ended up with about 100 or so which was cool.
Icarus Witch hit the stage and while I am not a fan of theirs, they are competent players. I think they would be better served with 2 guitar players but that’s just my opinion. They were tight and did a good set.
About 30 minutes after the IW set, the lights dim a little and the music for the Godfather starts playing. Paul is led through the crowd. He was in pretty bad shape as apparently he fell on the ice a few times in the last few days, not to mention that he’s always been a bit stiff and gimpy. To be honest he looked like hell. He looked old and beaten. It actually saddened me a bit.
The band opened with Wrathchild and Paul’s voice was obviously worn out from the rigorous touring schedule and from his still very apparent rock and roll lifestyle. Hey, good on ‘im if he can still do it! I had seen the setlist a few days earlier so I knew what to expect. I was happy that one Battlezone song was in there as I really loved the first 2 albums. I was also surprised when he played Alex Harvey’s Faith Healer. I forgot that he covered that on the Murder One album. It was a cool version. I didn’t know any of the other songs but Marshall Lockjaw was pretty damned good.
His voice improved a bit throughout the night but he was very open about his voice sounding “like bullocks”. I didn’t think it was that bad in general. He sounded better on his solo stuff than he did on the Maiden songs, all of which were played waaaaaay too fast.
After the show most of the crowd left and there were a few of us left who wanted to meet Paul. They were letting people in 2 at a time to meet Paul and get stuff signed. All of my CDs were still packed up and I didn’t feel like digging out the Maiden and Battlezone ones. So I brought “the book”. Paul signed it in the Battlezone section instead of maiden at my request. Don’t get me wrong, those 2 Maiden records are some of the greatest records ever, but those 2 Battlezone albums are pretty special to me as well. I mentioned seeing him with Obsession back in 87 in Norfolk, VA and his face lit up…”Oh wow, Vescera and I are still good pals and talk often.” Then I mentioned seeing the Murder One tour in Va Beach, VA with Solitude Aeturnus and he remember the show well…”More people here tonight than showed up there at the beach, eh?” I mentioned that we hung out and shot pool together for a few hours and how grateful I was for that experience.
Paul seemed pretty humble throughout the night. It was a bit tough seeing one of the “originals” sketching by on a low-dough tour but I’m glad I got to see it. Paul is still all about the party and I am sure he is doing his share of it on the road again. He mentioned since he can get a visa with no problem now that he wanted to tour again next year. I’d surely go.
Wrathchild
Prowler
Marshall Lockjaw
Murders In The Rue Morgue
The Beast Arises
Children Of Madness (Battlezone)
Faith Healer (Alex Harvey Band)
A Song For You
The Ides Of March
Killers
Phantom of the Opera
Running Free
Encore:
Transylvania
Iron Maiden
He had been closing with the Ramones’ Blitzkrieg Bop…I’m so glad we didn’t get to see/hear that.
Here’s the vid for Wrathchild that I shot. I’ll try and get Children of Madness and Faith Healer posted soon. I’m using a new camera and am not figuring out how to get really good shots with it yet.
Paul Dianno is coming back the the USA?!
According to published reports, Paul got his visa cleared to do a US tour. I guess I will try to go since he will be playng a few blocks from my apartment.
My history with seeing Paul live is pretty interesting, well to me it is.
The first time was Battlezone/Obsession in 1987 at the Boathouse in Norfolk, VA. I loved the Battlezone records and got stoked on seeing 2 bands that I loved. The whole time Battlezone was on stage, we were hanging out with Obsession and I never really got to check them out. Pity.
The second time was in 1993. The bill was Paul Dianno’s Killers and Solitude Aeturnus at the original Peppermint Beach Club in Virginia Beach, VA. At this point, I was a HUGE Solitude fan and was more stoked on seeing them than seeing Paul. I thought his Killers stuff was terrible. I get to the venue early that afternoon as I was always prone to do to get some stuff signed and Solitude was inside hanging out. I had them sign both of my cassettes(!!!). Super cool guys. Shortly thereafter Paul and his band came in and I had him sign my Battlezone LPs, Iron Maiden’s Live +1 (Greek pressing) and a compilation called The Best of British Rock which featured Dianno’s first post-Maiden band “Dianno” doing Antigua which was a great song. That album also had Persian Risk on it which featured some of the guys that were in Battlezone/Killers. Paul called his bandmates over and they all signed it and we hung out for a while. Paul asked me if I played pool and drank beer. Yes! We shot pool together and drank a few pitchers of beer and just talked about stuff. I never talked about Maiden with him other than to say that I was a big fan. He was pretty cool. Now, if you’ve read his book “Beast”, you’d see the other side of Paul that it seems most people saw and I got to see later than evening.
After Solitude Aeturnus played to a crowd of a whopping 30 people or so, I helped them get their gear offstage and ended up hanging out backstage with them during Dianno’s set, missing him play one more time. About ¾ through the set we hear the music stop suddenly and one of the Solitude guys opens the backstage door. On stage you see Graham Bath holding his jaw and Dianno says, “We’ll start playing again as soon as my guitar player stops playing like a c*nt!” I remember looking at John Perez of Solitude and thinking WTF? John said it was a common occurrence. Paul talks about his habit of fighting people over stupid stuff quite a bit in his book. I feel lucky to have survived my few hours with him unscathed!
So…2 times I’ve gone to see Paul play and missed him both time. Hopefully in February I’ll actually get to see him play.
Colin Hay – Concert Review – 101409 – Austin, TX
As noted before, I’m a huge Men At Work fan. I found out the day of this show that Colin was playing at the tiny little Cactus Cafe on the campus of UT. This place is typically a first come, first served so I got there early. Being the dork that I am, I brought my CD covers (previously signed by Greg Hamm) for the only 3 Men At Work albums. I used to have some of Colin’s solo CDs but his solo work never did much for me.
I was one of the first few people there and ended up meeting a guy who had also just found out about the show. Super nice guy, screenwriter. We talked for quite a while before they let us in and then sat together. The cactus only holds about 50 people and this show didn’t sell out. Criminal!!!
Colin got on stage and instantly just started telling stories, very funny stories. Intermingled with his storytelling he also played some music. Truthfully I think he may have only played 8 or 9 songs, but it didn’t matter. His stories were very engaging and absolutely hilarious, even if a bit embellished here and there.
The only Men At Work songs that he played were Down Under, Who Can It Be Now and the closer Overkill. I admit to getting a little choked up when he played that song. It’s always been one of those songs from one of those eras, ya know? I would like to have heard a few others that I think would have done well acoustically, but hey, it’s not my show.
He played practically flawlessly and his voice was still powerful and stayed crisp the whole night. He’s a solid player on guitar. I was impressed.
After the show he said he’d come out and do a quick meet and greet. Of course I stuck around (groupie!). Only about 10-15 people stuck around to say hi and I just waited at the end of the line. When he got to me, he looked at my stack of CD covers and I think it was pretty blatant that I wasn’t a fan of his almost 10 albums of solo works. He asked who had previously signed them and I told him about the show in Virginia Beach in 1999. He recalled the show as “Upstairs venue? Hot as hell?” He nailed it. He was very amiable and I just thanked him and told him how much those 3 albums meant to me as a kid and even now as an adult. He thanked me, shook my hand and looked at my shirt and said, “Black Sabbath, eh? Good on ya, mate.” We snapped a quick foto and I shook his hand one mroe time and left.
It was very special for me. I’d certainly go see him again. His comedy routine is worth the price alone. Add in his music and it’s a double bonus night!
Motorhead – Concert Review 092009
Motorhead! I’m always excited when they come to town. Last night was my 6th time seeing them since 1993. They 
never let me down with the live show.
Until last night.
So let’s backtrack and put some story along with this. If you don’t know this already, I have the Another Perfect Day album cover tattooed on my back…my whole back. 88 hours worth of tattoo work. No regrets! I’ve met Lemmy a few times but not since getting my backpiece done. I was hoping last night would be the night. Just wanted a picture of him with my tattoo. Didn’t happen. No big deal, I can live with that. Like I said, met him a few times and always a good experience.
So my guitar player, Doug Morrison, (Turbin, Waysted) and the drummer of Reverend Horton Heat have been close friends since the late 70s and with the Rev on this tour, we got the hookup. Doug and I get there early and have dinner with Paul Simmons (drummer for the Rev) and some of the roadcrew guys from Rev Heat and Motorhead. The guy sitting next to me was pretty special though. It was Hobbs! Hobbs has been with the band for almost 30 years and is mentioned in the song Going to Brazil. I think he may even be the one who screams on We Are The Roadcrew from No Sleep Till Hammersmith. Not important. Hobbs! Talk about a weathered old British soul. He was extremely polite in a typical British sort of way yet as foul mouthed as an old Greek sea captain. He was awesome! Hobbs!
After dinner we headed backstage. Nashville Pussy was setting up their gear and there it was…Lemmy’s bass rack. From a distance I snap a picture and Paul says, “Come on, man. Step over here and get a real look at them.” His beautiful Rickenbacker 4004LK and one of his old Rics with the original hand-carved oak leaves. I got to hold history in my hands! And I couldn’t believe how high the action was on those. Seemingly about 3/8″ off of the fretboard.
So after hyperventilating over that a bit, we all just hung out backstage while Nashville Pussy played. I’ve never been a fan so I had no interest in seeing them. Paul was telling the Motorhead roadcrew guys about my backpiece and they flipped out over it. “Lemmy needs to see this!” Yes sir, I agree!
NP finishes their set and Paul had to get prepared for the Reverend Horton Heat set. Doug and I stayed backstage a little longer. Matt Sorum, (GnR, The Cult, Velvet Revolver) came in and said hi. I mentioned that I had just seen his episode of the Dog Whisperer. “Did Ace and I look like total idiots?” No man, you guys were fine, no worries. Apparently he hadn’t seen it yet. The dude is a class act even if I never cared for his other bands.
So after that, Doug and I just went out in to the crowd to watch the Rev’s set. As always, they were tight. The Rev works the crowd very well. I opened for them back in like 93 or 94 and he’s still the same old cool laid back guy.
The gig was at Stubb’s in Austin, TX. It’s an amphitheater type set up. I’ve never really cared for it all that much. Too narrow and when it gets packed it’s difficult to get around. So we hung out towards the back. Run into several friends, of course. Ran into my other guitarist, Jason McMaster (Broken Teeth, Watchtower, Dangerous Toys) and he says, “Hey man! You need to meet an old friend of mine, Craig Behrhorst.” I said, “From Ruffians?” Craig said, “How did you know that?” Sir, I am an 80s metal nerd. Plain and simple. Turned out that Doug knew him as well. I guess Craig’s sister used to hang out with Doug and his friends back in the old Sunset Strip days. I also ran into Art Villareal and Bob Catlin, both of SA SLayer/Juggernaut fame. They are both in Martyhead, a Motorhead tribute from San Antonio. Of course I have a Motorhead tribute here in town called Capricorn USA. That’s the band with Doug and Jason.
Whatever, you don’t care. You want to know about the Motorhead show!
Light’s go down and they open with Iron Fist. Sweet! I love that song. But I swear it sounded a little slower than album speed. Stay Clean was next. Same thing. The band was tight. Sorum held his own pretty well for the whole night but they really seemed lifeless to me. Everything seemed slow. To be honest I was bored until mid-set when they played a few tracks from Another Perfect Day. Matt’s drumming on everything was pretty good. Who knew the guy could play double bass? But then, they played Ace of Spades. Of course everyone knows that songs and the drunks in the crowd and the kids who only know it from Guitar Hero were freaking out. Matt’s drumming killed it. His bass drum pattern was all wrong. It put the song in a weird dynamic. I recently saw a vid from one of the shows a few weeks ago with him and it was the same thing. I hate to say it (again), but I was so bored for most of their show. They were missing a key element to their modern sound…MIKKEY DEE.
Mikkey’s a phenomenal drummer. I’ve known it since I first heard King Diamond’s Abigail and got to experience his playing live on the Them tour. Mikkey was the main reason why I ever went to see Motorhead the very first time in 1993. I wasn’t into them at all at that point and oddly enough I don’t like but a handful of songs from his era. But the live show with him is intense. If you’ve seen him play, you get it. He’s a monster. And with Motorhead, he certainly tightened them up. They were always fast, vicious. “We may not be the best band in the world, but we’re certainly the fastest” Lemmy said years and years ago on their famous No Sleep TIll Hammersmith album.
Last night they weren’t fast. There was just no electricity. Sometimes I think I am just getting old and crotchety. I do tend to get hyper-critical when it comes to live shows, but I’ve always been that way. I can never just sit back and enjoy it, I always have to dissect it. Oh well. My problem, not yours, eh?
The setlist was pretty good overall, it was just the feel and the pace of the songs that got to me. Most people I know loved it and I am glad they had a good time. I did too, actually. I got to see some people I hadn’t seen in a while and got to meet a few new folks.
Setlist:
Iron Fist
Stay Clean
Be My Baby
Rock Out
Metropolis
Over the Top
One Night Stand
I Got Mine
The Thousand Names of God
Another Perfect Day
In the Name of Tragedy
Just ‘Cos You Got the Power
Going to Brazil
Killed by Death
Bomber
Whorehouse Blues
Ace of Spades
Overkill
Sure Lem’s in his 60s now and not everyone can do it like they used to. No matter the performance from last night, I’ll always go see them. It’s Motorhead!
He said something last night that I heard him say the previous 2 times I saw them, “Don’t forget us.”
That line saddens me.
After all, who ever could?
Concert Review – Hirax – Austin, TX – 08/29/09
It was 1986 and Metal Blade Records was practically the greatest metal label on the scene. They consistently released 
great compilations like the Metal Massacre and Best of Metal Blade series. Best of Metal Blade Volume 1 (1986) included Call Of The Gods by Hirax. I always loved that song but for no logical reason whatsoever did I never check them out any further. I also liked Bombs of Death from Metal Massacre 6. There’s really no explanation as to why I didn’t follow through on these guys, and after last night I feel like I missed out on some additional great metal in the last 23 years.
So about a month or so ago I read in the local show listings that Hirax was coming to Red 7. Even though I was not even remotely familiar with any of their material beyond the 2 aforementioned songs, I definitely wanted to see this show. Through the years I’ve always seen Hirax playing the Euro festivals and have read interviews with Katon W. DePena and have always respected his attitude about music. The guys has proudly been flying the flag of metal since day 1.
So I get to the club a little early to get MM6 and Best of Metal Blade 1 signed as well as my copy of “Headbangers: Worldwide Megabook of Heavy Metal” (Mark Hale, 1993). I know the club owner pretty well and he let me go in to the green room to meet Katon and the band. I was looking forward to this for a few reasons. One to meet Katon, who really is a true metal legend. The other reason was to meet Glenn Rogers, former guitar player of Deliverance. I dug those guys back in the day. When I went into the room, Katon was in there with his lovely wife, his bassist and guitarist Lance and Steve Harrison and some other guy that I didn’t know. Glenn was out and about with a friend so I would catch up with him later.
Katon invited me over and we talked for a bit just about music and such and Katon asked about my book. As he’s flipping through it reading about his band and tons of other obscure bands that are listed in the book. He signed it and my 2 CD covers and said, “Is DRI in here? The guy beside me if Felix from DRI.” Felix thought they wouldn’t be in there but I knew they were. Much to everyone’s pleasure, there was even a picture of band during the era that Felix was in it (85-90). I hung out for a bit and asked Katon if he ever had any interactions with Billy Milano, which he had. So I asked if he wanted to walk over to the club that Billy works in to say hello. We popped over there for a bit and they shook hands and caught up for a few minutes then I took them over to another club so Katon could catch up with an old friend who unfortunately wasn’t there at the time. Back to Red 7. It was great seeing the respect this guy was getting from people in the club, some of who came from Houston and I think a few from Mexico to see this show.
I really expected a much larger crowd, especially with this being on a Saturday. Typically the San Antonio crew would come up for a show like this but I only saw a few folks from that crowd there. The Sword was playing up the street for the 2nd night in a row and I can’t imagine they stole much of the crowd from this show. The club booked 4 grindcore bands to open up which I thought was a bad pairing. I didn’t go in to check out the other bands as I’m not really a fan of the grind stuff in general. While the grind bands were playing I got to talk to Glenn Rogers who let me know that Deliverance was going to do one more album with the original lineup sans the drummer.
But then it was time for Hirax. It was already around 1 or 1:10 AM but the crowd had increased. I’m guessing there were about 90 people in there. Cover charge was $15. Well worth it for me. Hirax kicked in and just kicked ass. Katon is a great frontman, reminds me a lot of Jason McMaster. Knows to to work a crowd and keep them interested during guitar tunings and such.
I have to say that I was truly blown away and really felt a bit guilty about not having checked them out deeper. But there’s no time like the present, right? Their set was cut short due to time restraints and I must say I was a little let down that Call of the Gods wasn’t on the set at all. But it didn’t matter, they were great and I hope they make their way back to Austin again.
Setlist as I remember it:
- El Dia De Los Muertos
- 100,000 Strong
- Blind Faith
- New Age of Terror
- Chaos and Brutality
- Hate, Fear and Power
- Broken Neck
- Bombs of Death
- El Diablo Negro
- Walk With Death
- Mouth Sewn Shut?
I am not so sure about the ones after El Diablo Negro.
Katon W. De Pena (Hirax), fat dude (me), Felix Griffin (DRI)
The Metal Files 
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