From the Edge of the Pit

3 years ago today I met The Black Dahlia Murder, that was pretty sweet. (I'm on the right)

When you pick up a bomb ass CD for $5 because the record store doesn't know anything about metal

Friday night was a night I will never forget. Fallujah opening for Devin Townsend and BTBAM, being able to finally meet DTP, made new friends, and enjoyed a comedy show put on by Devin. Through Fallujah's set I was never let down, every riff was on time, solos were beautiful, Alex's vocals on point as they always are, and they had a guest vocalist for the West (best) Coast. Tori Letzler added to the live performance in a way I didn't think was imaginable. Her vocals sound just as beautiful live as recorded, in every song she was apart of (and those she wasn't in) sounded as though I was listening to the studio recording. To be able to whiteness Fallujah's set with her was one I can never let go of. They have a lot of work to top that show. Between the Buried and Me played next, the instrumentals sounded great all throughout the set. I have never been a fan of BTBAM, their vocals have never been my thing. That being said, I do enjoy their live performance. I have a lot of respect for them as musicians and would recommend seeing them to anyone who hasn't before. Oh Devy, where do I start. Is it the amazing musicianship throughout the entire band, the love and respect of the fans, the comedy show, or just the fact that you just want to have fun on stage? The atmosphere of the entire venue changes the second DTP is about to come on stage. Everyone is laughing, singing along, having a good time, and it seems as though everyone is able to forget the crap going on outside for just a short amount of time and enjoy life. DTP played an amazing set with songs from Transcendence (as expected), Epicloud, Sky Blue, Dark Matters, Addicted, and Ziltoid. I'm assuming that there was more than a small handful of people that were hoping they would play at least one track from Deconstruction, given BTBAM was on tour with them, but the set list made up for any let down hopes. I never expected Devin to play Ih-Ah! live, it is one of those songs that you just accept as a album track only (aside from full album sets). When he started to play Ih-Ah! I had started to tear up, I almost couldn't control it. It was as though someone had taken the list of songs I wanted to hear live the most and put them together into one set. It was a perfect way to finish the night and I will always pay what it takes to see the Devin Townsend Project. The night was perfect from beginning to end (aside from two of my friends getting in a fight, but that's besides the point). If I could change anything about the set I wouldn't. Tldr; Every band is fucking awesome go see them! Also, I know the video quality of Ih-Ah! is terrible, it was recorded on my phone but the audio holds up.

I'm seeing Leprous tonight with Earthside and Bianary Code. The show opened up with two local bands, as they normally do, and both have the idea of where they want the band to move. The first band consisted of 6 members; 3 guitar (with one doubling on keys), 1 bass guitar, 1 drummer, and a main vocalist (every other member aside from the drummer was doing backup vocals). The direction they want to head is set, and they are making good progress towards it. But what I as an audience member take from it is they are one giant group of friends who don't want to give eachother destructive criticism. Each member was trying to do their own thing during each song throughout the set. They were having fun, and when you get down to it that's what matters, but to create a dull wall of sound with no conformity is horrible to listen to. If they were to drop one guitar player, and have him become a permanent keys player the music would flow much more dynamically as a whole. The second band to play was a 3 piece; one vocalist, drummer, and guitar player. They had prerecorded keys and bass play throughout the set, and it sounded amazing. The vocalist used the generic Prog vocals, highs, growls, cleans, ect. The drummer seems as though he knew what he was going for, but didn't know how to do it. The rhythms he was attempting were clearly jazz influenced, but you could hear that he has never sat down to learn how to properly play jazz. Say what you wish, but jazz is one of the hardest (if not the hardest) genera of music to play properly and is something you can not just jump into. The guitar player was doing a great job given his situation, covering lead parts while compensating for the rhythm riffs. Watching him play throughout the set you could tell he was struggling. Without a bass/rhythm guitar to give the band the defined sound they need it was just as though we were listening to a vocalist singing over a giant guitar solo. I feel if they were to pick up one more member they could be pushed to one of the more recognizable bands within the community, but whether or not they they do is another story. Tldr; Don't be afraid to offend your friends or pick up a member or two if the music needs a change to truly get to where you want it.

Forgive me for not knowing every underground band, my collection is growing every day and I am looking to expand it. Feel free to post your opinions, arguments, call me a piece of shit, what ever you want. After all this is the internet, our views will always be different. With that, lets get this blog started!