Friday, December 10, 2010

The Latest Crave: Omen World Tour: Soulfly w/ Straight Line Stitch and INCITE!



(Alrosa Villa, Columbus, Ohio December 5, 2010) 

The spirit of the late Dimebag Darrell reigned over Alrosa Villa as bands Demons Within, Sourblood, Desperate Union, INCITE, Straight Line Stitch and Soulfly delivered a powerful show in his honor just three days before the 6th year anniversary of his wrongful death.  

Starting things off on the Omen world tour was Cleveland, Ohio based unit, Demons Within. The chill of their cold should rushed goosebumps of anticipation over the crowd and then surged into a stroke of heat as J.C.B let out a torturous scream amidst the evil invoking whisper; “the demons keep coming,".  It was at this moment, the show had officially begun! Dedicating a mournful number to our fallen friend, Eternal Night Demons Within truly showed off their musical dexterity and vocal flexibility.The low rumble to high screech movement is very Lamb of God influenced and their ability to be mechanical yet free and high energy from start to finish was impressive and well received by the moving crowd. Demons Within consists of five unique individuals; lead vocalist J.C.B., lead/rhythm guitarist-backing vocals T.C., lead/rhythm guitarist Dark Seclusion, bassist Demize and D.F.D. on drums. 

Taking the stage next was Columbus metallers Sourblood. Brutal and explosive, Bloomy comes out rocking with their single, Burning Memory, exciting the crowd with his contagious energy, he paces about the stage with a panic twitch in his eyes and leans back into a perfectly timed scream to accompany his brainless head bang. Strong reactions came from jump song, Fight For Yourself, Abstract, and The Burial, all are songs from their brand new self titled album available here. With Justin Bloomfield aka Bloomy on vocals; Jerry Davis behind the kit and backing vocals; John Mills and Brock Richards on guitars; and Jim Klimek on bass, Sourblood is  a thrilling and fun addition to Omen World Tour lineup. 

Fresh out of high school, and formed just over a year ago, Desperate Union,  provided a more melodic selection of hard rock. Toronto, Canada natives posses a heavier, incubus like sound and although their tunes were well written for commercial mass consumption, the melancholy delivery was a bit out shadowed by such previous high energy acts. 

The metal returned in the form of Arizona’s own INCITE, featuring Max Cavalera's stepson, Richie Cavalera on lead vocals. A talented group of musicians with room to expand; they also paid tribute to Pantera guitarist, Dimebag Darryl with an audience favorite “The End Result.” Even the security guards were compelled to move as Incite pummeled the crowd with their violence inciting sound. 

The stage goes to black and the Straight Line Stitch takeover begins as electric orange and platinum streaks smite the air and the vocals of Alexis Brown shatter the silence and with a deathlike growl that transitions seamlessly into a velvet smooth melody. Stretching out beyond the traditional metalcore template, Straight Line Stitch combines intensity and harmony to create a live-wire performance. Heads spin off bodies as they bang to the rhythm of hits What You Do To Me, Bleeding Heart Theory, and Black Veil. We also got a fresh listen to Ballroom Brawl, a new track off their album due in March. An invigorating performance, and just the beginning of what is to come from Straight Line Stitch. Alexis Brown on killer vocals, Seth Thacker and Tim Chappell on guitars, Jason White on bass, and Patrick Haynes on drums.

Sending the packed crowd into near riot, Max Cavalera, Mark Rizzo and Johnny Chow of Soulfly took control with the opener, Blood, Fire, War, Hate. The very walls of Alrosa trembled in the uprising of bodies gathering in the pit. Prophecy came next without hesitation or pause, backed by a relentless rhythm section and vocals that morph from soul scarring growls into grisly screams, illuminated by furious riffs and epic breakdowns. With the crowd in full effect, Max gave us Back To The Primitive and Seek “N” Strike then a high energy performance of Babylon, a favorite of mine. Kingdom gave me chills and anarchy ensued when 2 Sepultura classics, Roots and Chaos A.D were unleashed. A sinister delivery of Bloodbath and Beyond gave way to a brutal Respect followed by a special percussion interlude by Cavalera, Rizzo and Chow on large, upturned snare drums. It was a fearless introduction to the tour-de-force experience of Frontline. The rest of the set included Downstroy, Rise of the Fallen from the new album The Omen, a tease of Jump The Fuck Up and ended with Eye for an Eye and a vicious Rizzo solo. Behemoth and statuesque, Max’s expansive vocals are mind-blowing in their ostentatious-ness, his artistry is like an epic vision quest and he is rightfully exalted as a true innovator of thrash and tribal metal- a master of his craft!




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