Ginger

Evening friends. Is anyone else ready for the summer to be done? I know that's weird, but when you live in a seasonal town it becomes exhausting with all the extra people and traffic. I love the Fall. Don't get me wrong, hitting up the beach and bon fires is super, but have you ever wished to have things more quite? To read more? To just listen to the silence? I'm of course at Panera now sipping on some green tea like substance containing ginger I think listening to Sentenced. Today is my first day off in a long while and it's pleasant to just be!
Last week I caught the show of Soilwork, Death Angel, Augury, Mutiny Within, and Swashbuckle at Reggie's rock club in Chi-town. What a line up! The fine gentlemen of Swashbuckle put me on the guest list and I just knew it was gonna be a most excellent evening. I got there in time to catch the last two songs of Swashbuckle who were, as always, killing the stage! Love those boys in all their pirate glory! Fabulous. I stood to the side enjoying the gig with a more laid back approach. It was nice to take in the show and the audience, to observe both creates a very different feel than just focusing on the band in the front row. It was a smaller audience, but very enthusiastic. Mutiny Within strolls on bringing attitude and swagger. When bands rock I enjoy a good swagger, but when you suck I totally get ticked off at their macho-like approach. I saw these boys back in April and was not impressed. They lack heart, the lyrics are weak, and maybe they're just too inexperienced! Some not even old enough to buy a beer so I try to give them grace and I admire their hard work, but I'm just not a fan! I don't like dissing bands, but every time I see these boys I'm disappointed. I'll be catching them a few more times when they tour with Epica in the Fall so I'll give them one more chance! Then Augury conquered the stage bringing all their very unique/weirdness with them! Definitely an acquired taste, but they are very good at what they do. Personally I enjoy a little more melody than what technical death metal has to offer!
So I knew Death Angel was gonna be great and honestly, they blew my mind. They have such a awesome reputation so I was stoked to catch 'em live and I can see why the world loves these thrashers! Hailing from the Bay Area they come on stage to drag you into a sort of frenzy which ends with you wanting to punch someone in the face. So brutal, but so fun at the same time. Mark, the lead singer is a beast with dreads to his bum and his presense soaks up the attention of the crowd. But all of them got involved and carried the audience to new heights of rocking out. The bass was played with preseason, drums beat hard, and the guitars soared with sick perfections. After such an epic performance I was really pumped for Soilwork. When the final act came on and I jammed to the first couple of tunes, but then I realized I was bored. For some reason their playing was just not interesting. Their grip on the audience was light, their stage presense was non existant, and every song sounded the same. It felt like a routine, not like a show. They're weren't playing for their Chicago fans they were working. I admired the precision of the vocals and overall good sound, but I plopped myself down half way through and just admired the general ambiance. Soooo I was slightly disaponited by Soilwork since their recorded stuff is so good! But on the other hand I was blown out of the water with Death Angel! So it was a great gig overall and I really like Reggie's. Really good staff and nice bar area. I chilled with some of the guys afterward and getting to see how sweet and fun they all were made the night even better! I may or may not have gotten home till 6:30am, but that's the price ya gotta pay if want to see good gigs! What? Metal in Southwest Michigan? Ha! But seriously, I love Chicago, the opportunities are endless there. I may even move there someday. But let's do Europe first and see where that goes. Less than 6 months to go! Not that I mind steaming milk and pulling shots all day, but I'm ready to go and explore the world some more! Cheers!