Seventh Sun Records Show (February 24, 2017)

Cursed 

  In this life you are faced with choices and sometimes you have to pick and choose which metal show to attend. In San Francisco you had the option of seeing thrash legends Overkill and the technical death metal masters in Nile on the same bill. Your other option was attending the five band show hosted by Seventh Sun Records at the Phoenix Theater. Also, Bret Michaels was performing in Santa Rosa, but no decent human would subject themselves to that hair metal hack’s music.

  When it came to decision time, I decided to go to the Phoenix and support Seventh Sun Records along with the five bands who were playing the show. The bands who performed were: Eye for I, His Name is Robert Paulson, The Bill Decker Band, Cursed and The Ghost Next Door. I liked how this show brought together acts that I had not yet seen before with the exception being Eye for I who I saw last year at the Phoenix.

  Starting the show off was the progressive hard rock/metal band, Eye for I. As of lately, I have noticed these guys working more towards getting their music heard amongst the local scene. Unfortunately, the band’s bass player was unable play due to back problems, which the band announced to the audience during their set. I hear people say sometimes that bass players don’t do much and why have them at all. In this case, I have to say that Eye for I is a band that needs a bass player, especially if you are going to be covering Iron Maiden’s “Number of the Beast.” I give credit to the three members who performed and worked hard to make up for the absence of that low end presence. I think their original material is creative, but needs a full band to really show what they have to offer. Then again, things come up and I commend Eye for I for showing up and giving the people a solid performance.

Eye for I

  Second on the bill was, His Name is Robert Paulson, a band that writes heavy metal songs about Brad Pitt movies. Compared to Eye for I, His Name is Robert Paulson turned up the aggression and had a heavier and more thrash like sound. The band’s singer delivered some brutal vocals while the two guitar players were feverishly striking chords to follow along to the decimating drum parts. I am not really a Brad Pitt fan, but their idea is definitely unique. I just can’t wait for a band to come out that plays grindcore and writes songs about Aunt Esther from Sanford and Son and they call themselves, “Watch It Sucka!” Also, during their set I noticed these stepping stools the band would clime up on as if they were playing a massive arena show. They looked like they were having fun and the crowd was really getting into the music due to the band’s stage presence.

The His is Robert Paulson 

  Third up was the instrumental trio, The Bill Decker Band. I have to throw this out right away that these guys could play their asses off. Their skill level was very impressive and the songs sounded tight. Even though I usually get tired of hearing instrumental shredding after a long period of time, The Bill Decker Band knew how to create some dynamic arrangements. The guitar shredding by Bill Decker was amazing to watch, but the skillful bass playing and drumming definitely added to the overall sound as well. In the end, they demonstrated what it means to be a skilled musician. You won’t get that at a Beyonce or Lady Gaga performance...instead you have a higher chance of getting an STD.

The Bill Decker Band

  After Bill Decker and his two other amigos finished their set the fourth band, Cursed, started getting ready for their performance of skull crushing heavy metal mayhem. After hearing about them from people and seeing their name numerous times on bills for other Bay Area shows, I had the opportunity to finally see them live. They seemed like passionate metal fanatics who are determined to make their presence known in the metal world. Overall, their sound is very straightforward classic thrash with other brutal heavy metal elements that resonates with fans who want something that is fast and unapologetic. I don’t know if they were able to play as long as they wanted to because of time constraints, but they put together a decent performance. Plus, the band’s singer provided some comedic relief by saying stuff like that they had 36 more songs when in reality they had about two.

  The final band of the evening was, The Ghost Next Door. These guys came all the way from the great city of Oakland. Well, The Ghost Next Door was sort of dealt a rough hand and right from the get go their singer/guitarist let everyone know that he was upset. I understand his frustration with being the last band and noticing that half the venue has disappeared since the start of the show. Yes, bands should encourage their friends to stick around and support all the acts, but you can’t let that get to you. The Ghost Next Door seemed like they had a very atypical sound that I am not going to try and classify. The music varied from hard rock to heavy metal, which allowed for them to craft very progressive and diverse sounding pieces. The band’s singer/guitarist also said he was sick and I could tell during certain vocal parts, but he soldiered on through each song. Again, I feel bad about the crowd leaving early, but you can't let that get to you when you still have people there watching you.

The Ghost Next Door

  How do I wrap this concert review up? One recommendation is...people...stick around if you can for the entire show! That behavior is extremely obnoxious. Next recommendation is about time management...bands should know how long to perform and the stage manager should be keeping a close eye on that too. Aside from my couple recommendations, it was a solid show for the most part and there are definitely some talented bands in Northern Californian who I recommend people check out. I truly give credit to all the bands who preformed, especially the ones who were dealing with illness, or had a member for the time being on the disabled list. Looking forward, Seventh Sun Records is going to hopefully build off this experience and put together another kick ass metal show for all the die hard headbanging fanatics.

Concert Review: Nebulous, Eye for I, Scrape the Earth and More

Nebulous

    Sonoma County is full of extremely talented metal and hardcore bands, with new bands debuting at almost every other show it seems. Such was the case for Saturday night’s show at the Phoenix Theater with a list of solid up and coming talent looking to make their presence known. 

    Besides Scrape the Earth who I have seen before live, the rest of the bill featured acts who I would be seeing for my first time. Correction, I actually saw Ashes Ashes last year, but they went by another name. Another interesting point to bring up about this show is that besides ONI, the rest of the bands who played were from the local area. I do believe this made for a strong local gathering and the turnout definitely reflected that in the end. 

    Starting the show off was locals Ashes Ashes who should not be confused with the David Bowie cover band, “Ashes to Ashes.” I saw this group about a year ago at the Phoenix and they were going by a different name. Anyway, there set was decent for a young up and coming band. They seemed more comfortable onstage this time so maybe the name change helped. Their drummer really pounded the crap out of his kit and the overall drum sounded good during their set. The riffs are not horrible by any means, but I would like to see more dynamics in the riffs and maybe add another guitarist to fill out the sound. The band’s singer did a decent job and will grow into a stronger performer with more live shows. For an opener they did the job you could say and I am sure will improve as they get more live practice under their belt. 

    Next up was Nebulous, who would be playing live for the first time. Well, I do think they picked an optimal night to play live for the first time in front of an audience such as this one. Their sound is definitely more my cup of tea with a very raw old school nineties death metal vibe that at times attempts to break into the progressive death metal world. I could hear influences like Death, Nocturnus and Obituary along with some thrash at times. At first you could tell the band was trying to find their comfort zone onstage with the first song, but once they were locked in the young musicians delivered without fear. The band’s singer had a strong old school style death growl that really impressed me when unleashing the band’s brutal lyrics. I swear you cannot find too many good death metal singers these days who can truly capture that old school nature, so I think that is something going for them. Also, the guitar section of the band had quite a few very traditional sinister style riffs along with moments of top notch guitar shredding. Drumming was also quite solid, especially for this style of music and I feel that in time the drummer has the potential to really convey that technical presence behind the kit. Overall, for a young band playing their first show, you could not ask for anything more. Welcome to community guys and keep cranking out those riffs of cyclopean terror from realms of beyond. 

    After Nebulous finished, the next band started getting ready for their set. Infex is a group of older rock and metal dudes who have that true passion for metal. They actually sent me a CD when I was doing my radio show and I even think I put one of their stickers up on the Ksun door. Speaking of their set, the band delivered a crushing performance that featured some wicked riffs and even started a few pits. Singer and guitarist Jack Childs was really performing with great levels of ferocity and knew how to interact with the ravenous headbangers. My favorite song during their set was without question, “Killing For Jesus.” It has that mean sounding classic thrash vibe that reminds me of bands like Slayer, Exodus, Sacred Reich and EvilDead. Infex did not disappoint and I hope to see them more often live. 

    Fourth up was Nuclear Tempest who from what I gathered was reuniting after taking a break. Well, they seemed to be shaking off the cobwebs and their set was fairly decent. I was not digging the sound at times and the cliché breakdown riffs just sounded dull and uncreative. Plus, when I see people trying to do the karate in the pit type stuff I just cover my head in disappointment. I will say the band could jam out some strong riff sections at times and the guitarist and vocalist who did the clean vocals had an impressive clean vocal delivery. I commend them for getting back together and returning to the stage, but it was just not my type of music. 

    Out of all the bands, ONI, happened to be the only group not from around the Sonoma County. They were from the Cayman Islands and decided to make the long journey out. Also, I hear they are playing Knotfest this year and will be opening for Children of Bodom, Exmortus and Abbath on an upcoming tour. I was intrigued to hear how they would sound, especially if they would be opening up for one of my favorite metal musicians...the mighty Abbath...who I actually saw perform in April of this year. Well, ONI right away had me scratching my head when I saw the band bring out a xylophone. From what I read they played “progressive metal” and having a xylophone was without question something I have yet to come across in the metal world. To be honest, the riffs were not band, but nothing I haven’t heard before. I think the vocals would have been better if they did not keep changing from growl vocals to clean vocals. The clean vocals sounded whinny at times and just did not fit in my opinion. They are a decent band that can definitely appeal to a certain type of metal fan, however, I was not really digging it. 

ONI

    Exiting the stage faster than a millionaire moving to the Cayman Islands to avoid taxes, ONI dispersed and Scrape the Earth started their set of metal mayhem. I think this is the fourth time I have seen Scrape the Earth and I always find myself saying that the band keeps raising the bar. Drummer Nick Pater is the member who seriously plays his heart out behind the kit and is one of the areas top drummers. Also, bassist Matt Lasserre and guitarist Forrest Dang play with great passion and have good stage presence. The songs sounded very tight during their set and I can hear improvement as they keep playing. I still want to hear more leads thrown into the mix, but the riffs are without question unleashing brutal punch after brutal punch. 

    The final act of the night would be, Eye for I, who happened to be releasing their demo that night. To my surprise people were not just sticking around for this local act, but you had people showing up right before their set to support them. Damn! I have been to shows where the headliner unfortunately lost part of the crowd due to the bill being too long, or the people left after seeing their friends play. Good thing to know that there are people in the community who display such loyalty and are not like those opinionated black metal elitists. Speaking of music style, Eye for I was quite a pleasant surprise and really the wild card band that night. The entire band was full of highly talented musicians who knew how to play their instruments. Plus, this is what I call true progressive hard rock/metal and not that metalcore rubbish that masquerades itself around claiming to be progressive. The band’s singer/guitarist I must point out has an amazing vocal delivery and could really inject emotion into the music. It was nice to hear a band that had some thought out arrangements and creative songwriting skills. I was impressed and some of the people around me were also giving their nods of approval, so we can all agree Eye for I did a good job closing out the night. 

    I think this show was good for two reasons: 1. Some of the young local talent was able to showcase what they have to offer, 2. There was a decent amount of people who came out in support of their friends. I like seeing shows like this and believe giving the young bands more opportunities to play is needed to keep the scene growing. Also, diversity is important to have on a bill. For example, Nebulous and Eye for I are different in style, but both have promising futures and are young passionate acts looking to spread their music to more potential listeners. Seeing bands like them on a bill is something that I hope to see more of in the future. There you have it folks, another night of metal recapped at the Phoenix Theater...and to think, no black metal elitists will be complaining after I publish this review...You have to appreciate those little things in life I tell you...