Stabbing the Drama
Monday night I had the pleasure of seeing the Swedish heavy metal band Soilwork live in concert. The venue was a 200 person club that was probably about the size of my basement, which isn’t saying much at all. While I had fun, the experience reminds me why I don’t really go to club shows anymore.
My wife and I arrived at 7pm when the doors opened. The bouncer verified my online ticket purchase, and my wife and I nabbed our seat for the evening. We watched the other patrons trickle in, small groups of two and three, mostly young, mostly dressed in black. As I grow older I continue to become more painfully aware of how I’m becoming the old guy at shows, even though I’m only 29.
After about a half hour, an old friend of mine joined us and we caught up on old times. We’ve both dropped pretty completely off of each others’ radar, and catching up was nice. We chatted for about an hour when the first band took the stage.
Hailing from Iowa City, IA, was Destrophy (WWW | MySpace). I’ve followed this band for about 4 years now, and am continually amazed that they have yet to be picked up by a major label. The lead singer is quite photogenic, can growl like a demon or hit the high notes like an opera singer, and plays the guitar with amazing skill. He is obviously the driving force of the band. The bassist is the only other original member of the band, which has undergone 4-5 personnel changes in the last 2 years, but he’s quite good, and has an excellent stage presence. The secondary guitar player used to play in Stone Sour, and joined Destrophy last fall. The drummer is also better than competent, but I’m not sure who he is, and this is the first time I’ve ever seen him.
This band is amazing live. They have such energy, and some of the most passionate fans I’ve ever seen. Their set lasted 30-35 minutes, and it really set the audience on fire. Ever since they lost their keyboard player in 2005 they’ve used a backing track, which while it does the job, it doesn’t have the impact that live keyboards provide. As Destrophy was tearing down my wife professed her new-found appreciation for the band, which is high praise indeed, since she mainly listens to country/western (ugh). She had also developed a crush on the lead singer.
After a brief interlude Eddie Buzzard took to the stage. I went into their set cold, but with an open mind. The only thing I knew about them was one of my co-workers at a previous job had played with them for a while before deciding that working was more important. It turned out that they were a rather uninspired thrash/grindcore band, that while having some potential, hadn’t really developed it. Their songs were basically cookie monster vocals screamed over chugging, detuned guitars. The problem was, all of their songs sounded the same. The only bright spot was their drummer, who was way too talented for the band. The way he worked his kit put me in mind of the drummers from In Flames or the Children of Bodom. He had a double bass drum setup, and he just annihilated us with them.
About three songs into Eddie Buzzard’s set, I wandered back to the merchandise area, and got the two CD’s my wife had bought from Destrophy autographed. The guys from the band were cool, and I think I’m going to take my digital camera when I go see them again in two weeks. After about 10 minutes of chatting with them, I had to excuse myself, since my wife isn’t really equipped to defend herself with a mosh pit going on around her. Girl just can’t take a punch 
After I got back Eddie Buzzard chugged through another three songs, and then made way for Soilwork.
When they entered the club to take the stage, the members of Soilwork walked through the crowd, about three feet in front of me. Those guys were big. Not muscular big, but tall big. I swear the shortest one was about 6′ 3″. With long hair and beards, half of the band looked reminiscent of the Vikings that were their forebears. The rest of the band favored the more practical shaved head.
From the first chords, Soilwork came to rape our women and burn our villiage, musically speaking.The guitars were soaring and urgent, the drums thunderous, and the keyboards injected swirling harmonies that wrapped around the other instruments and enhanced them at the same time. The last concert where I was witness to such awe inspiring musicianship was when I saw the Children of Bodom two years ago.
The first song was off of their new album, but I’m not familiar with the title. Their second song was the single off of their last album “Stabbing the Drama.” Four more songs followed, all new material, all impressive. Unfortunately by that point I had been up for 17 hours straight, my wife for 15, and the beer was taking its toll on her, as the smoke was on me. Reluctantly we left, but not before being witness to a unique experience - that of sonic Vikings conquering our sleepy town.
Destrophy - Why I Hate Goodbye
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