Octopus Overlords

I think it's real.

Weird Colorado shows. Loveland and then the Springs.

I really need to not miss them this time. And they're playing in town...so no excuse...

So here's a bit of a weird one...

I attended New Jersey Horror Con this past weekend and Ari Lehman (the guy who played kid Jason jumping out of the water in FRIDAY THE 13TH) put on a show with his band FIRST JASON. Unsuprisingly they sing heavy metal Friday the 13th-themed songs.

They were really entertaining and I got a chance to meet Ari. He's a hell of a nice guy and told us stories from shooting the sequence.

Amon Amarth, At the Gates, Arch Enemy, and Grand Magus on tour this fall. Holy shit...one hell of a lineup.

Same week as Ghost (Ghost on Sept 28, AA on Oct 3.) That's gonna be an awesome week.

i was made aware today of a concert at a local outdoor venue (Riverfront Park Aurora) featuring the remains of YES, the remains of ASIA, John Lodge of the Moody Blues, and "P" from ELP. Yeah there's a lot of cross-pollination there. Lawn seats are $29 apiece, but wife is working that night(July 6) so I'd have to bring kids. Hmmm...

Since I'll be moving to Knoxville in a month, why not.

That looks awesome. Just saw Black Stone Cherry (audio sucked) and Mastodon + Coheed & Cambria (audio and visuals were incredible for both).

In other news, just saw Tony MacAlpine, and about to see Weird Al for the third time.

I’m trying to decide if I want to pay $110 for nose bleed seats to see Guns N Roses in October. They’re a band I’ve always wanted to see, but damn that’s expensive. Especially for how variable I hear the quality of their shows can be.

Decisions, decisions...

saw Le Butcherettes the other week, and the show was fantastic. now they're opening for both the L7 and Social Distortion/Flogging Molly tours later this year. the former will not be coming here and the latter will be in September, where there's already six other shows i want to see that month (Severed Heads/Pop Will Eat Itself, Test Dept, Nitzer Ebb, Melvins/Redd Kross, Misfits/The Damned/Cro-Mags and Ghost).

also i did not anticipate the Mekons show next month selling out so early (they're playing a small-midsized rootsy venue). darn..

Le Butcherettes and L7 would be a phenomenal show!

I’ll be at Warped Tour in AC this weekend. Any other OO’ers going?

Skinypupy wrote:I’m trying to decide if I want to pay $110 for nose bleed seats to see Guns N Roses in October. They’re a band I’ve always wanted to see, but damn that’s expensive. Especially for how variable I hear the quality of their shows can be.

Decisions, decisions...

Come to Tennessee and the festival I posted above. GnR and multiple other great bands.

Xmann wrote: ↑Wed Jun 26, 2019 3:29 pm

Skinypupy wrote:I’m trying to decide if I want to pay $110 for nose bleed seats to see Guns N Roses in October. They’re a band I’ve always wanted to see, but damn that’s expensive. Especially for how variable I hear the quality of their shows can be.

Decisions, decisions...

Come to Tennessee and the festival I posted above. GnR and multiple other great bands.

Was looking at that. Not sure I can wrap my head around Ministry, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Slayer, Gojira, and Def Leppard being on the same bill.

So last night I went to a show that archaeologists and historians would appreciate. The opening act was "P" from ELP, along with the presumed-dead in the 70's Arthur Brown on vocals (bad match, but i guess Carl Palmer got his start with him in the 60's). This was followed by an aged John Lodge from The Moody Blues, who only impressed when a much younger singer accompanied him for the duet "Ride My See Saw". Next up was Asia, with "P" again on drums, as well as Geoff Downes and Steve Howe from the original lineup. The singer was only in pitch once Howe came on stage and they performed the bands hits from the first 2 albums. He also did a credible job singing ElP's Lucky Man, thankfully skipped in the opening set as Arthur Brown mangled Carn Evil 9 and Knife's Edge. It helped having Downes on synthesizer...there was actually no replacement "E" in Carl Palmer's tribute band! The coolest moment of the Asia set though was when they did "Video Killed the Radio Star" -- the first video ever on MTV and done The Buggles, featuring Geoff Downes and Trevor Rabin (another Yes alum who stayed on as a producer after his stint on Drama)

The Yes set was most interesting. Of the olden days, we had Steve Howe on guitar and...? Downes played on Drama in the late 70's, one and done, but they did do Tempus Fugit from that album which I adore. They did trot out Alan White for some songs (not all), I think just to add to his statistic as the member of Yes with the most tenure. It reminded me of the White Sox bringing out Minnie Minoso once per decade just to claim he played in 7 (I think) decades. He was not good. The rest of the band -- Squire's replacement, the drummer for most of the set, and the singer (who has been with them 8 years now!) were quite good as role player for the original members. This begged me to ask after the show -- would the band continue with a completely next-gen class of musicians? It seems they could. Howe wasn't bad but not on top of his game. The band is 51 years old, but could a completely new generation pull it off with the same cred and not be viewed as a cover band? The mortality of our rock legends of old begs an answer to this question.

Jeff V wrote: ↑Sun Jul 07, 2019 11:10 pm This begged me to ask after the show -- would the band continue with a completely next-gen class of musicians? It seems they could. Howe wasn't bad but not on top of his game. The band is 51 years old, but could a completely new generation pull it off with the same cred and not be viewed as a cover band? The mortality of our rock legends of old begs an answer to this question.

all of these types of questions were mentioned in this book i read earlier this year:



my favorite term was 'shrunkgroup' - like 'supergroup', but a new band (or continuation of an old one) formed from whatever members of other bands of the same generation are still alive.

We're gonna see David Byrne's American Utopia in September. It'll be my first concert in years. I do see 2-3 plays a year, though, so "theatrical concert" really intrigues me.

The one David Byrne show I saw was the most impressively choreographed-for-stage rock show I've ever seen. Not that I go to much of what would be considered musical theater of any kind, but this was at its core just a regular rock concert.

Jeff V wrote: ↑Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:36 pm i was made aware today of a concert at a local outdoor venue (Riverfront Park Aurora) featuring the remains of YES, the remains of ASIA, John Lodge of the Moody Blues, and "P" from ELP. Yeah there's a lot of cross-pollination there. Lawn seats are $29 apiece, but wife is working that night(July 6) so I'd have to bring kids. Hmmm...

How is that venue? Is it worth buying seats or are sight lines from the lawn decent?

Seeing BABYMETAL with Avatar followed by Kamelot with Sonata Arctica and Battle Beast 2 days later in early September. My ear drums may never forgive me.

Holy cow, the symphonic pop metal awesomeness. I see that show is coming to Atlanta, but I've decided I hate driving to Atlanta for shows, and I'm already doing it in September. And The Masquerade is the worst venue I've ever been to.

JetFred wrote: ↑Tue Jul 09, 2019 2:18 am Holy cow, the symphonic pop metal awesomeness. I see that show is coming to Atlanta, but I've decided I hate driving to Atlanta for shows, and I'm already doing it in September. And The Masquerade is the worst venue I've ever been to.

That stinks about the Atlanta venue.

Kamelot are playing at the Fillmore in Silver Spring. Not the ideal place to get to during rush hour on a weeknight, but for $20, including fees, it was hard to say no.

stimpy wrote: ↑Mon Jul 08, 2019 8:31 pm How is that venue? Is it worth buying seats or are sight lines from the lawn decent?

We weren't on the lawn -- since we knew we'd be arriving close to show time, we put up the extra $12 or so for reserved seats. They seemed to charge quite a bit more for aisle seats though, we were well positioned maybe 20 rows back and dead center. It seems the mixing box might pose some obstruction to a center view -- the lawn didn't seem to be too steep and there's a large concrete area you can plop your lawn chairs on that's in front of the lawn (similar to Millennium Park). There is a big-ass screen behind the box though and I imagine those on the lawn would be paying more attention to it over the stage. Acoustics were good, the seats in the reserved area are...odd. Like standard folding chairs, except for a back ridge that rides up your butt if you sit back too far. Spacing was not a problem though, I appreciated the leg room.

I'd say if the seat price is reasonably close (we had a promo code that made it close), go for the seats, especially if closeness behooves the show. There was some thought given to bringing my kids, and for sure we'd have been on the lawn, but my brother really didn't want the distraction and he wound up contributing some to the cost of the sitter. I'd have liked a better beer selection - it was mostly Bud products of which the best choice was Goose Island 312. Be careful where you order it from -- for some reason, the stand selling it draft in plastic cups was $1 more than those selling 16oz cans.

I got an email last night offering half-price tix for George Clinton with Parliament-Funkadelic. I've seen a version of Parliament but I've wanted to see George Clinton for about 30 years. Looks like he's retiring so I'm really glad to have my chance.

And now I see Fishbone is opening. I've never seen them either and they've been on my list forever.

Z-Corn wrote: ↑Wed Jul 10, 2019 8:56 am And now I see Fishbone is opening.

Wow, there's a name I haven't heard in ages. Didn't even know they were still around.

I just heard ads for yet another "final" Slayer tour. Haven't they done this like three times already? This one is with Primus, Ministry, and Phil Anselmo (playing Pantera songs), which is an...interesting combination of bands.

on every "Final Tour", Slayer loses a band member?

got a free ticket to Bad Religion this Sunday

also the Mekons show here became 'un-sold-out' for some reason, so i now have my ticket for that at the end of the month. it's at a kinda small rootsy vaguely country-themed venue (Tractor Tavern), which is appropriate.

hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Wed Jul 10, 2019 4:42 pm got a free ticket to Bad Religion this Sunday

They’re here tonight. I really wanted to go (haven’t seen them since 1996), but three kids soccer games squashed that idea.

super last minute decision tonight to brave 'Ballard Seafood Fest' (blech) for the free The Joy Formidable concert

Just found out Bell Witch will be here on Friday. Definitely going to check that one out.

Interested to hear how sloooooooooooow funeral doom works in a live setting.

saw Sunn 0))) once... i would say that it works pretty well.

Well, that was weird.

After sitting through two of the worst opening bands I’ve ever seen (one of which was a 6’2” bearded guy in a skintight dress stomping through the crowd screaming horrible beat poetry at the top of his lungs while being accompanied by a cello), Bell Witch played an absolutely mind blowing set.

For all of 35 minutes. Then they unplugged and just...left. We were all left standing around saying “that’s it?”

It was one of the strangest shows I’ve ever been to. Guess I’m glad it was only $10.

Going to George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic tonight.

Bonus - Fishbone is one of the opening acts!

Looking forward to Dream Theater's supposedly three-hour show.

Decided this morning that I wanted to see a concert for my birthday, so we went to the Tyr show tonight. They’re not my favorite pagan metal band (I don’t own any of their albums), but they do put on a pretty good show. “Hold the Heathen Hammer High” is always a blast live, and their new guitarist is really good.

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Sat Aug 03, 2019 2:40 am Well, that was weird.

After sitting through two of the worst opening bands I’ve ever seen (one of which was a 6’2” bearded guy in a skintight dress stomping through the crowd screaming horrible beat poetry at the top of his lungs while being accompanied by a cello), Bell Witch played an absolutely mind blowing set.

For all of 35 minutes. Then they unplugged and just...left. We were all left standing around saying “that’s it?”

It was one of the strangest shows I’ve ever been to. Guess I’m glad it was only $10.

35 minutes seems lame. Hopefully they didn't stop in the middle of a song?

Tool just announced a NA tour today.

I refuse to see them again after their last two dismal performances, but figure others might be interested.

Skinypupy wrote:Tool just announced a NA tour today.

I refuse to see them again after their last two dismal performances, but figure others might be interested.

There's a part of me that's interested, but after slogging my way through the first 30 minutes of the new album, I don't think I'll be going. What happened to writing kick-ass rock songs with structure and lyrics (like the Aenima album)? What I've heard of Fear Inoculum so far has been overly long, meandering instrumental pieces. I'm sorry, but every song being 10+ minutes with minimal singing and a lot of repetition doesn't do it for me...pretty disappointing

Squeeze and X on Monday (with some guy jumping onstage near the end of X's set - he was kinda singing along, but mostly hugging on Exene. i was like who this, but other people in the crowd were like *gasp* and got their phones out to record. i figured out eventually it was Eddie Vedder)

was going to see Pop Will Eat Itself tonight, but they couldn't get US visas in time and won't be able to make the west coast part of their tour at all, so i went down the street to see Sunn 0))) instead

*it sold out, but i found a ticket - Melvins/Redd Kross on Friday
*Test Dept on Sunday
*going to check StubHub on Saturday to see if i can possibly get cheap tickets for the Misfits (with Danzig)/The Damned/Cro-Mags/Distillers show that night. transportation to the venue will be challenging, tho.

hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Thu Sep 12, 2019 5:22 am
*going to check StubHub on Saturday to see if i can possibly get cheap tickets for the Misfits (with Danzig)/The Damned/Cro-Mags/Distillers show that night. transportation to the venue will be challenging, tho.

found upper level tickets for $27 just now, but reading reviews on White River Amphitheatre - yeaaaaah gonna pass

Maiden this Saturday night.

Seen them a couple of times and they've always been great; I just hope they hold up ok in 90+ degree heat. Those dudes are getting old.

How was the Dream Theater show? I've only seen them once and it was one of the best concerts I've ever seen. They're greatness.