\m/(~_~)\m/ Bring the Metal! \m/(~_~)\m/

Now this I can fully get behind. Take two guys from Horrendous, mix with a couple other veteran folks and boom, interesting music.

d4m0 wrote:

Has anyone here started going to concerts again? I've been very hesitant, but I did pick up tickets to a couple small-ish shows where they are requiring proof of vaccination and the wearing of masks for entry. We'll see how it goes. I'll likely get myself covid-tested in the days afterwards just to be sure.

One is Blood Incantation in December, and the other is Wolves in the Throne Room in January. I absolutely cannot wait - these will be my first shows since just before the pandemic.

Not yet. I bought a floor ticket to see Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, but then my family and I were passing a cold around, likely thanks to the kids being back at school in person. Also missed the Gatecreeper show when they came through town, wasn't feeling great then either.

The next show hitting Houston that I would definitely expect to attend (punk band Teenage Bottlerocket) isn't for another month, but I definitely intend to make it unless something changes. I'm fully vaxxed and I'm itching to do normal things again.

Looking WAY into the future, Revocation is touring with Cannibal Corpse, so I'll likely see one of my faves and get to see one of the titans of death metal for the first time. Revocation is only third highest on the bill, but what can you do.

I’m waiting until the pandemic is over. At this point that might mean waiting until an annual vaccine similar to the flu shot is available for COVID. It would be cool to get both COVID and flu in one annual mRNA jab. Or two jabs if necessary. That got off topic quickly.

I've been really excited about that The Silver album too. It just came out today in fact. I'll be cranking it up shortly!

I'm also fully vaxxed and really itching to do normal things again. Going to concerts, even if they are small ones where I have to wear a mask the entire time, I think will do wonders for my mental health. Small shows are my favorite kind anyway. I agree Rawk, getting a double covid and flu annual shot would be amazing.

Wilderun got picked up by Century Media. Kind of a weird band for CM, but glad they're getting a chance to reach a wider audience. Video shows guys playing mandolin and steel guitar, but I can't really hear them in the song. Shame. Guess that's the Century Media effect.

Outdoor concerts, absolutely. Indoor concerts ... not for me at the moment. But I've also got two unvaxxed kids at home, which is my main concern. Covid doesn't bother me at this point, even if my immunity is wearing off. I'll still not likely end up in the hospital or die and that's really my main concern.

I bought tickets to Every Time I Die (ok, so technically Underoath with ETID, Voyeurist - I'm going for the middle band) for the end of March and I'm not feeling at all great about the prospects of actually going given personal life and the ongoing insanity. I also have (rescheduled) floor tickets to Rage Against the Machine for later next year and wouldn't go if things were as they are now.

We did actually take our older girls to see Wicked a couple of weeks ago because the venue and broadway series is VERY strict about health protocols - ushers were checking masks frequently in the crowd, and the crowd/demographic was 99% already "there" anyhow. That went great. I don't trust these other venues and crowds, however, to keep me safe to the degree I'd work to keep them safe.

Wildly off-topic, but speaking of the outdoors and mental health, me, TheWalt, and mudderfudder started playing Disc Golf as a fun way to hang out during the pandemic and it has been awesome. The game is super fun, especially with fun people, naturally. Highly recommended. Metal-related because lots of people listen to music on bluetooth speakers while they play?

I might consider concerts after the end of this month when I get my booster shot. But even then, I doubt I will travel for one, which probably means no concert unless something interesting happens to make a Central coast stop on their way between LA and SF.

Speaking of ETID, Radical drops Friday. Reviews are just starting to trickle in, but they're pretty glowing in case anyone else here is a fan. Will Putney's producing again with those crushing guitar tones.

"Speaking of"? You posted about them five days ago!

Off topic
I’m going to Phish on Saturday but I’m feeling uncomfortable about being in a crowd. At least it’s outdoor. I’ll be rocking the N95 to the break of dawn.

The overlap between hippies and anti-vaxxers is strong. I'd be scared.

garion333 wrote:

The overlap between hippies and anti-vaxxers is strong. I'd be scared.

I’m terrified

Take a bunch of vaccine doses and tell people it's oxy.

AMG accepted me into their n00b program where I'll get to do a review or two for em and see how things work out. I'm honestly a little scared as most metal has been underwhelming me to a great extent, oh, since the pandemic began.

garion333 wrote:

AMG accepted me into their n00b program where I'll get to do a review or two for em and see how things work out. I'm honestly a little scared as most metal has been underwhelming me to a great extent, oh, since the pandemic began.

I can help. Is it 50 minutes of atonal terror? 5.0.

*Legion* wrote:
garion333 wrote:

AMG accepted me into their n00b program where I'll get to do a review or two for em and see how things work out. I'm honestly a little scared as most metal has been underwhelming me to a great extent, oh, since the pandemic began.

I can help. Is it 50 minutes of atonal terror? 5.0.

I still find it hilarious that folks thought playing the two new Portal records at the same time was what they were meant to do.

5.0. Would review again!

garion333 wrote:

I still find it hilarious that folks thought playing the two new Portal records at the same time was what they were meant to do.

That's beyond even my level of chaotic noise enjoyment.

Ah well. I look forward to your AMG reviews. I'll have to actually log into the comments area to hurl insults at all your opinions and prose.

garion333 wrote:

...most metal has been underwhelming me to a great extent, oh, since the pandemic began.

Same.

garion333 wrote:

AMG accepted me into their n00b program where I'll get to do a review or two for em and see how things work out. I'm honestly a little scared as most metal has been underwhelming me to a great extent, oh, since the pandemic began.

Congrats! I'll definitely check out your reviews when they get posted. I've enjoyed quite a bit this year, but I think our favorite subgenres differ.

Here's a great one from a new supergroup out of Sweden. I can only wish to play a guitar this good.

And if you haven't heard Carcass's new album, you're missing out:

Cool.

Toehider rules.

garion333 wrote:

AMG accepted me into their n00b program where I'll get to do a review or two for em and see how things work out.

Congratulations! That's great!

garion333 wrote:

I'm honestly a little scared as most metal has been underwhelming me to a great extent, oh, since the pandemic began.

Not even the new Archspire or the new Dvne albums?

Especially the new Archspire. My goodness.

This hurts my brain, I can't imagine how hard it is to play the song at different speed from what you're used to hearing/playing over the past 30 years.

That's nothing. With Lars drumming, the real Metallica never knew what speed they'd be playing the song.

Blind Guardian finally released a new single, with a stealth reveal that their next album will be landing next September. So, unfortunately, not as soon as I'd hope but these guys never rush a work, and it shows.

That said, I always have an adjustment period with their newer works. However, I think I realized an issue I've had with their latest albums that I thought was more attributed to a continued attempt to balance of what "traditional" fans want and then more operatic fans want and etc. Listening to the drums in this one in particular, you can tell every instrument is fed into a computer and "cleaned up" so as to remove all trace that it was even recorded by real people in a human room. Not to say that it sounds completely artificial or even "auto-tuned", but it's simply too clean.

This one has a rough start for me, but I certainly like the latter portions of the song. Sounds like it's following up on the prior concept album "narratively", so I'm curious to see where this one will go. If nothing else, Blind Guardian doesn't like to make the same album twice (much to the chagrin of me, wanting an album that sounds more like Nightfall in Middle-Earth again).

They're on Nuclear Blast, so if the song sounds computized but not ear bleeding awful then I'm okay with the sound.

And, yeah, the analog ship has sailed for most metal.

Meanwhile, death metal bands are over here competing to see who can produce the most lo-fi, recorded in a cave sounding record yet - and I'm wishing I could actually hear the individual instruments!