There are many ways of showing your appreciation of live music. There are the nodders and the fist pumpers, but at High on Fire at the Espy last Wednesday, spotted was this scribe’s very first ‘pulsing power palm’ – a slow shake of the upheld arm as though emerging from a grave in a cheesy horror film.
This particular appreciation style was given to Protest the Hero, the second band on the metal extravaganza that was Sidewave, a chance to catch some of the incredible bands playing at Soundwave.
Protest the Hero were actually kinda bad, it seems like progressive metal is all about noodling guitar and baseball caps these days although front man Rody Walker’s lost voice meant he struggled to deliver much more than a hoarse and broken rendition of what was surely meant to be more imposing. He knew it too, with comments like “I sound like a wrestler on Valium.”
Trash Talk hit the stage next with a very interactive show – Lee Spielman and his ocean spray of mongrel hair was an unchallenged master of the stage dive and had all the tricks of audience encouragement. Ably assisted by the longest mic cord on earth he tumbled off stage and strode towards the bar on the side of the Gershwin room. Jumping up on to the bar he screamed down at the adoring crowd, diving in once more to crush with the best of them.
Fans surged to watch him in his wandering ways – staring down the punters and rubbing shoulders with his black-clad brethren. Weaving his way back to stage, he commanded everyone to run to the back of the room “to fuck shit up” which no one dared deny.
The real highlight of the night was seeing High on Fire, and the sudden decrease in personal space confirmed it. Everyone was there to see the seminal metal masters and they did not disappoint.
Matt Pike is such a great performer to watch, with the cheekiest grin in doom metal. Sans shirt, his guitar wielded like a weapon, he would stare at the back of the bridge and proceed to shred, moving forward to deliver his growling croon and stepping back and nodding to the crowd – pursing his lips when he knew we were enjoying it.
Bassist Jeff Matz had a mop-headed sincerity and nodded in that absorbed way that bassists do, as though musing on a deep dark philosophy whilst Des Kensel’s relentless erratic-perfect drumming tied it all together. ‘Devilution’, the first track from Blessed Black Wings evoked a mad frenzied response from the crowd, who were like putty in High on Fire’s collective grasp.
Songs like ‘Turk’, with its rapidfire drumming and guitar and bass in perfect simpatico saw Pike grin maniacally – and his vocals – as though uttered from a medieval turret on mountain. After seeing Pike play last year in Sleep, it was great to see him growl, a natural extension beyond his incredible guitar work.
They showed they weren’t afraid to play their early stuff and ‘Hung Drawn and Quartered’ from their 2002 album Surrounded by Thieves had everyone headbanging in unison.
But it was ‘Bastard Samurai’ that truly killed it, the sheer energy and presence and Pike with his sweaty hair running like black rivulets down his face was a raging endorsement of playing loud, playing live, and like you really mean it.
– Anaya Latter
