Attended a metal gig at the State Theatre in Pretoria of all places, on Thursday evening.
Attendance was pretty low, but I understand it was the first time they've arranged one f these shows, and as usual the bands probably expected the organizers to do all the promo.
'All Forlorn' played first, core is not my style baby, and having seen them twice before, I enjoyed this performance best, probably because their vocalist was missing! I cant stand the metalcore mono-bark vocals. They had good energy, and the drummer has seriously improved a lot since I first saw them in October.
Second was Warthane. I saw them 2 years ago and thought, "dubel K, midel A". They took the stage and I was rather surprised. Correct me if I'm wrong, the only member I recognize from the last show is the vocalist, and in my opinion the change of members has been a serious upgrade, especially the drummer. Their performance was tight and well rehearsed. Their departure from stage was a low point, as they had a bit of a 'bugger you' attitude about them at this point.
The last band was supposed to be Chromium, but for some reason Agro took the stage. As anyone in the metal scene, I've seen them ad-nausium over the years, they're the self proclaimed premier South African metal band, headlining every festival and gig at a dive near you. I remember arguments backstage at a gig at the Don in Vanderbijl in 1998, Agro throwing their toys because they're supposed to play last(1am), then proceeding to spray beer all over everyone's gear (not cool). They seem to have tried every style of metal over the years, which makes their set sound more like a bunch of covers than a coherent set. They too had 2 new members since I last saw them with Ensiferum, not to mention the drummer.
Personally I would love an opportunity to play at this venue, and I would also go back and see bands. The sound was not great, but it was far better than most gigs I've attended of late, including Ensiferum at Cool Runnings. The lighting was really cool, I have seldom seen bands perform like that, and I could only imagine its because of the atmosphere the lights provide. For a show at a acoustically treated theater venue, the sound was seriously sub par, and will need serious attention, but I think this could be the start of something great.
Attendance was pretty low, but I understand it was the first time they've arranged one f these shows, and as usual the bands probably expected the organizers to do all the promo.
'All Forlorn' played first, core is not my style baby, and having seen them twice before, I enjoyed this performance best, probably because their vocalist was missing! I cant stand the metalcore mono-bark vocals. They had good energy, and the drummer has seriously improved a lot since I first saw them in October.
Second was Warthane. I saw them 2 years ago and thought, "dubel K, midel A". They took the stage and I was rather surprised. Correct me if I'm wrong, the only member I recognize from the last show is the vocalist, and in my opinion the change of members has been a serious upgrade, especially the drummer. Their performance was tight and well rehearsed. Their departure from stage was a low point, as they had a bit of a 'bugger you' attitude about them at this point.
The last band was supposed to be Chromium, but for some reason Agro took the stage. As anyone in the metal scene, I've seen them ad-nausium over the years, they're the self proclaimed premier South African metal band, headlining every festival and gig at a dive near you. I remember arguments backstage at a gig at the Don in Vanderbijl in 1998, Agro throwing their toys because they're supposed to play last(1am), then proceeding to spray beer all over everyone's gear (not cool). They seem to have tried every style of metal over the years, which makes their set sound more like a bunch of covers than a coherent set. They too had 2 new members since I last saw them with Ensiferum, not to mention the drummer.
Personally I would love an opportunity to play at this venue, and I would also go back and see bands. The sound was not great, but it was far better than most gigs I've attended of late, including Ensiferum at Cool Runnings. The lighting was really cool, I have seldom seen bands perform like that, and I could only imagine its because of the atmosphere the lights provide. For a show at a acoustically treated theater venue, the sound was seriously sub par, and will need serious attention, but I think this could be the start of something great.
