http://www.gregie.com/neil/words Sun, 16 Nov 2008 16:04:30 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Under Eden: Almost-melodic death metal from the Twin Cities. Nothing especially Heathen about them, but they were a solid local opener. Seems like there is a much better local talent pool here than in Chicago, or the HC guys just do a good job of not booking shit. ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/11/15/heathen-crusade-iii-day-two/ Grand Demise of Civilization: Started with a really clever military riff/rhythm. Nothing else in the set lived up to that riff, but it was still quite good. All fast deathened black metal, and touches of those military beats continued through the set. Good players all around, particularly ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/11/14/heathen-crusade-night-1/ Starting just after the end of the first night of the Wicker Park Fest, this show finally sold out with the walk-up attendance. I was actually surprised that it took that long to sell out, but I guess the fact that Isis would be headlining the Wicker Park Fest ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/07/26/isis-dub-trio-subterranean/ For the first time in well over a year, I rode the L into the city. They finally have most of the slow zones eliminated on the Blue Line, so what used to be like an hour took less than 35 minutes, way faster than traffic. Yay! ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/07/14/at-the-gates-darkest-hour-municipal-waste-house-of-blues/ First, the venue: this show was held in the Stan Mansion, a 1920s greystone in Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood that was formerly a Masonic Temple. Not quite Bruce Wayne's house, but awfully close. On a tree-lined boulevard and surrounded by greenery, it's the last place you'd expect a ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/06/19/mucca-pazza-baby-teeth-chandeliers-the-mansion/ I've been to 185 concerts in my life, and only three of them had been at arenas/amphitheaters with assigned seating. Even at general admission shows that have seating available, I simply can't enjoy a band's performance while I'm sitting down. The last assigned-seating concert I went to was ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/06/11/iron-maiden-allstate-arena/ When I arrived and saw the "empty" stage, I didn't know where the members of Shearwater would fit, since it was already jam-packed with instruments. But somehow the 5 members squeezed onstage, and throughout their set, no fewer than 15 different instruments were played. Every member played at least three ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/05/12/clinic-shearwater-the-empty-bottle/ Unlike the previous two nights, I showed up a bit later, around 7:30. This is because I knew that two scheduled bands, Chaoswave and The Autumn Offering wouldn't be playing. However, I had no idea if and how the schedule would be changing, or if any bands would ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/05/03/powerfest-night-2-the-pearl-room/ Like the night before, I managed to time my arrival right near the 6:30 start. This time, there were even more people streaming towards the doors, with half of them wearing Iced Earth shirts, so it was pretty clear even before entering the building what this night would be ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/05/02/powerfest-night-1-the-pearl-room/ I arrived right around the 6:30 start time to see plenty of others streaming in from the parking lot. When I tried to pick up my will-call ticket, they couldn't find it, which always gives you a bit of a shot in the pit of your stomach. But ... http://www.gregie.com/neil/words/2008/05/01/paganfest-the-pearl-room/