Dethklok, Mastodon, Converge and High On Fire Concert Review
About.com Rating
There are a ton of combinations that seem awkward when put together: peanut butter and tuna fish; chocolate and scrambled eggs; Kid Rock and Pamela Anderson. So when it was announced that Mastodon would tour alongside Dethklok, there were a few eyebrows raised in the metal community. It is a strange pairing to say the least, but at Philadelphia’s Electric Factory on November 1, 2009 the nonbelievers were cast aside, as the two bands put on a hell of a show.
Backed by the sludge/doom griminess of High On Fire and the hardcore antics of Converge, the eccentric lineup delivered a great show on a chilly Sunday evening.
High On Fire
The Californian trio has been around for over a decade, but has only recently gained momentum with their 2007 album Death Is This Communion. Their half-hour set was jam-packed with stoner riffs, pulsing bass, and powerful, tank-like drumming. The younger crowd took a while to open up to the band, but the pit action heated up by the end of their set. The band also played a new song from their upcoming album due out in February, “Frost Hammer,” which was well-received by the audience.
Converge
The raucousness began the moment vocalist Jacob Bannon stepped foot onto the stage. The band brought an aggressive energy that was missing from the rest of the bands that night. Bannon was a madman on stage, throwing his mike into the crowd and flaring his arms wildly, a mist of sweat permeating with every movement. The band ripped through songs from all eras of their career, including “Worms Will Feed/Rats Will Feast” and the title track from the recently-released Axe To Fall and “The Broken Vow” from 2001’s Jane Doe.
Mastodon
The band played Crack The Skye from front to back to perfection. Each note, melody and solo was played exactly as it sounded on the studio version. The vocals, on the other hand, were a mixed bag. Bassist Troy Sanders and guitarist Brent Hinds traded off harsh and clean vocals, but struggled at times to reach the higher notes. Drummer Brann Dailor was the best of the bunch, handling complex fills and soaring notes at the same time. It was a feat that only someone as talented as Dailor can handle.
The band also played a small set of obscure songs from their back catalog. While hits like “Blood & Thunder” or “The Wolf Is Loose” were skipped over, hearing the band tear through older material was fantastic. The highlights were songs from Remission, “Where Strides The Behemoth” and “Mother Puncher,” which sounded as fresh as it did when it was released back in 2002.
Dethklok
There are some metal fans out there that scoff at a cartoon band closing the show over Mastodon, but Dethklok delivered a brutally funny show. While they only played for less than an hour, Brendon Small and company gave the loyal fans all the old favorites, including “Duncan Hills Coffee Jingle” and “Thunderhorse,” plus a few new ones from Dethalbum II. Each song was accompanied by a video that played in the background. There were skits that were interspersed into the set, mocking their live show, mosh pits, and the metal culture in general.
The only issue was that Small’s vocals were low in the mix, making it hard to distinguish the lyrics. Other than that, the rest of the set was flawless, and the crowd went bonkers with every song. Gene Hoglan is an absolute monster on the drums and the back-up band supporting Small did a stellar job with the source material.
