Dillinger Escape Plan/The Faceless/Royal Thunder – Ace Of Spades, Sacramento, CA 5/13
By Jeffrey Easton/Sasha Bohatch
Aggression took center stage as Dillinger Escape Plan rolled into Sacramento ready to set loose every inch of hell they could find. Having just released the masterful One Of Us Is The Killer, they had more than enough of a reason to tear the club apart. This tour’s intensity is what the fans needed and the diversity is what made it interesting from my point of view. Too many tours come out with sound alike bands but there is no comparing Royal Thunder to The Faceless or to DEP, period. From the doom laden sounds of Royal Thunder to the absolute maniacal screams emanating from DEP’s Greg Puciato, this was a freak show from first note to last.
Royal Thunder is out in support of CVI, a dark brew of sinister doom belted out by the ethereal Mlny Parsonz and her gut wrenching vocals backed by the confident Josh Weaver and Evan Diprima. Live, they bring CVI to life by concentrating on the emotions of the record and with stunning tracks like Black Water Vision, Shake And Shift, No Good, Drown and Whispering World the fans got the feel of what the band is truly about. It wasn’t the aggression, it was the passion that they displayed that had the most power in their set as Mlny gave every inch of what she had to the audience. When they were done they were a sweaty mess, drained of energy but at the same time the fans gave it right back.
The Faceless were another entity and they had their own cult of fans there blowing their minds to see their technical heroes put it together on stage. The Faceless are technical geniuses with more talent per member that some bands have put together and they went out of their way to show that to those bowing at their feet. Even though Michael “Machine” Keene is the only original member he keeps the level of musicianship around him at mind blowing levels and as they delivered their last record, Autotheism, to the frothing fans, you could tell this unit had gelled. The three movements of Autotheist: Create, Emancipate, Deconsecrate as well as Accelerated Evolution displayed the brilliance of the new record as well as Michael’s deft fingers and gifted vocals as he was augmented by Geoffrey Ficco’s adrenaline pounding brutal vox. For those who think The Faceless are all brutality, you have not dug into this band enough, imagine Opeth combined with Athiest, in my opinion.
Now was the time for the headliner, let the mayhem commence. Whenever Dillinger Escape Plan hit a stage, there is going to be a rabid pit, blood spilt and security everywhere. The fans are into the band and the band is likewise. The interaction between the band and the other side of the barricade is as intense as their set. Opening is the jaggedly relentless Prancer from One Of Is The Killer and the floor became dangerous. From there they hit the old shit hard with Calculating Infinity, Room Full Of Eyes, Milk Lizard as well as 43% Burnt and When I lost My Bet. As much as the music is a part of their show, Greg’s undying reliance on the crowd is what is mostly noticed, he wants the crowd to be into them so he lays his life on the line so to speak for the audience. Witnessing him dropping from the 15 foot high speaker’s right into the crowd is a measure of confidence that the crowd loves you and that they do. The music came fast and furious as this band is notorious for having high caliber musicians to deliver the mania as they lit their set on fire. I will point out that Greg told the sound tech to turn it up to punish the crowd and it got so loud I could “feel” it as well as hear it. It was intense.
Official DEP Site
Official The Faceless Site
Official Royal Thunder Site
By Jeffrey Easton/Sasha Bohatch
Aggression took center stage as Dillinger Escape Plan rolled into Sacramento ready to set loose every inch of hell they could find. Having just released the masterful One Of Us Is The Killer, they had more than enough of a reason to tear the club apart. This tour’s intensity is what the fans needed and the diversity is what made it interesting from my point of view. Too many tours come out with sound alike bands but there is no comparing Royal Thunder to The Faceless or to DEP, period. From the doom laden sounds of Royal Thunder to the absolute maniacal screams emanating from DEP’s Greg Puciato, this was a freak show from first note to last.
Royal Thunder is out in support of CVI, a dark brew of sinister doom belted out by the ethereal Mlny Parsonz and her gut wrenching vocals backed by the confident Josh Weaver and Evan Diprima. Live, they bring CVI to life by concentrating on the emotions of the record and with stunning tracks like Black Water Vision, Shake And Shift, No Good, Drown and Whispering World the fans got the feel of what the band is truly about. It wasn’t the aggression, it was the passion that they displayed that had the most power in their set as Mlny gave every inch of what she had to the audience. When they were done they were a sweaty mess, drained of energy but at the same time the fans gave it right back.
The Faceless were another entity and they had their own cult of fans there blowing their minds to see their technical heroes put it together on stage. The Faceless are technical geniuses with more talent per member that some bands have put together and they went out of their way to show that to those bowing at their feet. Even though Michael “Machine” Keene is the only original member he keeps the level of musicianship around him at mind blowing levels and as they delivered their last record, Autotheism, to the frothing fans, you could tell this unit had gelled. The three movements of Autotheist: Create, Emancipate, Deconsecrate as well as Accelerated Evolution displayed the brilliance of the new record as well as Michael’s deft fingers and gifted vocals as he was augmented by Geoffrey Ficco’s adrenaline pounding brutal vox. For those who think The Faceless are all brutality, you have not dug into this band enough, imagine Opeth combined with Athiest, in my opinion.
Now was the time for the headliner, let the mayhem commence. Whenever Dillinger Escape Plan hit a stage, there is going to be a rabid pit, blood spilt and security everywhere. The fans are into the band and the band is likewise. The interaction between the band and the other side of the barricade is as intense as their set. Opening is the jaggedly relentless Prancer from One Of Is The Killer and the floor became dangerous. From there they hit the old shit hard with Calculating Infinity, Room Full Of Eyes, Milk Lizard as well as 43% Burnt and When I lost My Bet. As much as the music is a part of their show, Greg’s undying reliance on the crowd is what is mostly noticed, he wants the crowd to be into them so he lays his life on the line so to speak for the audience. Witnessing him dropping from the 15 foot high speaker’s right into the crowd is a measure of confidence that the crowd loves you and that they do. The music came fast and furious as this band is notorious for having high caliber musicians to deliver the mania as they lit their set on fire. I will point out that Greg told the sound tech to turn it up to punish the crowd and it got so loud I could “feel” it as well as hear it. It was intense.
Official DEP Site
Official The Faceless Site
Official Royal Thunder Site
