It’s only fitting that rock n’ roll’s biggest partier came to the nation’s biggest party school. Iowa City was a perfect place to stop for his “Party Messiah” tour. Andrew W.K.’s concert Thursday night at Blue Moose was a testament to the fact that you don’t actually have to have any good songs to put on an incredible performance. 

 Straight Up! was the only opening band of the night. I was surprised there was only one, but I guess it would be difficult to find openers for someone like W.K., since it’s impossible to pinpoint his genre. I actually really liked Straight Up. This young pop-punk band from the Quad Cities sounded like Sum 41, (but not nearly as egotistical), with a nice edge of post-hardcore elements.

The majority of their songs were completely clean singing with catchy melodies, until their finale, which was almost entirely screaming. It threw me off a little, but vocalist Andrew Grimes actually had a good screaming voice, and I think this band could have a lot of potential if they explored experimenting with that avenue more.

Andrew W.K. usually tours with a  backing band, but this time he opted for a solo show with just his keyboard and backing music tracks… and what appeared to be a very drunk homeless man dancing and shouting on stage with him.

I was very curious to see how this one-hit-wonder was going to fill an hour set, and the product was beyond entertaining. On one hand, he really only played maybe five legitimate songs, but on the other hand he literally never stopped playing uptempo dance music, slayed an impressive keyboard jam, made an impromptu song about how great Iowa City is, and let the entire crowd come dance on stage with him and his hilarious homeless sidekick.

The experience definitely became more of a rave than a simple concert. The word “party” had to have been said more than a hundred times in his songs, but there really is no better word to describe what happened. I wish I had gotten a picture of the security gaurds’ faces when the crowd stampeded onto the stage; it was almost as funny as whatever W.K.’s colleague was doing. It’s hard to say W.K.’s performance was a good concert from a music-critic perspective, but there is no question he is a world-class entertainer incapable of putting on a lackluster show.

I had a great time despite only knowing his one hit, “Party Hard”. In case you’re unfamiliar, check it out below.

The post Show Review: Andrew W.K. @ Blue Moose 9/19 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The opening band was This Is Hell, a melodic hardcore band from Long Island. Right away I knew I would like these guys, just because vocalist Travis Reilly was wearing a “Free Randy Blythe” shirt. Randy Blythe is the vocalist of the groove metal band Lamb Of God, who is currently on trial for manslaughter charges. Long story short, he’s probably innocent. Anyway, This Is Hell did not disappoint. They brought the speed and energy of hardcore, but also had a nice edge of melody. Also, guitarist Rick Jimenez kept doing crazy jumps where he’d kick his foot higher than his head. They also demanded the crowd to form a circle pit, which is essential for any kind of heavy concert.

Despite the next band’s name, and the hilarious country songs being played as they took the stage, Job For A Cowboy is the farthest thing from country. Hailing from Glendale, Arizona, this band plays a slightly scary version of death metal. In addition to the usual low-pitched growling and aggressively heavy instrumentals, vocalist Jonny Davy likes to mix in blood-curdling screams to go with split-second instrumental shifts. I’ll admit, I was a little worried that their set would be overwhelming, but it was actually pretty cool. I especially liked their opener, “Entombment of a Machine,” as well “Knee Deep,” which has a hilarious YouTubevideo of the song synced with SpongeBob.

Los Angeles’ Terror followed. This hardcore band literally brought terror to Blue Moose, or at least the security guys. Hardcore is known for high-energy performances, but vocalist Scott Vogel, despite wearing a Nike polo and cargo shorts, brings it to the next level. He insisted that the crowd should give the security guys a challenge and make them work for their paycheck, and they did just that. Relentless crowd surfing, stage diving, moshing, and even fights ensued. He also said that it was one of the guitarist’s birthdays, so we had to get rowdier for him. Before the concert started, I wondered if the barrier and all the security was necessary, and now I see that they definitely were. After their set, I came to the conclusion that Vogel was wearing a Nike polo because they must sponsor him, considering the ridiculous amount of running and jumping he was doing.

The fourth band of the night was Buffalo’s Every Time I Die. Formed in 1998 by the Buckley brothers of Keith (vocals) and Jordan (guitar), this metalcore outfit has garnered success over their years, having their last four albums debuting in the Billboard Top 100. Unfortunately, I missed a large chunk of their set due to a non-Blue Moose employed security guy harassing me about taking pictures. From what I could hear, it sounded like Keith, who also sings for the hard rock supergroup The Damned Things with members of Anthrax and Fall Out Boy, had his vocals drowned out by the instrumentals. His screams sounded fine, but his clean singing got muffled.

The hardcore gods of Hatebreed closed out the show. From Bridgeport, Connecticut, this Grammy-nominated band put on an incredible set. Led by the ingenious Jamey Jasta, Hatebreed’s music encompasses energy, angst, thrash, melody, and hope all at the same time. Yes, they have violent riot-inducing songs like, “Everyone Bleeds Now” and “Destroy Everything,” but they also have a lot of surprisingly inspirational songs, like “This is Now,” and “Live for This.” This is the 15 year anniversary of their 1997 debut, Satisfaction Is The Death Of Desire, so they played a lot from that album, but they also made sure to play all their other hits too, like the fan-favorites “In Ashes They Shall Reap,” and encored with their anthemic “I Will Be Heard.” Even if you didn’t know any Hatebreed songs going into the concert (shame on you), you could still really get into it. Jasta sings, or actually shouts, with so much passion you can’t help but to share his emotion.

This was one of the most enjoyable concerts I have gone to in awhile. Yes, my neck hurts from consistent headbanging. Yes, my throat hurts from shouting along. Yes, my ears hurt from being abused by devastatingly loud sound. And yes, my whole body hurts from the hit-and-be-hit atmosphere of the crowd. What that says to me, is this concert kicked the butt of all other concerts.

The post Show Review: Hatebreed, Every Time I Die, Terror, Job For A Cowboy & This Is Hell @ Blue Moose 4/12 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The first band was Sweet Chariot. This trio from Iowa City kicked off the night by playing an almost all-instrumental set. In the span of about 25 minutes, there were only two shouted verses. However, the lack of vocals were compensated with great usage of cowbell. Always need more cowbell.

The next band was another Iowa City trio, Blizzard at Sea. Although their extensive songs felt a little dragged out, their slick-mustached frontman was relentless on guitar. Also, his death metal resembling screams complimented their heavy music very well. Overall, I was really impressed with this band.

Big Box followed. I recognized their drummer as the same drummer for Nerv last night here at Gabe’s, and their vocalist also plays in Supersonic Piss. These guys played a more traditional hardcore, which seemed out of place considering the other bands’ progressive style. Rather than long songs with complex instrumentals, they play short and fast songs. I’m not saying that’s bad at all, but the seemed out of their element at this concert.

The doom metal of Little Rock, Arkansas – Pallbearer was finally up. First of all, these guys looked like they’d fit right in on Duck Dynasty. Secondly, they killed it. The duel guitar solos of Devin Holt and Brett Campbell were incredible. Joseph Rowland’s bass was simply entrancing, and Mark Lierly’s drumming kept it all together. Campbell also had a surprisingly soft-spoken singing voice. In a split second, they were able to go from slow to fast, and soft to heavy. These guys have a lot of talent.

The great part about progressive metal is that the genre is home to a lot of great musicians. If they weren’t any good, they wouldn’t chose to play 10 minute long songs with intricate solos. If you have the patience for their  lengthy songs, you can be rewarded with great music.

The post Show Review: Pallbearer @ Gabe’s – 4/5/13 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The Mission Creek concert Wednesday night at Gabe’s was the epitome of punk. Each band played very fast and very loud, and gave the fans the kind of respect that one should expect from punk bands, you know, spitting, cussing, throwing cups, etc.

The opening band was Paducah, formerly known as [gluestick], from Grinnell, Iowa. This batch of young men was everything you’d want in an opening punk band; Their singer’s shouts were basically incomprehensible and their instrumentals were overwhelmed with distortion.

The second band was Iowa City’s own Nerv. I knew I would enjoy this band’s performance before they even started, strictly on the fact that their drummer had a great beard that became long enough to mesh with his raggedy hair. Even though most of their songs seemed to be about 30 seconds, they were very entertaining, aided by their vocalist’s attempts at comedy in between songs. But I guess the crowd wasn’t rowdy enough, so he took the liberty to personally start a violent mosh pit himself.

The pit only got more fierce once the local legend Slut River took the stage. Slut River, by the way, may be one of my favorite band names of all-time. This was the fourth time I’ve seen drummer Joe Ross perform (who also plays in Supersonic Piss, which is another phenomenal band name) and he always impresses me. I was also impressed with how long vocalist Anna McDermott was able to crowd surf while still singing. Despite technical difficulties with their guitar, the band put on a great show.

After three local bands, the final band to play hailed from Canada, of all places. White Lung, from Vancouver, plays a style of punk that is aggressive, yet catchy. Vocalist Mish Way was very animated throughout their performance, but managed to balance a full cup on her head for half a song, granted their songs are about two minutes long. The band pumped out their songs without much pause, and left the stage after their last song without a pause either. I thought that came off surprisingly rude, especially considering they’re Canadian, but that’s punk for ya.

If punk is your thing, this was your concert. The performers were as rambunctious as the crowd, making for a truly entertaining concert.

The post Show Review: White Lung & Slut River @ Gabe’s — 4/3/13 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

[soundslides width=”620″ height =”533″ id=”18649″]

People love concerts, and what’s not to love? Fans can arrive right at the advertised time, and get hours of entertainment. But what is often overlooked is the preparation for the concert. On the night of Sunday, March 10, KRUI put together a show at Public Space Z featuring the So So Glos, Supersonic Piss, and Huge Lewis, that started at 8 PM, but most people don’t know that the making of this show started before noon that day! The concert itself was a success, but not without the hard work of some KRUI staff.

The post The Preparation for the So So Glos, Supersonic Piss, and Huge Lewis Show appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The first band of the night was Iowa City’s own Noah. This aspiring young band was everything you would expect from an opener. It appeared as though four sixteen-year-olds were playing with a thirty-year-old vocalist, and they produced a traditional form of metalcore in their short set. Decent instrumentals complimented solid screaming and fair, clean singing.

The second band was Moral Belief, from Grand Mound, Iowa. By far the most memorable aspect of their act was their vocalist, but not because of his singing. He sported a mohawk that progressed into a rat-tail, and, like that wasn’t enough, he also had a very thick mustache. I honestly thought he was just a creepy tech guy until the rest of the band started playing and then he started to scream. Before starting their last song, he demanded that everyone must finish their drinks by the time they finished playing, and the crowd did not let them down.

San Diego’s Adestria followed. They were the first band of the night to use keyboards and electronics, and all of the remaining acts used them too. Apparently the drunk frenzy that Moral Belief got the audience in to was not sufficient for Adestria, and they told us that we were very disappointing. We took offense to that and stepped up our moshing. Quickly their vocalist apologized and was graciously thankful for our efforts. He then challenged us to turn to the person next to us, smile, and then push them as hard as we can. The concert was becoming overwhelmed with inebriated violence.

The next band was Ice Nine Kills. For some reason, they had a banner of Will Ferrell from The Campaign, except he looked as though he was possessed. At first, I thought this was creepy and unnecessary, but as this Boston deathcore band continued, it actually seemed to fit with the themes of their songs. For example, “Buildings Burn, People Die” from 2010’s Safe Is Just A Shadow, relentless screaming and impressive guitars drown out any clean singing. Despite their ruthless style and unhappy content, their vocalist made time to dedicate a song to Mitch Lucker, the vocalist of fellow deatchore band Suicide Silence, who passed away November 1st due to an intoxicated motorcycle accident. It was refreshing to see that, in the midst of excessive drinking and moshing, these guys do have hearts.

The subsequent band was Atlanta’s Issues. Their debut EP, Black Diamonds, will be released Tuesday, but they have already built a following since they were founded by ex-members of Woe, Is Me. This was one of the first bands whose electronics actually complimented their music. All of the previous band’s attempts were either drowned out by the other instruments or sounded unnecessary, in some cases even weakening their music. Something that turned me off about Issues was their clean vocalist Tyler Carter, who was trying very hard for a “pretty boy” image. They even went to the extent of covering Justin Bieber’s “Boyfriend” which was the last straw. Someone should be able to go to a metalcore concert and not have to worry about hearing Bieber’s awful tunes.

The penultimate band was Make Me Famous, hailing from exotic Ukraine. I saw these guys last year in an opening slot, and I was more impressed with them than most of the bands that preceded  so it was good to see that they are building recognition. They were even better this time around. Frontman Denis Shaforostov has a great vocal range, in addition to being a solid guitarist. They were aided by their electronics, and drummer Dusty Boles is a beast. Simply stated, Make Me Famous is a better version of Asking Alexandria.

The climactic performance of Attila was a great way to finish off the concert. Also from Atlanta, these guys sound like a death metal band covering extremely suggestive rap songs. Vocalist Chris Fronzak’s screaming raps are unlike anything I have ever heard before. He is able to fluctuate from low growls to high shrieks without breaking his quick flow. They kicked off with their iconic song “Rage” and the venue erupted. They followed with other party-hard songs like “Sex, Drugs & Violence” and “Party With The Devil” which induced the crowd to stage-dive like I’ve never seen. Many were propelling themselves into the band members and some individuals even managed to pull the stage security guy into the sea of moshers against his will.

Friday night’s show was a great, albeit extreme, way to kickoff a weekend. If the themes of sex, drugs & violence are for you, then Blue Moose was the place to be. Attila and company provided an over-the-top party environment via metal, resulting in a truly unique experience.

The post Show Review: Attila, Make Me Famous, Issues @ Blue Moose Tap House — 11/9/12 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The night commenced with A Crimson Sea, a young band from Elgin, Iowa. The most notable part of their short set was when their vocalist gave a lovely song dedication to his five month old daughter, and proceeded with blood curdling screaming over thrashing guitars. I couldn’t catch a single lyric but I’m sure it was very heartfelt.

The second local band to play was A Casual Affair, from Cedar Rapids. This hardcore band literally was running, jumping, spinning, and rolling across the stage throughout their whole set, thus energizing the crowd to follow suit. Then they did something that I never would have guessed: The vocalist asked the crowd to calm down, and then actually stopped a song halfway to get security to escort one overly violent mosher out of the venue. Good for them to put safety first. To add to their already memorable performance, they gave an intense and interactive cover of Rage Against The Machine’s “Guerrilla Radio” and announced this was their drummer’s penultimate show, so if anyone in the crowd was any good at drumming to talk to them after the show.

Next up was Dallas’ Crown The Empire. This batch of guys hands down were the best dressed of the night, sporting either full suits and ties or collared button-ups with bow ties. An interesting aspect of this band is that they had two vocalists that did not play any instruments. It’s very common in metalcore to have two vocalists, usually one for clean singing and the other for screams, but often at least one plays an instrument. Regardless, their vocal interplay worked well, but I just couldn’t get over how sharp these guys looked. I would have guessed that they were going to some kind of classy reception, not a metal concert.

Baltimore’s I, The Breather followed. This Christian metalcore band is quickly gaining recognition, evident of their side stage slot at this past Summer’s Mayhem Festival, and obviously now with this stop in Iowa City. Their instrumentals were impressive but slightly too overpowering, as the vocals at times were drowned out. When audible, their lyrics speak of their faith, exemplified in “Forgiven” from their 2010 debut These Are My Sins.

The most acclaimed band of the night, Atlanta’s Norma Jean, blessed us with their music next. Along with Underoath, As I Lay Dying, and Demon Hunter, these four make up the “Holy Alliance” of Christian metalcore, appointed by the rock magazine Revolver. In addition, Norma Jean has been nominated for a Grammy, 2005’s O God, The Aftermath, so I was very surprised and ultimately disappointed that they were not the climactic performance of the night. Cory Putman’s brutal screams plus their oddly timed mathcore arrangements made for an intense and barbaric mosh pit, especially in their classic, “Memphis Will Be Laid To Waste.” My only critique is that I would have switched them with The World Alive’s slot, because Norma Jean was the best performance of the show.

Chicago’s Born Of Osiris was very impressive as well. They literally rocked harder than any other band; During the fan favorite finale, “Recreate,” drummer Cameron Losch managed to break one of his drums, and other members threw their massive banner into the crowd, which security did not seem fond of. Another thing they did that no other band did was feature a keyboardist, Joe Buras, in which I was torn on. On one hand, I don’t believe the electronics added anything to their harsh instrumentals, however his high pitched shrieking complimented Ronnie Canizaro’s low death-growls beautifully.

The final performance was Phoenix’s The World Alive, who started in 2008 as a side project of vocalist Craig Mabbitt (Escape The Fate, ex-Blessthefall), but the rest of the members kicked him out and carried on as a full time band. Something about their set that astonished me was the departure of half the audience. The venue was a pack of sardines for the last two bands, but half believed that they had already seen the best acts and there was no need to watch this attempt to top them. And that was the only bad part of The World Alive’s performance. Had they switched slots with Norma Jean, then the order of bands would have been perfect. I was very impressed with their instrumentals, especially during guitar solos, and with Tyler Smith’s Mabbitt-like vocals, which I would call a compliment.

I walked out of Blue Moose with minimal hearing left and a case of whiplash, which by metal standards means I was extremely satisfied. Metalcore is not for everyone, but Tuesday’s concert definitely was a pleasure to those who do like it. It is certainly an experience unlike any other kind of concert, and I look forward to the next time.

The post Show Review: The World Alive, Born Of Osiris, Norma Jean appeared first on KRUI Radio.

In the midst of all these indie-rock bands, Gabe’s provided Mission Creek one hell of a hip-hop show Thursday night. Black Milk stole the show and put on a refreshing mix to the usual punk or noise performances going on this week.

My only complaint is that there were performers before Black Milk. It started with a forty-five minute set by DJ Rich Rok, a kid my age that played other people’s songs with his beats over them. It got annoying to me, but I think it was because of the venue. Had it been at a dance club, he would have been perfect.

He remained onstage to DJ the next performers, Iowa City rapper Ion with “special guest” John Dope. Ion had okay verses, but very weak choruses. His quick flow would be ruined with the awful repetition of a couple words as a chorus. John Dope added nothing, other than an overgrown man with an overgrown beard and pigtails.

When Ion and Dope finally got off stage, the crowd was welcomed to Dallas’ party-rappers A.Dd+ (pronounced a-d-d), who weren’t actually on the bill but were chosen by Black Milk to be his openers. They were a pleasant surprise and brought life back to Gabe’s by jumping into the crowd and telling great party stories through their rapping.

The duo of A.Dd+, comprised of Paris Pershun and Slim Gravy, had the necessary rapping chemistry that Ion and Dope completely lacked. Rather than shouting over each other, they rapped in such a way that it seemed that they were just talking to each other, but very quickly. They also had good beats that would sometimes stop for very cool a cappella moments. Kind of like a warm-up comedian, Gabe’s was now ready for the experience Black Milk would bless us with.

Black Milk feels “like I’m on top of the world without the fear of falling.” And he has every right to. Hailing from Detroit, the promising producer/rapper has already built himself an impressive resume, collaborating with the likes of Royce Da 5’9’’, Lloyd Banks, Jack White, Busta Rhymes, Pharoahe Monch, Kardinal Offishall, Immortal Technique and more.

When performing live, he has a backing band rather than just a DJ. This added a lot to his songs, as it gave them a rock-remix feel reminiscent to what Travis Barker has done. On top of that, his band could play very well, and Black Milk gave each member time for a solo in his fifteen minute epic encore of his underground smash hit, “Losing Out.”

Black Milk has everything it takes to be the next big rapper, and I hope he’ll become a household name in the rap industry soon.

The post Show Review: Black Milk, A.Dd+, Ion, Rich Rok appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The night kicked off with T’Bone, a young punk trio that could definitely play their instruments. Their songs had very strange arrangements though. It would appear as though they were building into a solo, and then completely stop, just to slowly start back up. All three attempted to sing at some point, but none had much success.

Following the fair opening act of T’Bone was the more mellow Muscle Drum. Their drummer never sat down, which sort of annoyed me. The guitar playing was decent, but all of their songs sounded very similar. Unfortunately, Muscle Drum was lost in the shadow of the bands to follow them.

This is where the party started. Supersonic Piss, as well as Slut River who went after them, did something I had never seen in a concert before. Rather than performing on the perfectly good stage they chose to play on the floor surrounded by their audience, literally close enough to touch. They brought the mosh pit to them.

The two bands were similar, but different enough to stand out separately. They shared the same drummer, Joe Ross, who I was able to get a nice chat with after Slut River’s performance. He was a very cool guy who explained how he enjoys playing for multiple bands. Being a huge fan of hard rock, he likes how he can play for the metal Supersonic Piss and then for the hardcore punk Slut River. Oh yeah, and he can play the hell out of those drums.

Both bands also feature a female lead vocalist, which I guess could have been a theme for the night since Erase Errata does as well. I was very impressed with the quality of their screaming and shouting vocals, as well as the energy they brought to the audience.

After the two phenomenal floor acts of Supersonic Piss and Slut River, which are great names by the way, Erase Errata returned to the stage. And they were fantastic. The all-female punk/noise rock band showed up all of the previous bands with their musicianship. Improvising solos and clinchers to their songs added another level to their tunes that the other bands just didn’t have. Not only were the paying spectators at Gabe’s moshing, but members of all the earlier bands were right there with us.

Erase Errata was the perfect ending to such a hyped night. Punk may not be for everyone, but to those who enjoy it, this was the show to go to. The high pitched ringing I woke up to and continued to hear the following day was well worth it.

The post Show Review: Erase Errata, Slut River, Supersonic Piss, Muscle Drum, T’Bone appeared first on KRUI Radio.