Alright, so, the show started out innocently enough: About 60 or so awkward, black-t-shirt-sporting metal fans in attendance to see Bison B.C. totally wreck house (the "B.C." stands for "British Columbia."). They were one of the finest openers that I've seen in a while. Metal...crust punk...sludge. They had it all; and beards to boot. Great stuff! Black Cobra, from SF, came on next. They're on Southern Lord, so my expectations were somewhat high. Unfortunately, the were boring as shit. I generally get more enjoyment out of mowing the lawn. (In fairness, I LOVE mowing the lawn.) The drummer did all the work while the guitarist/vocalist pretty much acted strangely and played at a mediocre level. Zero points for the U.S. Then came Priestess (Canada). I'm a huge fan, so I was especially excited. Although their beard quotient was somewhat less than that of Bison B.C., they were incredible! Seriously,they were insane. The dual guitar harmonies set the place ablaze. Not to mention, they were some of the coolest cats around. Very humble and entertaining: two things I've never been accused of being. They burned the place down right before High on Fire came out.
Now, something I've failed to mention up until this point: For nearly the entire duration of the show, I stood behind this guy who was essentially a spittin' image of John Goodman's character from "The Big Lebowski." I mean, he looked just like him...other than the long ponytail coming out of his bandanna and the way he beat his chest while singing the Dio songs blaring from the PA. I actually tasted this poor bastard's hair on several occasions that night. Boo!!
Anyway, as High on Fire's roadies set-up, the crowd swelled. More than anything, I noticed how the jock: metal dude ratio started to slant uncomfortably in favor of the jocks. Finally, the lights went down and High on Fire took the stage. As they went into the beginning of the first song, it was very apparent that Matt Pike (one of the most sun-abused men ever)'s guitar was not working. Roadies came out in an attempt to fix the problem before the track really kicked in, but it was to no avail. They had to stop the song before it really started and figure out the problem. Pike looked disappointed and I honestly expected the whole church to burst into flames, but luckily, that didn't happen.
High on Fire played a few songs and the place absolutely erupted! For the first several songs, I found myself working harder to stay upright than to experience the set. During the third song, I saw some dude find and reapply his contact lens...in a very metal fashion, I might add. Then, within about 15 seconds, I saw one cat get knocked out cold while "moshing" and another kid get cold-cocked right in the nose by one of the aforementioned meatheads. With blood everywhere, the kid pretty much gave up and tried to let the guy know that he wasn't going to continue. Unfortunately, the hitter (as opposed to the "hitee,") didn't seem into the gesture. Onlookers eventually pulled the two apart. High on Fire muscled through a fantastic, although muddy-sounding, set. Score one for the U.S. It was easily one of the loudest shows I've ever been to. At certain points, I actually felt dizzy. I've finally seen High on Fire. On this night, however, Priestess stole the show. Canada won, 2-1, but more importantly, Justin and I survived the noise, the violence and the sea of spilled beer of which the floor bore the brunt. Overall, a great night. The next day at work sucked, but at least I have several stories to tell.
Currently blasting: Mi Ami-"Steal Your Face"
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