newsturbate: Lamb of God weekend-II

few of the tickets

Having finished with the apetizer, we were all charged up for the D-Day. The night was long with partying going on till the wee hours of saturday. The day dawned on us with the arrival of a 10 member battalion from back home making it 20 people at home. What followed was hours of nostalgic talk on our previous concert experiences and many rounds of leg pulling. And then there were the photoshoots. As time wore on, it was time for the pilgrimage to Palace grounds. And thats exactly when the rain Gods decided to open up a bit. Anyway, we all stuffed ourselves into the van and proceeded to the venue. It was an experience, zipping through the Bangalore roads with metal blaring from the speakers. Although some among us were scared of the police stopping us.

Thankfully, it hadn't rained at the grounds. 3 of the opening acts were already over by the time we reached. From what I heard, Bhoomi was at the receiving end of the crowd's wrath and Boomerang impressed with their RATMesque style. I was disappointed at missing the Bombay based metal act Scribe. Their CD was impressive and so was waiting to watch their live act. And according to reports they did strike a chord with the audience. The moshpit became active around the time when they played. As we reached, the last of the opening acts, 'Extinct reflections(ER)' were getting on stage. And we all jumped into the pit with our own trademark moves, which did result in few poor souls eating some mud. ER was nowhere near the perfection that they attained, the last time I saw them. Lack of practise maybe a reason, considering the fact that the guitarist flew in from LA, just for this one last gig. It was suprising to see Randy blythe, the vocalist of Lamb of God, watching them intently from the sidelines. Without the airs of being such an international star, he was quietly appreciating the local acts. As ER got over, it was time for a long break to set the stage for the virginia metallers. It was a time to meet all old friends who had landed up at the arena. I bumped into bloggers vinay, dikshith and sanjay. and also some others. Members of bands from kerala like the down troddence, purple blood and crimson wood were in full force. The sad part for me was that I couldn't carry my cam inside and had to be content with some dirty clicks from mobile. But then, I spent only a few minutes in clicking as it was more fun with your hands free.

And after more than an hour of roaming around and waiting, the lights dimmed on stage. We slowly started moving in. Blue tinted bulbs began to shine and the opening strains of 'The passing', the opening song of LOG's new album 'Wrath' were heard. As the short song subsided, LOG was on stage with 'In your words', accompanied by a blast of lighting effects. Yes, there they were. Chris Adler, the modern drumming God flanked on both sides by Bassie John campbell and guitarists Willie Adler and Mark Morton and led by the inimitable Randy Blythe. The opening scream of 'In your words' sent shivers down the spine. The moshes had already started in full swing. It was pushing and shoving all around with some searching for a space to breath. 'Set to fail' followed, the song name signifying the opposite of what Lamb of God was going to do this day. The sore point was a little bad mixing in the sound console. The drums were perfect, with each kick reverberating in everyone's hearts. But the guitars and vocals were drowned out. Even Randy's open throated screams sounded feeble sometimes. And this condition stayed throughout the concert. Wish the organisers gave a little more importance to the sounds, as its been a bane in international rock fests in India, most notably the Megadeth one. By the time they started belting out their classics, I had somehow reached the front row and stayed there for the rest of the show. 'Now you've got something to die for' had most of the audience singing along. And as it happens with bands visiting India for the first time, LOG were surprised too.

randy blythe(mobile click)

the band, thanking the Indian metalheads(mobile click)

one of those 'moments'(mobile click)

Willie Adler and randy blythe(mobile click)

Randy dedicated the song 'Contractor' to Mahatma Gandhi, descibing him as a punk rock dude. Ofcourse, he meant it with all respect unlike what some misinterpreted it to be. Chris Adler evoked a sense of awe with his brilliance. This guy deserves a big bow because he started drumming at the relatively late age of 22 and mastered it in such a short time. Rather, he has grown into a drumming God. Classics like 'laid to rest' and 'walk with me in hell' followed. There was no reprieve for the audience unlike traditional concerts where the band goes off stage and gets back with an encore. It was all over in a flash. 15 odd songs in the gap of about 75 minutes. 75 minutes of non stop headbanging, pushing, shoving, broken noses, flaring tempers and mixing sweatdrops. And then, the stage was clean. Everyone waited for the encore, but had to walk back disappointed. Still, the sense of achievement was on view, on most faces, of having watched one of the best metal bands of the modern era. This classification won't go down well with LOG, who are in there just to make music rather than compete. But then, I can be sure none of them will ever read this blog and so I can take the liberty to classify them. And its not right to end without thanking the 2 youngsters Arpan Peter and Vivek Venugopal who floated the event management company 'Overture' and made this concert a reality. Whatever be the glitches, this guys and their team deserve a standing ovation for pulling off something of this magnitude. And yes, DNA can think twice before bringing in gay pop bands to rock concerts. You've got competitors here, guys who has passion for the music rather than an eye on the 'market'.

The exponents of Pure American metal sent the audience into a tizzy with the unrelenting brutal assault of metal. This concert means a lot to Indian metalheads. To know what 'Lamb of God' has done to the metal scene in India, you just need to listen to the numerous Indian bands inspired by them. That distinctive drumming style and breakneck riffing are aped(no disrespect meant here..cos aping LOG is no mean task) by many a band in India, much like Metallica, Slayer and Iron Maiden inspired many in the 80s and 90s. Lamb of God is truely the deserving flagbearer of metal in the noughties and beyond. And it takes guts and passion to stay true to the roots, to stay brutal...as ever!