If I would, could you?

Greetings and salutations! Today is the beginning of a new era, well decade. So aside from getting extraordinarily drunk, I have made a little promise, It'll be tricky. For every week I shall post a review of a single song.

Well, here we go...

Todays song is one which should hopefully bring your new year in smoothly, while it be not a face melting cacophony of death metal guitar mastery, it is a lyrical pleasure- Would? by Alice in Chains, specifically the version on their unplugged album.

Alice in Chains is often cited as a grunge basic, a band that if you want to get grunge you should check out. While I can detect the lovely tones of grunge, I would say the band in fact surpasses the genre with a metallic hint. They are a band whose dirty guitars and vocals are skillfully layered onto a bed of bizarre time signatures and a thin sheet of inner turmoil. Alice in Chains are indeed a band to listen to.

The band second album Dirt (1992) is where one can find the original version of this song, however it was chosen for their set when they appeared on MTV's Unplugged show in 1996. The performance had all the original members, except for their original bassist Mike Starr who left after they released Dirt to be replaced by Mike Inez who plays bass guitar in this version.

A shame and a rare wonder, as this is the last performance that the lead singer Layne Staley would give, as soon after he died of a mixed drug overdose.

Now that you have the bands background let us move swiftly onto this song. A live performance on MTV's Unplugged requires performers to perform `acoustic` sets, unless you are Kurt Cobain- then you get an amp. The song was originally written as a tribute towards the late lead singer of a band called Mother Love Bone, Andrew Wood who died of a heroine overdose. It is also a defense of his actions. Here it is the 10th in a 13 track set which can be almost considered a unique best of, of the band.

It opens with a very brooding bass line which is complimented by the drummer (Sean Kinney), whose tight use of the snare and choked high hat help build tension for Staley's vocals to rest upon. Guitars here are merely help to fill the space in the bass line. The vocals are brilliantly harmonised by the lead guitarist (Jerry Cantrell).

Suddenly the drums open up and the guitars chime, almost covering the bass, whilst the vocals softly emote the listener. Dynamically the differences between the verse and chorus are delightful, signposting clearly where we are in the song. The bass overall is the driving force in this song, however the guitar and drums are the instruments that indicate segment changes.

The lyrics are well worth reading, they are heartfelt and the delivery in this version is very choking. lines such as;

`What does friend mean to you?

A word so wrongfully abused.`

The dynamics of Staley's voice drift from soft cooing to strangled cries of frustration at a society that doesn't know him but judges nevertheless. It is a very honest song and it really captures the frustration of a person whose private life has been torn open and presented to the masses for a fondue party. The song ends with a jarring series of staccato slashes, non of this cheap, let's fade out shit here.

In short a performance of a band who are their tightest and are not afraid to wear their hearts on their sleeves- sound soppy? Well prove me wrong!

Shai-Hu-Lud passes out with his Jager...

It's been too long.. Also Sonisphere!!

It's been to long guys. I've had problems with house building or something like that. Anyway today’s long overdue article is about the glory that was Sonisphere 2010.

So for the one day I could afford, I'm a dirty poor person, I ventured once more into the depraved metal microcosm that was Sonisphere. The air was excited yet still placid, for it was still 9:30! Exhausted from the previous days activities I saw many a weary face rise from the camp site.

But the ethereal beings we passed were still plenty friendly. Screaming `Butt scratcher!!` got me a beer so it was a good start. Beer before I even entered!

So for those who've never been to a metal festival it is a very surreal experience, especially when giant metal bands such as Iron Maiden are set to perform. This causes the usual ranks of manic young metalheads to be bolstered by an older more experienced metalhead. These metalheads often bring smaller metalheads which helps to keep the festival a little calmer. Whenever young (13-22 year olds) metalheads are thrust together, the energy they give off is manic, and can lead to some rather idiotic behaviour. This isn’t usually a problem, but having broken my wrist in a mosh pit because of an overzealous Chimaria fan I tend to be more wary, so the presence of the older metalhead was welcomed by me. This did not subtract from the atmosphere at however just helped to regulate it.

Anyway Sonisphere utilises a set up which I love, they shuttle the performances of the main bands between the two main stages, so you are not going to miss the main bands. Unfortunately this year’s line up was one which, whilst still good, could not top the splendour of the previous Sonisphere. It was up to the bands to earn my money.

The day started off with a brief tour around the site, finding the locations of various necessities, such as the location of toilets and beer! The fantastic thing a bout a metal festival is I’m always a normal person, I’m not being extreme just average, which is unusual.

Having wandered, eaten and Jagermeistered we proceeded to watch Karnivool, to be honest the band before them was Madina Lake and they’re not my thing. Anyway Karnivool, poor Karnivool. Having played difficult gigs I always feel sorry for bands that play first, because people often don’t know their material and the crowd aren’t warmed up. Despite a fairly active and involving set the crowd’s response was minimal, but it happens. Their blend of Dredg/Incubus-esque vocals and ambient metalcore brings out a sound akin to a more mature version of Disturbed. It’s good but not quite heavy enough to rouse a metal crowd from their usual lethargic to head banging in a short set.

So feeling slightly warmed up I urged my friends to see one of my slightly wildcard entries into the days line up; CKY. I am a fan of them, I find that their sound is very individual and when they are good they are very good. 96 Quite Bitter Beings, Disengage the Simulator, Attached At the Hip and Sink into The Underground being very good examples. They are not in the popular metal spotlight however, leading to them, in my view, being underappreciated. This band performed admirably but again whilst the crowd was warmer than with Karnivool, they could not be roused even by their anthem 96 quite bitter beings. Even the enthusiastic attempts made by Chad I Ginsburg (lead guitarist) to engage the somewhat lacklustre audience were met with confusion by the general audience. Despite the audience’s reaction I enjoyed their set immensely and would love to see them again sometime.

So to avoid The Fab Beatles we ended up wandering into the strongbow tent. Whilst I do love The Beatles, there presence at a metal festival (covered or otherwise) is for me unwelcome. Inside the strongbow tent we waited for several minutes for the next band to come along. On came The Bendal Interlude. From the first note that was struck I was shocked. This band was excellent. Their heady mix of death metal and stoner metal really got me going. For the first and only time that day I went apeshit. The groove based melodies of the guitar and bass really worked with the tight drumming and shrill screaming. Fantastically tight and energetic. Whilst my friends left the tent to see Skindred, I couldn’t leave; I was transfixed by this band. I stayed for their whole set and my god was it worth it. When they were finished, I was stumbling like a drunken old man and my neck was so painful I could barely turn.

So still on a high from the last band, I expected a complete let down from Skindred. I was surprised, the banter that Benji Webb (singer) had with the crowd was entertaining and certainly made the set more enjoyable. He was spinning a good yarn. Their silver tuxedos were also a very nice touch. Whilst for me their songs were a little weak, the energy that they made the crowd exhibit was extraordinary. They however could not top what T.B.I did for me. By far they were one of the most communicative bands of the day. They, like all good bands, were there to make you move, unlike the next band.

I have to admit I was expecting a lot from slayer. I like them but I wanted them to make me like them more. They failed in this aspect. I am aware that part of the Slayer performance is the technical aspect of their music. They were playing the songs brilliantly. I however did not feel that they were feeling it. I didn’t enjoy their performance at all. In fact I left half way through the set. I even saw Slayer T-shirt wearers muttering negatively. They were, flat, deadpan and lacklustre. They did not seem happy to be there.

So after wandering around from stall to mysterious stall, each one related to an aspect of metal culture, my friend urged me to see a band he had one song from. Now I’m a cynical guy a lot of the time and this was no exception. I felt suspicious of this band but as soon as they started playing we knew we were in safe hands. Turbowolf are very good. Their old school style (similar to Led Zep) also draws from a very male adolescent aggressiveness which makes for a very lively show. The lead singer had to work hard to get a really small and quite self conscious crowd going, but by the end of the first song a 5 man mosh pit opened up. Then the singer sees his chance and jumps in! So in we all jump this groovy fast band really gets people jumping. The singer jumps in again and suddenly another pit starts up and the security have to pull people off the singer. Having listened later to this band on youtube if you want to experience the same Turbowolf that I saw you will need to see them live, they are much better live.

So after getting a fairly good mosh pit experience I was raring for another, unfortunately the next band doesn’t really have songs that you can mosh to. Alice in Chains was up next on the main stage. Another fantastic performance for a rather seasoned band. Even the new vocalist seemed to fit in perfectly, recreating but not copying, Layne Staley harsh, droning vocals. He was an effective figurehead and performed like a professional vocalist of that style of music should do. Controlling the crowd with few words but merely with gestures and body language. In other words Alice in Chains were a lot better than I had expected and have encouraged me to start listening to them again.

The next band on the main stage was Pendulum. While last years electronic main act were the emotional Nine Inch Nails, whose metal infused teen electronic angst, were too much of a drastic change to some of the more die hard metal Nazis in the audience. This year’s electronic buzz was controlled by the Drum and Bass poster boys Pendulum. While I enjoy pendulum, regularly putting their music on my party playlists, I did not enjoy their set at all. They tried to make their songs more metallic by adding crunchier, distortion to almost everything and then extending the songs by a minute each. This led to quite a monotonous set, which I would have welcomed had I been in a club. Unfortunately, here at a music festival it just got on my nerves. Their on stage enthusiasm could not quell the irritation that they caused me. Yes their songs are good but I came to listen to metal not Drum and Bass. It, for me, was like getting a cup of coffee and finding out someone had switched it for tea. Both are very good, but if I’m expecting metal I don’t want to hear Drum and Bass. Some very small very tame mosh pits started up but these were quickly inhabited by La Coste polo shirt wearing chavs. So a good set; just the wrong place and time for me really.

The last band was what 75% of the people were there to see, that’s right, Iron Maiden. They were of course no less than exceptional. Even their lesser known songs garnered a refreshingly enthusiastic response from a tired crowd. On many faces one could see that the excesses of the past two days had begun to catch up with many a metalhead. The set was tight and the show was extravagant to the point of shaming Spinal Tap. With Iron Maiden you know you are safe, which for me taken away some of the edge to their performance, but I feel that with many live bands. I can’t really describe much about this band that hasn’t been said before, for me the acid test is this- would I see them again live for £40? Yes I would!

So all in all a fantastic festival, which unfortunately was blighted by a couple of mismatched acts. The Bendal Interlude are still my unsung heroes of the day whilst Slayer were defiantly my Anti climax.

The big question is who’s bigger than Iron Maiden and Metallica? Who can they get to play which is bigger than these guys? There is only one band they can get to top this really. It’s going to have to be Black Sabbath. But will they play? Who knows. Will I go again next year? You bet your ass I will!


Shai-Hu-Lud Scuttles away to the kitchen again.