The whole point of Noise Pop weekend is to not only see the bands that you like, but to also try out new ones. Well, I did just that with Joanna Newsom on Friday night and now I'm going to try the absolute opposite of a sweet woman playing the harp - by watching three hairy, over tattooed men play death metal. Yeah, death metal.
High on Fire is a local Oakland band whose local following is anything but small. This is a band that attracts a legion of metal heads throughout the Bay Area and just cause mayhem at their shows. Mike once told me that during their sold out Bottom of the Hill show a few months ago, several non-ticket holders decided to jump the fence just to get in! Well, once again, we have a sold out crowd amongst us and the crowd itself was intimidating, a bunch of them being loyal followers of High on Fire and know every single move of theirs.
The band came on close to midnight at this rather horrendous venue they call 12 Galaxies, which is named after that crazy Asian guy who carries a sign with the same phrase. He was there, and he gets in for free apparently and begins making speeches. Which he did before the Fucking Champs came on. Rather weird.
Anyways, I was standing in the front, stage right just trying to catch a glimpse of this "life changing" band. When they came on, I didn't know what to expect. At first, I thought I couldn't possibly enjoy this band because I never really got into heavy metal or anyting of the sort. When they belted out the loud guitars and pounding drums, I was already impressed. These guys mean business and they ROCK hard! Matt Pike, the lead singer and guitarist, just impressed the crowd with his amazing guitar work and stage presence. His voice sounded demonic, and I have no idea what he is saying. Regardless, he sang sporadically, but the rock just came on hard. It was so damn good!
Then the crowd started moshing. A sight I haven't seen since The Offspring back in the mid-90s! I mean, this was serious mosh pit, with a bunch of shirtless dudes that look like they just came out of prison. This ain't no Blur or Yeah Yeah Yeahs dance pit by any means!
I don't know any of their songs, but the first song off their encore was just crazy! "Speed Wolf," off their "Lord of the Rings-esque album cover" record Surrounded by Thieves drove the crowd ape shit and they just started either jumping wildly or pushing each other. Even I wanted to be part of that, but opted not too since I do want to live past this show. Regardless, this was an excellent song and it just ROCKED!!
Anyways, a surprising show and a definite must see.
Beer Rating: 2 Beers
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