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Living
Sacrifice w/Simpleton, Escape From Reality, and Crutch
Wacohu
Grange Hall, Hagerstown, Maryland.
August
7, 2000
Reviewed
by: Tony LaFianza
My
favorite local venue, The Cave, had to close its doors a couple of months
ago, but it still had some unfinished business. The Cave was committed
to bring more bands to town. That meant some scrambling by management to
find a building for these contracted concerts. It also meant that without
the usual combination of advertising and announcements at other shows the
poor patrons of this Christian music hot spot were in the dark. Thus, only
30 or 40 fans were gathered at a big 1950's hunting lodge/town hall just
west of where the Appalachian mountains begin, to see one of the best hardcore
metal bands on the planet. Fortunately, Living Sacrifice was unaffected
by the surroundings or the meager crowd. They still kicked major butt.
I had to stand up on the drive home, but enough about my problems.
They gave us a good show.
Escape
From Reality
The opening
bands set up on the floor although the spacious, high ceiling hall had
a curtained stage. This is always a cool thing to do at a hardcore show,
throwing out any separation between the band and the fan. Opening the evening's
festivities was a new, developing band called Simpleton, a four piece working
on a stage presence, and a couple of good songs to go with it. The second
band of the night was Escape From Reality, hailing from Centreville, Virginia.
They are a young band but with plenty of stage presence to spare. A hardcore
band with an energetic exaggerated lead screamer, Escape From Reality turned
in an impressive set. Third on the bill was a band from central Pennsylvania,
Crutch, a metal hardcore band with a big sound that ingrained the wood
paneling and floor of the assembly hall. With nimble guitar work, superior
drumming and a low end growl---all five musicians are very able---Crutch
won a few dozen new fans that night including the guys from Living Sacrifice.
During their own set they commented Crutch was one of the best bands they'd
seen and heard in a while.
Crutch
After
a break in the action the stage curtains opened to reveal that the Living
Sacrifice guys had been busy setting up during the opening acts. Starting
things off with "Reborn," they made some adjustments to the sound, more
bass and drums, and rolled into "Something More." Living Sacrifice is such
a tight band. Two drummers, two guitars, bass and growling vocals for great
songs and fast solid noise make their brand of hardcore metal the flagship
of the genre. Living Sacrifice always delivers a great show. They had driven
straight through from a New England date the night before and they might
have looked tired, but they didn't play like it. Driving through some old
stuff then some new stuff, Bruce Fitzhugh reported that the music was recorded
and ready for their new record, The Hammering Process, scheduled
to be in stores this fall. Judging by what I heard, the new record is going
to be continuing in the metal hardcore direction of Reborn with
a bit of a Coal Chamber edge. But whatever these guys do on a new record,
I'm already sure I'm going to dig it. The handful of people enjoying the
show this night seemed to like the new stuff too. As they ran through a
solid set and amazed us all once again with deft dynamic musicianship,
I was thinking about how I had just seen Living Sacrifice at Cornerstone
Festival on Main Stage a month before where over thirty thousand people
could hear them. This crowd was about a thousand times less, they still
rocked hard, real hard!
Set
list:
"Reborn"
"Something
More"
"Flatline"
"Reject"
"Blood
Work"
"Not
My Own"
"Truth
Solution"
"Enthroned"
"Altered
Life"
"No
Longer"
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