Review & photos by Rachel Jablonski & Mike Schlabsz
It was the day before the show we had been anticipating for months. Briefly at the mall solely for a tux fitting, I accompanied Mike for the annoying task of being deemed a groomsman. Walking through the mall, I glanced over into Hot Topic and to my surprise saw a familiar face. I nudged Mike. “Hey that’s Robb Flynn from Machine Head,” I said. We paused for a moment. “No it’s not, why would Robb be in Hot Topic,” Mike convincingly replied. I agreed, laughed, and we moved on.
A last minute stop, we randomly stepped into Barnes & Noble, Mike wanted to look at the new Revolver magazine. Next to us, rummaging through the music magazine section was an identity I was certain of. “That’s Randy Blythe from Lamb of God,” I whispered to Mike. After a slight hesitation I turned, stuck out my hand, and said, “Hi Randy, I’m Rachel. We’re really looking forward to the show tomorrow night.” He shook my hand and immediately said, “Get there early man. The opening band is killer!” “Gojira,” Mike interjected. “I’m excited to see them, their latest CD is awesome.” After talking up Gojira some more Randy prepared to move on. I couldn’t resist. “Hey, would you mind taking a picture with me?” I asked. “Yeah, what the hell,” he replied. “I don’t care – I’m not Axel Rose.” So with his 3 pixel camera phone, Mike snapped a shot of Randy and me in front of Starbucks at Barnes & Noble in Cedar Rapids, IA. As we left the store Mike joked, “I wonder what Robb bought at Hot Topic.” We laughed.
Finally, the day of the show had arrived. Our first time at this particular venue, we pulled up to Hawkeye Downs Speedway welcomed by repulsive close by factory smells. After the initial greeting wore off, we skeptically parked in front of the building with low expectations. Notably, even an hour before doors were opened the line of concert goers began to form. And so we waited for the show to begin.
Gojira
All the way from France a band named Gojira, the Japanese
word for Godzilla, took the stage with gigantic energy. The band opened
with the first two consecutive tracks, “Ocean Planet” and
“Backbone” off their From Mars to Sirus release. I’m in a mental cage, I’m locked up vocalist Joseph Duplantier
exclaimed, his voice blending well with the accompanying guitar riff.
His brother, drummer Mario Duplantier, shined as well, his frequent double
bass playing insane mostly complimenting yet often combating guitar based
tempo changes. Bassist Jean Michael and guitarist Christian Andrew added
to the energy with frequent movement, head bangs, and overall intensity.
The sound of Gojira seems to be influenced by such bands as Strapping
Young Lad and Fear Factory, yet the essence of the band is all their own.
As we had expected, Gojira is the band to see live this year. Short
video on You Tube provided by Gojira from the Cedar Rapids show: You Tube Cedar Rapids Video
Machine Head
A long, annoying delay between sets allowed
the crowd to grow significantly in the fairly large cement room by the
time Machine Head from Oakland, CA took thestage. Bursting into a song
called “Clenching the Fists of Dissent” off their highly
anticipated album The Blackening, Machine Head exploded with
passion. “Clenching…” along with a tune called “Aesthetics
of Hate,” which expresses anger towards an article that bashed
the metal community after the death of Pantera’s Dimebag, were
part of the band’s five song set. Sounds like short duration,
but with “Clinching…,” a 10 minute 35 second song,
and “Aesthetics…,” 6 minutes and 34 seconds, the set
became a solid chunk of beauty. With these songs, seemingly written
to be performed live, the chemistry of the band perfectly meshed, particularly
demonstrated by passionate guitar solo jams.
Also included in the set was “Imperium,”
a favorite track off the band’s Through the Ashes of Empires release, as well as “Old” and “Davidian” from
the band’s old school days, their first album Burn My Eyes.
The crowd loved it and chanted along Let freedom ring with a shotgun
blast! Vocalist/guitarist Robb Flynn showed much enthusiasm and
seemed very appreciative of the Cedar Rapids crowd. “This is much
more than we expected. Thanks so much Cedar Rapids!” he genuinely
exclaimed.
Trivium
Standing in the middle of the crowd
I became offended. Ok not really but I played it off that I was. Toward
the end of Machine Head’s set between songs Robb pointed and said,
“Look at these girls up front. I bet they’re here to see Matt
Heafy! Am I right?!” He laughed saying, “See I knew it! Machine
Head who? If Trivium weren’t here there would be no girls at this
show.” Robb! So not true! I laughed.
So Matt Heafy and company entered stage welcomed by cheers from the crowd. But the spark simply was not there. Following the two phenomenal acts we had just seen, Trivium lacked metal flare. Their most recent album, The Crusade, had been anticipated by many prior to release, rumors of Metallica-like material surrounding it. But since then the album has received either strong praise or strong condemnation from those in the metal community with few opinions in between. These songs, with questionable quality on disc, seemed even more questionable live. The set was slow and almost boring; a letdown after the energy Gojira and Machine Head had produced.
The set ended with the band’s popular “Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr” off 2005’s Ascendancy. I should probably be ashamed, but admittedly I sang along with the entire song – only with the words provided by Interpretation of Trivium as seen on You Tube: http://youtube.com/watch?v=GNLDLyeepVs.
BOAT! RUDDER! STRANGE, MOUNTAIN!
Lamb of God
It’s like walking out of the bathroom
with toilet paper stuck to your shoe. It’s hard to look badass with
a piece of paper stuck to your foot. “Dude…. DUDE!”
bassist John Campbellshouted,drowned out by the ferocious sounds of
Lamb of God. At the front of the stage taking pictures, Mike was initially
oblivious, but then realized he was being addressed. “Dude, get
this shit off me!” Suddenly understanding what the commotion in
front of him was about, Mike saw the bassist’s foot thrashing around
trying to break free from the stiff hold of the duct taped set list on
his shoe. The grip of the tape was strong but with a mighty tug Mike freed
the bassist from the shackles. “Thanks bro!” Campbell exclaimed
and went on his merry bass playing way.
Seventeen fluent songs, resounding like a machine gun with little to no breaks for reloading, energized the crowd. Virginia's Lamb of God seemed to be enjoying themselves with great intensity and no signs of fatigue despite the long set. “We don’t believe in encores, we don’t believe in self-absorbed shit. Here’s your final song of the night… BLACK LABEL!” vocalist Randy Blythe growled after an all out performance by the band. Featuring an array of their best material, Lamb of God kept up constant energy. “LIGHT IT UP IOWA!” Blythe insisted at the beginning of “Vigil” (as seen here courtesy of You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xHBimXFpc0 ). As always Blythe and company worked their metal magic to the delight of the crowd.