Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com The temps may be chilly outside, but Down and Warbeast definitely brought the heat to West Hollywood’s Key Club Wednesday night (Jan. 16) for the Los Angeles stop of their winter tour. The two acts combined for a blistering night of rock and some rather emotional moments before all was said and done. As was announced right before the tour, both bands have dedicated the entire trek to the memory of late Rigor Mortis and Ministry guitarist Mike Scaccia and each of the acts made note of Scaccia’s legacy and friendship during their sets. During their performance, Warbeast dedicated tracks to the guitarist and urged fans to scream in his honor. It was obvious that frontman Bruce Corbitt was still feeling the loss of his onetime Rigor Mortis bandmate. Warbeast amped up the audience during their opening set. Guitarist Scott Shelby laid down some killer licks and Corbitt commanded the crowd throughout, with tracks like ‘Egotistical Bastard’ and ‘Krush the Enemy’ working the audience into a circle pit frenzy. The group ended their set on a high note with ‘It’ and ‘Birth of the Psycho,’ their two contributions to the newly released split EP with Phil Anselmo , ‘ War of the Gargantuas .’ Down were the night’s headliner and they did not disappoint with the audience passionately fist-pumping along to the band’s songs throughout the evening. Like Warbeast, Phil Anselmo offered his salute to Scaccia and also got a little teary-eyed mentioning the band’s home base of New Orleans before rocking out to ‘New Orleans Is a Dying Whore.’ But amidst the emotion, there was also some levity as Anselmo grabbed a bra that had been tossed onstage, gave it to drummer Jimmy Bower commenting that he thought it might not be big enough and then watched as Bower put on the undergarment to cover his shirtless body for the remainder of the show. Highlights of Down’s performance included a blistering version of ‘Witchtripper,’ fan favorites ‘Lifer’ and ‘Lysergic Funeral Procession,’ and the anthemic ‘Eyes of the South.’ The set also included an encore of ‘Stone the Crow’ and ‘Bury Me in Smoke,’ with members of Warbeast hopping up onstage for an extended jam on the final track. The Down / Warbeast ‘Weed and Speed’ tour rolls on into early February. To check out the remaining dates on the trek, click here . Take a look at our photo gallery from the Down / Warbeast show below. Down: Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Warbeast: Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com (2) Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com Kathy Flynn, WickedGoddessPhotography.com [button href=”http://loudwire.com/down-new-musical-directions-recording-while-still-alive-being-handsome/” title=”Next: Down Discuss New Music Directions + Being Handsome” align=”center”]
Posts Tagged ‘gargantuas’
Down and Warbeast Provide Passion and Emotion at Los Angeles Tour Stop
January 17th, 2013 
Metalkult 
Posted in News 
Tags: being-handsome, concerts, down, flynn, gargantuas, guitarist-scott, hollywood, kathy-flynn, tour, warbeast- 
No Comments »Philip H. Anselmo / Warbeast, ‘War of the Gargantuas’ – Split EP Review
January 11th, 2013 Metalkult Housecore In one of the more interesting splits we’ve encountered as of late, Philip H. Anselmo , who requires not a single word of introduction, courtesy of his legacy, and Texas thrashers Warbeast have released their ‘War of the Gargantuas’ split through Anselmo’s own Housecore Records. The four-song EP boasts two songs per artist, and is historical simply because it is the first time Anselmo has released any solo music (with the Illegals as his backing band) during his 30 years of active service in the name of heavy metal. We’ve never had all of our senses assaulted at once, but how we assume that sensation would feel is created by this short, blast of an EP. It’s tightly constructed. It’s loud. It’s extreme. It’s all the things we like in our metal. It’s like each artist is trying to “out metal” the other and that’s a good thing for metal fans. Inside, you’ll find lots of squeally vocals, galloping solos and heavy metal that never, ever compromises. The first track,’Conflict,’ which is one from Philip H. Anselmo & the Illegals, is shrieky, post- Pantera Anselmo, but he still has the same dangerous bark and damaging bite. How a man who has been destroying mics for decades can still summon this much strength and deliver this kind of bone-liquefying vocal terror is beyond us. He is no mere mortal, nor mere metal. He is an elite frontman with few (if any) peers, especially when he lets ‘er rip, as is the case here. The next track, ‘Birth of a Psycho’ by Warbeast, is a hulking slab of dirty, gutter-dwelling, sludge-caked punk rock with a little bit of blackened grime and some deathy riffs thrown in for good measure. It culls influence from several metal sub-genres. The band takes guitars grooves and vicious vocals and throws ‘em all into a gnarly, metallic bonfire. The brilliantly titled ‘Family, ‘Friends’ and Associates’ is an Anselmo track which gets the point across in a few words, and is loaded with screamy vocals, with Anselmo’s authoratative spoken words behind it. The vocal spasms are supplemented by chunky, extra fast riffery, squalls and some Motorhead-y solos. When Anselmo barks , “I’m calling you out, ” you have a choice to either meet him in the ring or cower in the corner. We think most people will be doing the latter, based on the ferocity in which he makes the statement. Hands down, it’s the best track of the four. The EP ends with ‘It,’ a Warbeast track that is also fast with machine-gunned riffing, and some smash-til-your-arms-fall-off drumming. It’s an exercise in extreme metal, and the right amount of groove. No wonder Anselmo chose to appear on an EP with them and sign them to his label. No false metal here. It’s about as trend-free and trend-killing as it gets. Anselmo’s music often has a touch of melody, which he forgoes here. But everything is equally as memorable. Warbeast are just that – a fighting, battling beast. We wish ‘War of the Gargantuas’ was a bit longer, but it offers a nice taste of what to expect on Warbeast’s upcoming full-length, ‘Destroy,’ and Anselmo’s debut solo album, both due this year. In the meantime, pick up the EP at iTunes and catch Anselmo’s band Down on tour with Warbeast this winter. ?
Posted in News Tags: a-few-words, a-little-bit, a-single-word, anselmo-, destroying-mics, gargantuas, guitars-grooves, metal, Phil Anselmo, warbeast- No Comments »
