Sorry the recap is a bit late this week, it’s PA Musician article deadline time of the month again…
When all was said and done, this turned out being a hard-hitting, metallic weekend for yours truly! Read on…
WEDNESDAY NIGHT 1/15 – Since frigid winter cold, snow squalls and a thin wallet made my initial game plan of State College bandwatching less appealing this night, I opted to stick around the ‘Toona and catch the Wednesday all-ager at Peter C’s. Glad I did, good show! I finally caught up with By Any Means Necessary, at least for three songs. Despite a broken guitar string delay and lead throat Carl losing his voice (after overdoing it the night before at another all ages show at the Arandale Elks), By Any Means Necessary still sounded instrumentally strong on their brand of dark death-ish metal. While monstrously heavy, this group’s songs (at least the three I heard) had interesting structures and plotlines to them, and the group uses quieter passages to offset the heavier moments and keep things interesting. I’ll get a better look at this group in two weeks when they play another Peter C’s all-ager with Inversion and Nine Six Nine. With frontman Mike Long offering up the command to the pool players in the back of the room, “Come up here, the pool game doesn’t matter, there isn’t any money involved…,” Chapter 5 unleashed their set of unbridled hardcore punk aggression. The group featured a lot of rapidfire material from their forthcoming new CD, such as (if I have the titles right) “Normal Life,” “Changed,” “Liberty Eyes” and more, plus faves from the “King Down” disc such as “Suicide.” Chapter 5 delivered honest, real deal hardcore punk – not the MTV cookiecutter variety, but bare bones spit-and-venom, stand-your-ground-and-don’t-give-in-to-the-system punk. This band sank heart and soul into this set, and quickly had a gathering of appreciative fans up front to show their solidarity. Suicide Switch then piledrove the night home with their scathing set of all-out metalcore. Cheez and the gang threw down new raging originals such as “Blind Rage,” “In the Wake” and “Path of Resistance;” “Unscarred” and “Truth” from their EP; and even tunes from their Stepdown incarnation such as “”Bitch” and “Last Sight.” Suicide Switch was again all-out metalcore intensity from the get-go, with frontman Cheez unleashing the beast and guitarists Tom and Shaun, bassist Danny and drummer Jay firing tight, full obliteration metallic carnage behind him. I was happy to see another decent turnout for this Wednesday all ages show; and as Chapter 5 mentioned, KEEP SUPPORTING THESE SHOWS, because it is becoming more difficult and expensive for bands to rent out local halls and try to stage all ages shows independently. Support these shows at Peter C’s, and keep this scene happening!
By Any Means Necessary beckoning the beast at Peter C’s.
Chapter 5 steps up the tempo at Peter C’s.
Tim Mort and Mike Long of Chapter 5.
Mike Long of Chapter 5.
Jamie Mort of Chapter 5.
Bill Mort of Chapter 5.
Tom Noel of Suicide Switch.
Cheez of Suicide Switch.
Dan Mort of Suicide Switch.
Jay Mosey and Tom Noel of Suicide Switch.
Another shot of Tom Noel of Suicide Switch.
More drum intensity from Jay Mosey of Suicide Switch.
Shaun Barr of Suicide Switch.
Cheez and Suicide Switch throw it down at Peter C’s.
Cheez unleashes the rage at Peter C’s.
Phantom X guy in the house…Donnie of Phantom X, proving that JP isn’t the only person walking around Peter C’s with a camera…
I don’t usually take pictures in the rest room, but couldn’t resist this one…Obviously one of the bands at Peter C’s from the previous Wednesday specializes in more than just high-powered rock. Perhaps a new line of merchandise other bands might want to consider?
THURSDAY NIGHT 1/16 – I braved the light snowfall and bitter cold to check in with Lost Ledny at City Limits. Though not a packed house, I was glad to see at least a few fans present to check out the show, definitely more than the previous Thursday. As I arrived, I discovered that an opening band had been added to the bill, Silverboy (formerly Genius Of You). They were finishing their last song as I procured my first brew of the night. Though I didn’t hear much, what I heard sounded good; Silverboy will be back at City Limits the first two Thursdays in February. It had been a while since I last saw the Ledny gang in action with drummer Joe Mulligan on the disabled list this past summer; I’m glad to say this band is back with a vengeance, based on what I saw this night! Lost Ledny sounded solid on their sets blending modern metal originals from their recently-released CD with favorites from System of a Down, Korn, Slipknot, Drowning Pool and more. As a whole, this band sounded and looked a lot more confident. Frontman Matt Cherry was more aggressive and worked the stage area better, and drummer Joe left no doubts that he is fully recovered from the wrist injury that kept him on the disabled list last summer, this guy was slamming it! Good high-powered display from Lost Ledny this night, obviously these guys are back on track.
Matt Cherry of Lost Ledny.
Dave Hildebrand of Lost Ledny.
Ryan Long of Lost Ledny.
Matt Cherry helps out Joe Mulligan with the Lost Ledny drumming.
Again, Ryan Long of Lost Ledny.
Matt Cherry and Ryan Long of Lost Ledny.
Lost Ledny dishes out the modern metal at City Limits.
Joe Mulligan of Lost Ledny, fully recovered from the disabled list.
FRIDAY NIGHT 1/17 – Though I actually was leaning towards heading up the mountain to catch a show, the frigid single-digit temperatures (likely subzero up the mountain) and the lure of metal were too great for me, and I ended up catching the triple-bill at Aldo’s, featuring Broken Neck, Xpendable and Choking Faith. I’m glad I did, this show slammed an exclamation point on the arrival of Altoona’s metal scene in 2003! All three bands came, saw and conquered in front of one of the larger crowds Aldo’s has seen recently. I arrived shortly after Choking Faith kicked off their set. This was my first look at this band after almost two years of waiting for it to come together – it was WORTH THE WAIT! Choking Faith delivered explosive, full-throttled, malevolent, genocidal metal! The band was very tight and powerful, and frontman Jason Mittan – after supplying guest throat with everybody else’s metal bands the past 2-3 years – was pure evil on the voice end, bellowing from Hell’s depths on original tunes like “Overdosed” and “Davidian;” and monstrous metal tunage from Pantera, Slipknot, Coal Chamber, Down and more! I especially liked the versions of Slipknot’s “(Sic)” and Down’s “New Orleans is a Dying Whore;” and was also impressed that this band is digging deeper for their cover fare than just the ‘hits!’ I was blown away with my first look at Choking Faith, and I have Feb. 22 circled on my calendar, when this band hooks up with Skell at Aldo’s! Next was Xpendable, who likewise devastated on their set of modern metal favorites from System of a Down, Drowning Pool, Static X, Sevendust and more. The group introduced an original song, “Separate,” and broke out a powerful version of Prong’s “Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck.” Xpendable clicked on all cylinders and were instrumentally tight and forceful, and Matt Watson has emerged into a commanding presence on lead mic! Jason from Choking Faith and Phil from Broken Neck joined in on vocals during several songs. Xpendable’s set picked up where Choking Faith left off, and maintained the energy and intensity. Broken Neck then slammed the lid on the night with their intense, turbulent set of metallic originals, including a guest appearance by former bassist Dan Martino, up for a visit from Florida! The group started with a new original tune (I missed the title), and slammed with tunes from the “Back to Riality” disc such as “Gat Song,” “Drive By,” “Baked” and “Death Polka;” before finishing up the night with a scathing rendition of Rage’s “Killing in the Name.” Again Broken Neck was constant action and intensity, and both band and the stagefront crowd fed off each other’s energy to escalate the excitement level even further! I was glad to see the excellent attendance this night; also the mutual cooperation between all three bands to make this show kick ass! Based on this show (and the Wednesday all-ager at Peter C’s two nights before), the new breed of Altoona heavy metal has arrived! If you are a fan of rock’s heavier side, rejoice!
The evil Jason Mittan of Choking Faith.
Dan of Choking Faith.
Onstage mayhem with Choking Faith at Aldo’s.
All-out intensity, Jason Mittan of Choking Faith.
John of Choking Faith.
Partners in evil; Jason Mittan of Choking Faith, joined by Matt Watson of Xpendable.
Dan Kenmore of Xpendable.
Lerch of Xpendable.
And you never thought the Pink Panther had it in him…Dan Kenmore of Xpendable.
Returning the favor, Jason Mittan of Choking Faith joins Matt Watson of Xpendable.
Matt Watson of Xpendable.
Jay Herbert of Xpendable.
Matt Watson of Xpendable, joined by Phil Wagner of Broken Neck.
Club owner summit…Big John of Peter C’s and Aldo of Aldo’s.
It’s crowded at stagefront; the fans rock along to Broken Neck.
Who’s this freak? Dan Martino briefly returns to the bass role in Broken Neck.
Dave Russell of Broken Neck.
Peen of Broken Neck.
Scott Russell of Broken Neck.
Martino! Dan Martino, again making a cameo appearance with Broken Neck.
Broken Neck rallies the masses at Aldo’s.
A ‘montage’ of musical talent was in attendance this night, including Frank Johnson of Mr. Yuk and Scott Mulligan of soon-to-be-back-in-action Montage.
SATURDAY NIGHT 1/18 – I returned to City Limits this night to check in with the progress of Raghouse’s electric show. At least early on, it looked like it would turn into a dead night for Raghouse’s City Limits debut; but slowly and steadily more folks arrived and most stuck around, resulting in a pretty healthy crowd in the house by the group’s third set. Raghouse showcased a lot of new songs such as the stomp "Sunday's Child," "My Blessed Angel," the ballad "Late December," "Farewell" and more; also songs from their debut EP such as the passionate "Bleed for Me," the ballad "Disembodied Symphony" and "Nant." Raghouse also included an eclectic selection of rocked-up covers, such as uptempo versions of Neil Diamond's "Solitary Man," Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire," Smashing Pumpkins' “Disarm,” Prince's "Purple Rain," plus songs from NOFX, Ramones, Black Sabbath, Kim Wilde and more. The new Raghouse original tunes pick up where the first EP left off, with a variety of moods and textures conveyed. While the range of material was diverse, Raghouse gave all of it their own unique stamp, with Jim Mincin’s passionate vocal wail, Jeff Reid’s acidic guitarwork and Shawn Gioiosa’s busy drum activity tying it all together. Part of the fun of watching this band perform is deciphering just what songs they are covering; at least a few of them didn’t dawn on me until almost mid-song. Electric and eclectic, Raghouse is definitely one of the more intriguing entities currently on area stages; come sample them and see what the mystique is all about!
Jim Mincin of Raghouse.
Dan McCloskey of Raghouse.
Jeff Reid of Raghouse.
Again, Jeff Reid of Raghouse.
Shawn Gioiosa of Raghouse.
Jim Mincin and Jeff Reid of Raghouse.
A disembodied symphony…Raghouse rocks the stage at City Limits.
Yours truly, posing with two of my newest friends, Kelly and Jill.
SUNDAY NIGHT 1/19 – I finished the weekend by catching the Pellegrine’s debut of Reading’s Superbang. Featuring two former members of The 3rd Skill, Superbang focused on mostly 80’s remakes, performed with an uptempo current rock edge. It worked very successfully on the Pelly’s crowd, who stayed on the dance floor for tunes from Poison, The Knack, Outfield, Billy Idol, Dead or Alive, Escape Club, I think I even heard a Michael Jackson tune when I first arrived. Superbang also threw in a few recent songs from Jimmy Eats World, 311 and more. Overall good presentation; Eric showed a strong voice up front with good range, and the rest of the band was sturdy and on target behind him. Good energy and vibe, and lots of interaction with the stagefront dance crowd, everyone felt like a part of the party! Despite windy and snowy conditions, a good crowd was in attendance, and overall this was a good time. It’s very likely Superbang will be frequent visitors to Pelly’s stage in the coming months, based on their success this night.
Todd Schwambach of Superbang.
Oh, the hazards of being a frontman in the trenches…Jeremy Nolen of Superbang.
Delivering bang for the buck; Superbang at Pellegrine’s.
From a different angle; Superbang at Pellegrine’s.
Jeremy Nolen of Superbang.
Justin Wheatherholtz of Superbang.
Matt Hoffman of Superbang.
Eric Troop and Jeremy Nolen of Superbang.
For future reference; this is what drunken Houtzdale folks look like.