Blind Guardian, "Carry the Blessed Home"

12 Days to Find a Home



Chris Weingarten once wrote of today's music critics having "fairly pronounced predispositions for anything that reminds us of the golden-era hip-hop and grunge-era alternative rock of our youth (probably why we've been championing Killer Mike and Japandroids, respectively)." I understand and play into that sentiment, as a fan of both of those artists, but metal is different to me. As much as I enjoy neo-thrash bands like Skeletonwitch, Warbringer and Municipal Waste, I never feel much desire to listen to them when I already have the Big Four. I prefer metal bands to honor their heroes with innovation rather than imitation--to my ears, the Dillinger Escape Plan pays more tribute to Metallica than Machine Head does.

Likewise, you can keep your DragonForce and your Nightwish as long as I get to keep Blind Guardian. For about 30 years, these German badasses have been updating the Priest and Maiden formulas with more speed, pomp and symphony, complete with the songs to make it work. Most of their songs seem to be inspired by Valhalla and/or Tolkien, but "Carry the Blessed Home" is a wonderful piece of bombast that turns Stephen King's Dark Tower series into Legend of Zelda music from Asgard. If that doesn't sound up your alley, there's always the Decemberists.

Bad Brains, "Sailin' On"

18 Days to Find a Home


Even in the Converge and Dillinger Escape Plan era, the first few seconds on Bad Brains' first album feel like a knockout blow to the head. The lyrics are almost comically nonchalant for such a breakneck song--there's no sailing going on here, this is a hurricane. There are melodies buried in "Sailin' On", most apparent in the background vocals that chime in at the :28 mark, and several cover versions (astonishingly, No Doubt, Living Colour, Soulfly and Moby have all recorded it) have unearthed more of the tune. But on Bad Brains it's a war between H.R. and Dr. Know, the former's You Can't Fire Me Because I Quit narrative trading punches with the latter's monstrous, distorted riffage (plus a solo? On a hardcore album? By devout Rastas? In 1982?). In the end, kicking the storyteller out gives them what they both want, but we know who the real winners are.

The Dillinger Escape Plan, "Panasonic Youth"

"My loathings are simple: stupidity, oppression, crime, cruelty, soft music." --Vladimir Nabokov

Roseland Ballroom

The Roseland Ballroom was like one of those old wooden roller coasters that always looks like it's about to fall apart. It wasn't the safest choice, and it didn't always work, but it could also be counted on for a thrill. Off the top of my head, I can remember three times where the sound blew out, including one where the performer ended the show early. But Roseland Ballroom had as much character as one could expect in a nearly 100-year-old venue. It was either the diviest ballroom or the fanciest dive, one of the only spots that deserved to be in Times Square in 1993 as much as 2013. It's no wonder that Keith Richards, whom it's fair to say has played his share of venues, singled it out as one of his favorites in his autobiography.

Roseland is closing in April, and I'd advise anyone in the New York City area to go before it's too late (Lamb of God, Killswitch Engage and Testament this Friday is currently the best thing on their roster). Until then, here are 10 great metal and alternative moments from the Roseland Ballroom.

1. Ministry, 2003

Straight out of rehab, Al Jourgensen raged back with Ministry's best album in a decade and a show that almost made my ears bleed through my earplugs. As if to prove he could still be crazy without drugs, Jourgensen smashed a guitar early on and brought out Skinny Puppy's Nivek Ogre for an encore of "Burning Inside." Bassist Paul Barker quit shortly after--he had handled two decades of Jourgensen's debauchery, but for some reason this tour was the last straw.

2. Liz Phair, 2004

Touring behind her "sellout" album, Liz turned out to be a cheerful, excited performer whose new songs, when freed from the Matrix's production, sounded fine next to "6'1"" and "Divorce Song." I stood next to a pair of perky kids who brought a homemade sign, sang along to "Why Can't I?" and looked terrified when she played "Fuck and Run."

3. Marilyn Manson, 2004

It was just the Marilyn Manson show that one could hope for. Promoting his first "Best of" album, the former Brian Warner played all the hits and brought out all the old costumes and props. This was also one of those show where the sound blew out, but after the "Irresponsible Hate Anthem" mosh pit, they were lucky the walls were still standing.

4. The Dillinger Escape Plan, 2006

Inexplicably thrown in between A Nightmare of You and AFI, Dillinger proved themselves the only real punk band on the bill with a blisteringly loud set. Greg Puciato, the most violent frontman since Iggy Pop, broke a speaker and a mic stand and was pulled back by security at the height of his presentation. To this day, I've never seen so many people cover their ears for an opening act.

5. Lamb of God with Machine Head and Gojira, 2007

With Gojira on their first American tour, Machine Head on their Blackening comeback and Lamb of God on their biggest headlining tour to date, metal packages did not get much better than this in 2007. After 17 years on the road, LOG were suddenly able to pack a space like Roseland with the heaviest metal to ever reach the Billboard Top Ten. Also, the only show that ever inspired me to start a blog.

6. Mastodon, 2007

Some promoter decided that a co-headlining tour with Mastodon and Against Me! would bring metalheads and punks together into filling out a bigger venue than either band was used to. Instead, the punk kids left before Mastodon came on, and we had a half-empty, 3,200-capacity room to thrash around in under the might of "Circle of Cysquatch" and "March of the Fire Ants."

7. The Pogues, 2009

The Pogues' soon-to-be legendary St. Patrick's Day reunion shows were a testament to the power of mankind, overcoming Shane's physical deterioration and the band's creative downfall to make something special. Like the Ballroom itself, the Pogues were old, wobbly and still capable of magic.

8. Them Crooked Vultures, 2009

Their album hadn't been released yet, and none of us had any idea what a band with Josh Homme, John Paul Jones and Dave Grohl would sound like. It turns out that even pretty good songs can be mind-blowing when they're supported by a fantasy rock rhythm section, and that the ultra-composed Homme was the perfect ringleader.

9. Lamb of God with In Flames and Sylosis, 2012

This was Randy Blythe's last tour before his manslaughter trial, so when I say that Lamb of God played like it might be their last night in New York, I'm not exaggerating. Seeing Lamb of God at their most emotional and political is like seeing Dillinger at their wildest or Andrew W.K. at his partiest.

10. Meshuggah with Animals as Leaders and Intronaut, 2013

Jens Kidman had fallen ill that month and Meshuggah had played their last few shows without their singer when they stopped in New York. Most of us assumed we'd be getting an instrumental show, until a minute into the first song, when Kidman ran out onstage and got a deafening burst of applause. Nothing less than "Swarm" and Kidman's angry samurai face could have prevailed over the noise, so luckily that was next.

The Dillinger Escape Plan and Revocation on Summer Slaughter

Via Metal Injection:

God Forbid, IV: Constitution of Treason

When I first moved to New York, God Forbid seemed like an Ozzysend. Five burly East Brunswick dudes raging against the Bush Administration from stages with Lamb of God and The Dillinger Escape Plan while honoring their thrash predecessors was perfect for the 2006 metal world, especially on the heels of their lighting-riding, soul-slaughtering fourth album.





Even in the toothless, played-out genre that would come to be known as metalcore, IV: Constitution of Treason hits like a cinder block to your forehead. The songs aren't particularly fast, but they seem to breeze by under the Coyle brothers' riffage and Corey Pierce's blast beats. Lineup changes derailed them aesthetically, culminating in their break-up this week, but they retire with one of the best American metal albums of the 21st century.

The Ten Best Metal Records of 2013, So Far

In alphabetical order:

1. Amon Amarth, Deceiver of the Gods

Not many bands can stay relevant by making the same album over and over again. But as long as the Vikings in Amon Amarth are owning death metal's most energizing riffs and sea shantey choruses, they'll be one of rare those bands.



2. ASG, Blood Drive

The riffs have slowed down, the melodies soar, and yet the sun-baked stoner metal tones that made Win Us Over a keeper radiate through. This year's gateway metal album to beat.



3. The Dillinger Escape Plan, One of Us is the Killer

Like the Red Hot Chili Peppers or the Replacements, DEP's one consistency was that they were becoming more streamlined and produced with every album. Until this year--One of Us is the Killer is a heavy dose of ferocity that both reaches back to and expands on their early sonic furies. You know, from when mathcore was a punchline.



4. Intronaut, Habitual Levitations

"Nimble," "catchy" and "addictive" aren't words usually used to describe prog-rock. Unless someone is doing it better than everyone else.



5. Kvelertak, Meir

Nobody wants to feel the pressure of following up a monster debut, but Kvelertak sound like they love it. Your friends who tell you about DIIV saving punk and Liturgy saving metal are missing out.



6. Nails, Abandon All Life

Wow! Where did these guys come from? Did someone make a bet that they could make Pig Destroyer sound like the Foo Fighters in 17 minutes? Collect.



7. Ramming Speed, Doomed To Destroy, Destined To Die

It takes a lot for me to tolerate neo-thrash. Even the best bands, like Municipal Waste and Skeletonwitch, are hard to listen to when there's already the Big Four and Testament. But Ramming Speed fused it with just enough death metal to make me wonder why no one thought of this before, between headbangs.



8. Shining, One One One

I don't know what made a Swedish avant-jazz band decide that they could save industrial metal, but I hope they keep doing it. No wonder NIN is back this year.



9. Soilwork, The Living Infinite

Outside of Natural Born Chaos, I assumed that Soilwork was a perfectly honorable background metal band. I had no interest in picking up a double album from them, until a friend planted it in my dropbox. Who knew that a 2-CD death metal set, much less one from Soilwork, could rock this hard? Their countrymen in In Flames and Arch Enemy haven't put out anything this potent in ages.



10. Queens of the Stone Age, Like Clockwork

In which Josh Homme forfeits his title as rock's coolest man to out himself as an emotional wreck. The bravest twist yet in one of modern rock's most indispensable careers.

Mastodon, "Island"

If you were planning on seeing Monsters University to find out how Mastodon's "Island" plays on the soundtrack, don't bother. It's reduced to a couple of barely audible, almost unrecognizeable seconds, not enough to catch the song unless you already expected it. As my companion noted, "That was probably about as much Mastodon as Disney could get away with playing."



Pixar could probably get away with playing a little more of Mastodon's more recent, prog and classic rock-influenced albums, Crack the Skye and The Hunter. But on Leviathan, the best-ever Moby Dick adaptation, Mastodon were too terrifying to be considered for major film soundtracks. "Island" is the least melodic song on a furiously uncompromising album, sounding more like The Dillinger Escape Plan covering "Honey Bucket" than the actual recording of that. Mastodon were never this brutal again, but not many bands ever have been.

Ten Metal Bands to See Before You Die: The Dillinger Escape Plan

This.



With the Metropolitan Museum of Art hosting a schmancy “Punk: From Chaos To Couture” gala attended by Hilfigers and Kardashians this month, one could be fooled into thinking that all danger has been completely erased from rock n' roll. Then you see a band like The Dillinger Escape Plan. Rock music is going to be OK, although I worry that these guys might not be.

When anything gets burned or broken at a rock show, usually it's there to be destroyed. Notice how Paul Stanley's guitar shatters in the exact same place, at the same time in the show, night after night after night. But when something--instruments, equipment, bones--gets broken or torched at a Dillinger show, one senses that these boys just couldn't control themselves. If Greg Puciato starts running towards the crowd, get out of the way. If he brings out a torch, duck. If there's an encore, you've done something right. Show me someone who thinks that Karen O is insane, and I'll show you someone who's never seen Greg Puciato.

Watching Ben Weinman play guitar reminds me of Jerry Lee Lewis setting his piano on fire, or Kurt Cobain flinging himself into Dave Grohl's drum kit. His ability to make math-rock stay in your head has earned him a spot among today's metal greats, but his performances are in a league with the most dangerous rock legends. I don't know many people who could play "Panasonic Youth" sitting down, much less while swinging the guitar around and violently jerking back and forth. Whoever is in charge of equipment at the Bowery Presents clubs probably begs the promoters to not book The Dillinger Escape Plan.

When I get a chance to breathe, sometimes I wonder how much further these guys can go. There may not be a more musically or physically demanding band in the world. I can't imagine they're getting much compensation, unless blogger admiration counts for something. Every time someone leaves the band, I'm a little disappointed but never too surprised. But whether Puciato, Weinman and the rest of DEP break up tonight (and, considering this month's One of Us is the Killer, that would be a crushing loss), or whether they're as young as Lemmy when they're 65, watching them on any stage is one of music's rarest and most dependable thrills.

Brooklyn Calling

Does this look like the kind of mix that would have "I Just Called to Say I Love You?" Go to the mall.



Brooklyn Calling

1. Foo Fighters, "This is a Call"
2. Queensrÿche, "Revolution Calling"
3. The Rolling Stones, "Come On"
4. Muddy Waters, "Long Distance Call"
5. The Beatles, "You Won't See Me"
6. X, "Your Phone's Off the Hook But You're Not"
7. The White Stripes, "Hello Operator"
8. Chuck Berry, "Memphis"
9. The Grateful Dead, "Operator"
10. Kraftwerk, "The Telephone Call"
11. Blondie, "Hanging on the Telephone"
12. Al Green, "Call Me (Come Back Home)"
13. Lou Reed, "New York Telephone Conversation"
14. The Notwist, "Pick up the Phone"
15. Love, "The Red Telephone"
16. Penguin Cafe Orchestra, "Telephone and Rubber Band"
17. Prince, "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore"
18. The Mothers of Invention, "You Didn't Try to Call Me"
19. The Clash, "London Calling"
20. Bob Dylan & The Band, "Long Distance Operator"
21. Tom Waits, "Telephone Call From Istanbul"
22. The Cure, "Wrong Number"
23. The Replacements, "Answering Machine"

23 songs that are less annoying than "I Just Called to Say I Love You" or "Call Me Maybe."

I put this together for some volunteers who will be making calls to help re-elect the President this weekend. For their sake, I'm not including the Dillinger Escape Plan or the Beastie Boys, although those might have been too distracting anyway. Thus, Brooklyn Calling doesn't get any heavier than "This is a Call," which, since Dave Grohl wrote it, will offend exactly no one.

Like many of my half-decent ideas, this one started with the Sound Opinions podcast. Every week, Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot kick off their call-taking segment ("On Sound Opinions, everyone's a critic, so give us a call on our hotline...") by playing a great song about the phone. Had I not heard them on Sound Opinions, I never would've picked out Chuck Berry's "Memphis" or "Come On," the Rolling Stones' first-ever single (also written by Berry) as phone songs. Kot and DeRogatis have also included "Operator," "The Telephone Call," "Call Me," "New York Telephone Conversation" and others on their show. Finally, thumbs up to Sound Opinions for featuring "Hanging on the Telephone," which I prefer to Blondie's more famous phone song.

Much has changed since the days of switchboard operators, and despite the underlying phone theme, many of these songs are hard to apply to the work that we do on the campaign. The most relatable songs here are definitely "Wrong Number," "Answering Machine" and "Your Phone's Off the Hook But You're Not."

Rest in Peace, Hydra Head

Sad to read yesterday about the demise of Hydra Head Records. Aaron Turner's labor of love (founded while he was in high school, before he was in Isis) distributed some of the best metal of the past 20 years. Stoner, noise, experimental, sludge, doom, mathcore, call it what you will, no metalhead should be without the following five.

1. Converge, Caring and Killing

Before the internet, music fans used to burn holes in their wallets tracking down early recordings of their favorite bands. Converge and Hydra Head's re-release of Halo in a Haystack with some early rarities kept the rest of us from doing that.



2. The Dillinger Escape Plan, Counting Infinity

The Dillinger Escape Plan were more raw and aggressive than they'd ever be again on their debut. Hearing DEP at their loudest is like hearing Andrew W.K. at his partiest.




3. The Melvins, (A) Senile Animal

In hindsight, of course a band that made a career out of being unpredictable would wait 25 years to start making their best music. See if you can find the three-part harmony.



4. Big Business, Here Come the Waterworks

The Melvins' secret weapon on (A) Senile Animal gave themselves away on their second album, in which a guitarless, two-many army made treble sound like a waste of time.



5. Torche, Meanderthal

The catchiest stoner metal band in the world? On Meanderthal, Torche were the catchiest rock band in the world.

The Five Best Metal Interpreters

Frank from Metal Injection once told me that he thought Testament deserved to be in Metal's Big Four and not Anthrax. This seemed like it was worth fighting over, so I informed him that he was wrong. I stand by my case, but he did make one point that I could not counter, which is that Anthrax's best songs are all covers.

Recorded metal covers don't usually do much for the original or the interpreter. Watching the Dillinger Escape Plan roar into Nine Inch Nails' "Wish" in person is a favorite memory for anyone who's been so lucky, but no one who owns Broken needs another version. It takes some extra character to successfully reimagine a song with a tape rolling, and for that we salute these five.

1. Anthrax

Anthrax have no shortage of great originals, but it was their charisma--Scott Ian's tones, Charlie Benante's blast beats, the entire band's penchant for comedy, comic books and Stephen King--that edged them past Testament, Exodus and Overkill. They elevated Public Enemy with "Bring the Noise," spanked Trust with "Antisocial" and topped themselves with this d-beat breakdown of of Joe Jackson's "Got the Time." Flea once observed that this song "made my kidneys flip upside down."



2. Faith No More

FNM won metal hearts in 1989 with a take on "War Pigs" that remains the best cover of the most-covered metal band in history, then proceeded to weird out listeners with faithful, unironic takes on the Commodores' "Easy" and John Barry's Midnight Cowboy theme. Check out their video for the Bee Gees' "I Started a Joke" and keep waiting for the punchline. There isn't one. 



3. Guns N' Roses

They did "Live and Let Die" better than Paul McCartney, "Mama Kin" better than Aerosmith and "Since I Don't Have You" about as well as the Skyliners. Other than the obvious choice of Hendrix's "All Along the Watchtower," I have never heard a better Dylan cover than GNR's "Knockin' on Heaven's Door." It reminds me of Nick Hornby's take on pre-sellout Rod Stewart in 31 Songs*.



4. Metallica

It takes more than original songwriting to become the greatest metal band of all time. The $5.98 E.P: Garage Days Re-Revisited did more for underground metal than any fanzine ever did, and its '90s sequel is Metallica's most underrated release. Who knew what a great song "Breadfan" by Budgie was until James Hetfield's downstrokes invigorated it? When Hetfield retires, his right hand should be enshrined in a museum, next to Axl's larynx and Ozzy's liver.



5. Rage Against the Machine

On their last studio album, Renegades, RATM ran Dylan, Springsteen, Eric B. & Rakim, the Stones, Minor Threat, EPMD, Devo and more through Tom Morello's effects pedal wizardry and Zack de la Rocha fiery delivery. It all sounds like Rage; in short, it's fantastic. Any other metal band would be laughed at for taking on Afrika Bambaataa's "Renegades of Funk," but with Rage at the helm it's as potent as "Bulls on Parade."



*On Stewart's version of "Mama You've Been on My Mind." "Stewart's evident love for the song rescues it, or at least spotlights it: where Dylan almost throws it away, with the implication that there's plenty more where that one came from, Stewart's reverence seems to dignify it, invest it with an epical quality that Dylan denies it. I probably like both version equally now, but if it hadn't been for Stewart, I never would have been able to spot that there was anything there."

Song of the Day: Refused, "New Noise"

Usually my take on band reunions is that you get one comeback tour before you need to start releasing new music. I'm happy with one extensive reunion tour (At the Gates, Faith No More), fine with bands releasing new music, no matter how bad (Stooges, New York Dolls) and disappointed when artists wade in year after year of nostalgia with no new product (Pixies, My Bloody Valentine). However, since the Refused's Williamsburg show was rained out and I couldn't get into their make up club show, I'd be OK with them stopping by New York again very soon.



Punk rock was on life support in 1998 when the Refused released The Shape of Punk to Come. There has never been a more aptly-titled record, both in defiantly sticking up for a dying genre and aligning their adventuresome tendencies with Ornette Coleman's. Five Swedish hardcore kids showed up to the Vans Warped Tour era with an actual punk record, one made good with the Sex Pistols' ideas not as much in sound or style as in innovation. 14 years later, it still sounds like The Shape of Punk to Come, a direction that punk music will take, but not for a long time.

"New Noise" may be the only song here that could have appeared on a Punk-O-Rama comp, but even at their tightest, the Refused sound unhinged. Blasts of proto-mathcore get thrown in with some Dischord-worthy melodies. If there were a verse-chorus-verse structure, it'd be compared to the Pixies, but instead it stands as one of the first glimpses of punk as something that jazzheads would play. Converge and the Dillinger Escape Plan would go on to fuse some of these ideas with metal, a genre already known for its musicianship, but with the Refused it's still strictly punk. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

"There's nothing fucking 'mere' about drawing." --Albert Dorne

California Metal

My sister is moving to California this month, and I agreed to make her a corresponding mix CD. This was before I realized that there are a lot of songs about California. I figured that I'd work things out simply by not including any bad California songs, but I'm still struggling to cut down 40 or so great tracks into an 80-minute CD.

Some outtakes:

The Dillinger Escape Plan with Mike Patton, "Hollywood Squares"

Two of the most idiosyncratic artists in metal bring out the best in each other, taking noise and melody to parts unknown.



Tool, "Ænima"

A 12/8 finger extended to L.A. gangbangers, scientologists and folks who don't believe in climate change. The weirdest song to ever win a Grammy.



Public Enemy, "Burn Hollywood Burn"

Metal by association. Dig Flavor Flav dropping punchlines before he became one--the Driving Miss Daisy reaction still makes me smile.



Guns N' Roses, "Move to the City"

In title alone is this appropriate for my baby sister.



Guns N' Roses, "Paradise City"

As grand a statement as ever recorded, but not the GNR song I'm picking for the mix.



Soundgarden, "Outshined"

These days, Chris is probably looking Minnesota and feeling California.



Kid Rock, "Cowboy"

I love this song. My sister, like most intellectuals, does not.

Crooked Man at Freddy's

John LaMacchia is one of music's most underrated genre-benders. In Candiria, he didn't just blend jazz, hip-hop and ambience with metal, he actually infiltrated authentic jazz, hip-hop and trip-hop measures into his music. More recently, he teamed up with fellow sonic mavericks in Isis, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Made Out of Babies for a bludgeoning EP as Spylacopa (say, when can we hear more of that?) and produced Julie Christmas' haunting solo album, The Bad Wife, all for LaMacchia's Rising Pulse label. He could already retire on his track record, but his new three-piece Crooked Man indicates that there's more up his sleeve.

Performing in a secluded room at Freddy's in Brooklyn, LaMacchia's band was filled out by bassist Michael Shaw and singer/guitarist Sabrina Ellie. The sparse, drumless lineup recalled the better MTV Unplugged episodes, where the bands ditched the hits in favor of the songs that were best left underproduced. Stripping much of the aggression from the doom metal nightmares of their recent EP, Crooked Man waltzed songs like "The Parting Gift" into murder ballad territory. Much of LaMacchia's acclaim goes to his production and arrangement gifts, so a forum for his songwriting talents was particularly welcome.

On vocals, LaMacchia doesn't have much range, but he's a convincing frontman with a theatrical flair. He embodied Morrissey and Thom Yorke's emotiveness on Smiths and Radiohead covers, and best of all, interpreted the Misfits' "Come Back" as a Nick Cave ballad. If Crooked Man release a covers record, there'll be at least one buyer.

Encoring with a lovely read of "No Surprises," Crooked Man left the impression that the best of LaMacchia may be yet to come. Call it the process of self-development.

Rorschach at Le Poisson Rouge

Taking your heroes out on tour is a mixed blessing. I'm glad that U2 gave Patti Smith a stadium-sized audience, but does anyone think that "Dancing Barefoot" is best heard in a 20,000-capacity arena? Does anyone remember anything about AFI's 2006 US tour, except that The Dillinger Escape Plan opened? Touring with your favorite artists is honorable, but it can also be dangerous.

Thus Rorschach, a New Jersey artcore band whose dissonant punk rock influenced bands like Coalesce and the Refused, recently reunited for a few East Coast shows, supposedly the last that they will ever perform. At best, this reunion will be remembered as an afterthought to the blazing Converge performance that preceded it.



Saluting two of their influences, Converge sandwiched themselves between Brooklyn's Indecision and Rorschach for a Saturday show at Le Poisson Rouge. It was a venue that Converge could have packed on their own, and they nobly sold no merchandise and took second billing to an elder, less-appreciated hardcore band. Yet onstage, Converge didn't shy away from annihilating their forefathers as if they were any other band.

Perhaps fired up by playing alongside their boyhood idols, Converge played the most violent, spirited show that I'd seen in my ten years of fandom. Moshers were constantly flung up between band members as they roared through their last decade breakneck brutality. Unlike Indecision or Rorschach, Converge's recorded history is ongoing, and their newest songs (promised for release this September 11) erupted with vigor. From the classic hardcore of "Bitter and Then Some" to the enraged blare of songs from their recent Axe to Fall, Converge exhibited one of the most unimpeachable discographies in metal history, backed with urgent, flailing performances by all four bandmates. At the end of "Last Light," the stage was packed with moshers, and frontman Jacob Bannon signaled the end of one of the year's best metal shows.

Rorschach, as performers and musicians, were unsuited to follow. Their sludgier, tricky hardcore, while innovative in it's early-'90s prime, has since been reaped from and bettered by newer bands. This would be fine, were it not performed by five dudes who, either from bitterness or ennui, couldn't muster up the energy to give their music the show that it deserved. Don't buy the too-old excuse--anyone who has ever seen Iggy Pop or Lemmy will tell you that punk rockers can thrash way into their 60s. Even Indecision, the middle-aged, politically-conscious hardcore vets who opened the show, brought more verve to their music than the headliners.

Rorschach left Le Poisson Rouge with an admirable legacy and audible influence, but I'd be surprised if they left the club with any new fans.

Appetite for Destruction: "My Michelle"

Everybody has a Michelle.



Maybe her dad isn't a pornographer, and maybe she isn't balancing schoolwork with cocaine and easy virtue, but everybody has someone that they think they can save. A friend, partner or relative who is loved not too wisely but too well. F. Scott Fitzgerald had Zelda and Johnny Rotten had Sid Vicious. Axl Rose had Michelle.

Michelle's story is immortalized by Axl's reaction to it. No matter what or who she does in the verses, Axl goes back to assuring her that things will work out. "Someday you'll find someone that'll fall in love with you," goes the bridge. "Honey, don't stop trying and you'll get what you deserve," ends the final stanza.

The contrast of her lifestyle and his outlook is reflected in the music. "My Michelle" pairs aggressive verses with a melodic chorus, inverting the more famous "quiet verses/loud chorus" structure defined by the Pixies and popularized by Nirvana. This paved the way for the sonic extremities of bands like The Dillinger Escape Plan, who covered "My Michelle" for a tribute album.



Who knows what Axl saw in Michelle Young. I can't pretend to have an answer, but I wonder if it was anything like what Slash, Duff McKagan, Izzy Stradlin, Erin Everly and Stephanie Seymour saw in him.

In memory of Lauren.