Sounds Of The Underground - Merriweather Post Pavillion Columbia, MD 7/17/06

Wow, what a day! In order to see this show, I had to endure a near 100 degree day. It was very hot to say the least. With that said, upon entrance they informed us that the "SOTU" tour did not want anyone to be allowed in w/a bottle of water, which the venue allows. The reasoning I guess is so people don't use the bottles as projectiles. Understood, that happened at "Ozzfest" two years ago. However, it was a 100 degree day. To Merriweather's credit, they did provide cups for people to empty their water in to. That was cool. The staff at Merriweather all seemed fairly friendly & helpful as well on other occassions. Once in, I took in the vendor booths. Starting w/the "SOTU" booth, their was a booth for each band right inside the entrance. When you walk around the corner, up on the grass field you had some independant booths. There was a Metal Blade booth, which I'll get back to later. Then you had some indie label booths along w/some independant record store booths. This was all pretty cool. I found some pretty cool stuff that really wasn't what I would've expected to see at this show. The only two things I bought were Angra's "Temple Of Shadows" CD/DVD set & Sieges Even's "The Art Of Navigating By The Stars". I'd say the owner of that booth probably thought they'd be the last CDs he'd sell that day! Pretty reasonable prices too. Actually, I was shocked at just how reasonable the pricing was on all of the merchandise there. Shirts averaged $25, which if you've been to a show lately, you know is a good price. As for the Metal Blade booth, I saw some things there that I wanted to pick up, but figured I'd get settled in & then head back. The show ran until almost 10pm & I went back to the Metal Blade booth around 6pm & the guy was packing everything up. I lost out on a few discs that I wanted, but they lost out on my money. Oh well. Prices at the concession stand was a whole nother story though. I twice paid $4 for a diet soda. I paid $6 for a burger. Talk about rip off!! I guess that's enough said about the venue & surroundings for now. I'll get on to the show itself. Having missed Horse The Band, Through The Eyes Of The Dead, Municipal Waste & Dog Fashion Disco, I obviously can't comment on them. Sorry! The first band I did catch were "The Chariot". I wasn't familiar w/them other than seeing part of one video on tv. These guys played for about 25 minutes or so & really did nothing for me. I wouldn't even know how to describe them to be honest. Converge hit the stage & came out w/a pretty intense stage presence, but again, music I just couldn't get in to. They also played for about 25 minutes. Terror, pretty much more of the same. They were not bad, just did nothing to capture my attention. Next up were Behemoth. These guys were one of the bands that I was actually curious to see. Having only seen one video from them, I already knew that they were a good band. They came on & put on a great show. Playing for about a half hour, they ripped through one intense song after another. They put on a very active stage show that brought back memories of the metal band stage moves from the 80's. Kind of like reliving the thrash years all over again. Except for the mix, these guys sounded great. Definately a band I'm planning on checking out some more. I have to say, they all came out w/this white face paint on & they looked pretty darn scary!! Cool set. The Black Dahlia Murder were up next. Perhaps the band that I looked forward to seeing the most. They didn't dissapoint at all either. The only negative about their performance was the mix. You couldn't really make out what the singer was doing & unfortunately, the incredible guitar work was often lost in the mix. Still, these guys put on a great show & definately make me want to see them again. Next up was Gwar. Ok, I've never been a fan of these guys, but that's more for the fact that I've never really listened to them, save for a few songs. W/that said, I was definately looking forward to seeing them live. The one thing I can say now is, "I've seen Gwar". That's about it. They came out in full costume & had a more elaborate stage set than any other band. They had a few "actors?" I guess join them on stage in costume acting out things while the band was playing. Occasionally the non band guys would interact w/the band, but for the most part it was like some strange musical on stage. The band was unbelievably loud. All of the sudden the sound was atleast double the volume that we were hearing the entire day. The mix was better than all other bands, but definately too loud. Stil, some things were lost in the mix. I have to say, for about the first 15 minutes, Gwar & their stage show were hilarious. After that though, it got old real quick. Musically they were pretty tight. Actually I couldn't believe that they got away w/some of the acts they were performing on stage. They were simulating sexual acts that could easily offend people. I found it kind of interesting that several police officers came around & were just standing there laughing at what the band was doing. The main thing the band did that turned me off was to take advantage of their celebrity & audience to spout of their oppinions on President Bush. You may not like President Bush, but to bash him repeatedly & then have this person in a Bush costume come out & you totally destroy him, is going way to far. I'll never be sorry if I don't see Gwar again. Like other artists that I've seen, I can now say that I've seen them & that's the only thing positive to be said about them. After Gwar we got to see Cannibal Corpse. Again, here's a band that's been around for a long time. I never thought that I'd get the oppertunity to see them. They came out & totally ripped through their set. Playing for a half hour or so & absolutely shredding the entire time. These guys were pretty awesome. Trivium were up next. I was looking forward to seeing these guys again. I caught them last year at Ozzfest & they were great. They came out & put on a great show, but once again, the sound was lacking. They even performed a cool cover of Metallica's "Master Of Puppets", although stopping at the acoustic break. These guys definately put on a good show. My only other complaint was that they played such a short set. Next up were In Flames. Hands down, the best performance of the day. These guys totally ripped. Great sound, great stage pressence. They know how to command the stage. Again a short set, but definately a great one. This band played selections from several albums in their catalog. I'd have to say that this might be the band that most people there were in to. It just seemed like this band is destined for big things & their fan base is already strong & growing. If you get the chance to see this band, do it! In Flames absolutely stole the show. Last up was As I Lay Dying. At this point it had been an extremely long day & the heat was finally getting to me. It was almost time to call it a day. I walked around for a bit trying to listen to them & hang in their a little longer. Finally went back & sat down for about two songs & called it a day. They had a great mix & were putting on a good show. I think that they were really good, but by this time I was done. Unfortunately, it seemed like much of the crowd was too. There was a pit, but it looked like alot of people were crashed out in seats or heading out the gate. All in all, a very cool day. The sound production on some bands could've used alot of help, but still many of them had strong enough performances to overcome that issue. The one thing I was kind of amazed with was the attendance. I'd guess maybe 2000 people or so, if that. I found myself saying "I can't believe they didn't cancel this due to poor ticket sales"! To the bands credits, they didn't let the small turn out take anything away from their show. They all turned in what I would like to think, their best.

Email: jlembach@comcast.net