Review: CANNIBAL CORPSE & Power Trip live @ The Royale (Boston, MA)
 |
| Tour poster courtesy of Royale Boston and CANNIBAL CORPSE. |
In this world of constant change there is very little we can rely on to deliver consistent results. Fortunately, fans of heavy metal
music have been graced with an exception to this pesky principle: the always
heavy, perpetually brutal music of death metal titans Cannibal Corpse. After
rising to fame in the booming early 90’s death metal scene Cannibal Corpse
has achieved legendary status in the metal community and are arguably the
most famous and well-known death metal band on the planet. Since their 1990 debut Eaten Back to Life, Cannibal has been altered bu only a handful of personnel changes. While some may favor the raw intensity of
their early work with vocalist Chris Barnes, others prefer the newer, more
modern direction the band has taken with George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher holding
the microphone. Still, others may be drawn to the group due to their status as
one of the most controversial bands in the world. Cannibal Corpse’s intense lyrics and gorey album covers have
been subject to censorship or complete blacklisting in several countries around
the world. In an ironic fashion, this negative press has seemed to heighten
interest in the band for newcomers who may have never heard classic songs like
“Meat Hook Sodomy”, “Entrails Ripped from a Virgin’s Cunt”, “Frantic
Disembowelment” and….you get the picture. Whatever your affiliation with the
band, one thing remains the same: for almost three decades, Cannibal Corpse has
continued to deliver bone crushing death metal album after album. Their latest
release Red Before Black is no
exception – which is exactly what we wanted.
Much like their timeless music, a Cannibal Corpse concert
doesn’t exactly reinvent the wheel. A Cannibal Corpse show is, in a sense, about as old school as it gets. Fans who have seen a Cannibal play live once should know exactly what to expect the second third, and tenth time around: a lot of songs, a lot of moshing, and some friendly banter
between Corpsegrinder and the crowd. That’s about it. There are no stage props, no
microphone stands, and no décor - aside
from two fat stacks of Marshall amplifiers. All three guitarists take the stage
in the same exact places and do not move or rotate sides for the entire show.
(I’m serious, look up any live
photographs. Same exact places every time.) Transitions between songs are short
and announced only by the name – if at all. When one considers this aesthetic
monotony, it is amazing that each Cannibal Corpse concert continues to be an
absolute spectacle for everyone in attendance. I have seen Cannibal Corpse play
live five times and each performance – though identically similar for the band
members - has been unique and special
for me as a fan. This is the reason why I show up every time they are on tour.
This time around, the decision was even simpler. Cannibal was going to be on
the road with one of the hungriest and most headbangable bands in modern metal: Power Trip. No brainer. It was off to the Royale in Boston for
me.
I arrived in Beantown on a chilly November evening realizing
that the Royale is one of the few metal venues in Boston I had yet to vist.
Needless to say, I was very excited for a new experience. I have previously
seen Cannibal Corpse in Boston at the House of Blues, which is an enormous
venue, and at the Paradise Rock Club, which is a bit bigger than a sweatbox.
The Royale was a prefect happy medium between both choices. Though it is about
half the capacity of HOB, it maintained a similar level of service and value
for the ticket price. The staff at Royale was very nice and helpful: they
provided a low-priced coat check, decently priced draft beer, and (get ready
for it) clean bathrooms. I’m not really a stickler for things like this. However,
as an overzealous music venue employee myself, it is always nice to see a venue
going the extra mile for their patrons. It is, however, clearly a club venue. Patrons
walk up to the second floor of the building to get to general admission – the
venue is almost completely hidden from a street view. When I saw the bulky
crowd of over 1000 squirming their way up the tiny staircase and onto the
beer-soaked hardwood floor, I knew we were all in for a hell of a night.
 |
| [Riley Gale (center vocals) addresses the crowd during a break in PT's set.] |
As I mentioned before, a huge selling point of coming out to
this specific tour was getting a chance to see Power Trip – one of the
hungriest bands in modern metal scene -play a live show. In fact, I had been
waiting for this opportunity since I first heard these Dallas thrashers rip
through their latest release Nightmare Logic.
Nightmare Logic, the group’s second full length, clocks in at just over a
half hour long – and every second keeps your head banging. Just ask Scott Ian!
Upon first listen, I had to admit that (a huge thrash metal fan) I was also blown
away at their old school approach to the classic crossover thrash sound. While
bands like D.R.I. and Suicidal Tendencies may have perfected this sound in
their prime, Power Trip is a breath of fresh air in a subgenre that may be
growing stale.
 |
| [If you can tickle the "thrash-bone" of Anthrax genius Scott Ian, you've officially recorded a ripping track. From @scottianthrax.] |
Lead guitarist Blake Ibanez is an absolutely thrilling guitarist
whose solos could easily be slipped into an Anthrax or Megadeth song without notice. Nightmare Logic also has a diversity in
tempo that keeps every track different and interesting - the pace of songs ranges from blistering fast
thrash-oriented rippers (“Firing Squad”) to chuggy, thick tunes guaranteed to
leave your neck sore (“Soul Sacrifice.) Their frontman, Riley Gale, performs
fast and quick vocals covering classic thrash themes such as war, violence, and
overall brutality of human existence. Their stage performance was equally as
energetic and lively as their music. As the pit grew wider and wider, I looked
around and noticed that the crowd was full of tons of PT fans – I obviously jumped on the bandwagon very late.
People screamed along devilishly to track after track, feeding frontman Riley
Gale the energy he needed to deliver some acrobatic jumps, karate kicks, and
microphone stand whirling. I was surprised that this band, who is youthful to
say the least, has attracted so much energy and buzz after only two full-length
albums. In the larger world, PT has been touring extensively for almost all of
2017, supporting legendary metal acts such as Exodus, Obituary, and Trivium.
They also recently performed live at the Loudwire
music awards after winning 2017 Song of the Year award for their single
“Executioner’s Tax (Swing of the Axe”.) This press, however, means nothing. It
was their live show that completely sold me on this band. Interestingly,
several of the older metalheads in the crowd whom I spoke with – a few who
confessed to being completely fed up with most model metal acts – admitted they
really, really liked the PT sound and their fresh take on an old-school style
of thrash. To me, this really speaks to their potential to become a huge force
in the metal music scene. They have a style youthful and energetic enough to
entertain a young crowd while also showing their roots and allowing older,
seasoned metalheads to encounter something familiar for the first time. Next time they pull into your town, make sure you are
there.
 |
| [Lead guitarist Blake Ibanez shreds away.] |
When it comes to Cannibal Corpse, well…the history has
already been made. Their first four albums are often regarded as some of the
cornerstones of death metal genre – and rightly so. Eaten Back to Life and Tomb
of the Mutilated have produced classic tracks that still ring out through
concert venues to this day. However, I have noticed a small divide in some places. I have met several Cannibal Corpse fans over the
years who have had difficulty getting past the vocalist change from Chris
Barnes to Corpsegrinder. This is understandable. At the same time, many fans
are completely satisfied with Corpsegrinder and find him to be a perfect
replacement for Barnes. I myself am very happy that the band was able to
continue with Corpsegrider, who has an excellent personality and is great with
fans (unlike the rumors that swirl around the moody Barnes.)
At the Royale, the
death metal masters of almost thirty years performed just as I as expected –
absolutely brutally. Per usual, they tore onto the stage with the slow, sludgey
single from their latest album – in this case, “Code of the Slashers.” I figured
out within the first fifteen seconds of this song that Boston had showed up in
force: people flew, hair whipped, and several snot rockets smote the stage. As
the crowd expanded and contracted with each passing riff, I couldn’t resist
getting slammed around for a while myself – I had to jump into the mosh pit for
crowd favorites “Scourge of Iron” and “Evisceration Plague.” About halfway through the set, I was coming
back from a much needed sloppy sink drink break in the restroom when I heard
Corpsegrinder bellow out the title of my personal favorite CC song– “The Wretched
Spawn.” I immediately began to carve my way through the crowd (dodging flying bodies
and fists), across the beer-soaked mosh pit (trying not to end up on my back)
and, as if by a miracle, found myself chest to front railing. I’m still not
sure how it worked out so perfectly, but I was in the front row about six feet
from a growling Corpsegrinder. Needless to say. I didn’t move for the rest of
the evening.
As I mentioned before, a Cannibal Corpse show isn’t exactly
a spectacle in the theatrical sense – unless you would consider five oversized
old dudes headbanging for ninety minutes to be over the top. However, my
vantage point had never been better. From this perch, I could see the
intricacies of every riff, watch the string bends on every solo, and hear
Corpsegrinder’s unintelligible growl as never before. This goes without saying,
but Alex Webster puts on a clinic every time he picks up a guitar. The
enigmatic bassist and founding member of Cannibal Corpse barely looks up from
under his billowing mane of blond hair the entire set – save to throw up the
horns at the conclusion of a handful of songs. For the rest of the show, he
stands as a statue while playing his incredibly fast and complex music with the
ultimate dexterity. The intensity of his guitar playing is incredible for man
of almost fifty. The same goes for the incredibly skilled Rob Barrett – I could
follow the hand motions of both of these guitar giants while letting the music
ring out around me.
 |
| [Alex Webster mid-shred.] |
Through the set, the band ripped through 5 tracks from their new album – an obvious show of their confidence in their new work. However, by the end of the night, they had played tracks from twelve of their fourteen albums – a statistic which needs no summary or explanation. Though every Cannibal Corpse show may be aesthetically similar, they always seek to mix up a setlist and deliver a couple of surprises to the fans - in this case “Gutted” and “Pounded into Dust” being tracks I have never head live. Per habitude, they finish off with the classic “Hammer Smashed Face” and leave the scene without another word. Corpsegrider does not bend down to shake hands. Rob Barrett hands his guitar to his tech and heads back to the green room. Alex Webster could very easily walk to the front of the stage and throw out a hundred picks to a hundred screaming fans at the end of the set – however he does not. Leaving the stage, he turns around and puts up his horns once more, nodding slowly in appreciation for the numbers who have showed up time and time again. Though the members of the group may have aged with the genre itself, they have remained humbly dominant. CANNIBAL CORPSE hasn’t left a mark on the death metal genre – they left a brand.
 |
| [An excellent souvenir - front row perks!] |
No comments:
Post a Comment