I arrived all sweaty and short of breath from rushing straight from work to the venue; if there's one thing I hate, it's missing out on the start of a show. Thankfully, the first show of the evening had only just started. The first two opening sets of the evening took place on the venue's terrace, under the beautiful sunny weather, a splendid initiative that proved to be very fruitful judging from the crowd that had gathered for the show. First up was the dirty ol' sweaty duo Viva Le Fox featuring Joe Buck, here to shake things up with their dusty, bluesy set of rockabily tunes. Operating as a guitar and double bass duo, these folks certainly did a remarkable job in waking up a crowd still enjoying their happy hour to rusty yet danceable, swinging jams. With minimal equipment and a fairly straightforward formula, these guys were sweating like hell while singing their heart out; it doesn't get any more punk rock than these guys. A great show rewarded by a great reception by a contented crowd.
As the opening festivities carried on, the duo made way for the 2nd guests of the evening. The Hooten Hallers from Colombia, MO set up their gear and took up where the show had left off with a set of pure bluesy, hillbilly rock n' roll. With a setup barely surpassing Viva Le Fox's sense of minimalism; the trio made for an exceptional show with a great set with simple riffs set to a swinging backbeat rhythm on the drums and on the Saxophone. Vocalist and guitarist John Randall groaned and screamed out his bluesy verses with an unprecedented amount of character, throat-singing like a lung-ridden hillbilly having burnt out his throat from smoking too many Camel cigs in the hot southern sun. With a set balancing out rock n' roll twists and bluesy tales with riffs crashing down like magnificent strikes of sonic thunder, The Hooten Hallers just make you want to howl, twist and shout to the backbeat and go wild; a set of bluesy rock n'roll in its purest and finest form.
After this delightful couple of opening sets ended, the Hooten Hallers gracefully bowed to the audience (who were insistingly cheering for an encore) to direct them hastily inside the venue for the next show, an acoustic set hosted by Joe Buck, who played the bass earlier that night for Viva Le Fox. Though I doubt this is the first time someone has made this remark, I couldn't help but be baffled by the mans' striking resemblance to Eddie, the mascot for Iron Maiden. With an acoustic guitar under his arm and a suitcase kick drum at his foot, Joe Buck treated us to a set of dusty ol' country songs, devilish tales straight from the darkest pits of Kentucky. With the help of his raspy, deep voice, the man did not take long before engulfing the whole venue in a haunting, eerie atmosphere, captivating the entire audience by singing and shouting like a tell-tale of deathly lore. Sadly, the shows' bone-chilling, campfire ghost story atmosphere would have made for a truly enthralling experience had it not been constantly disrupted by Joe Bucks' exasperation with some technical difficulties involving his monitors. What seemed to be a reasonably overlookable issue to us audience caused Joe to lose his temper and grind his teeth in irritation. Likewise, Joe's exasperation ended up gaining the audience, who were visibly growing nervous and fed up by his frequent song interruptions and tantrums in between just about every song. Overall, this was a great set, though I couldn't help but feel as though it could've been significantly more enjoyable had the man refrained from making such a big deal out of his kick drum.
Next up on stage was a sludge/stoner metal band I had been eagerly expecting to see again ever since having first attended their show at Hellfest: Herder, the hardest band from the Netherlands.
Judging from the immediate explosive reception that the band got treated to as soon as they burst out their first few triple guitar riffs, I wasn't the only one that had been expecting this bands' set so impatiently. Havoc and mayhem struck the crowd as the sextet unleashed their massive, chunky riffs with full force. To phrase things concisely, this show was simply insane. Headbanging was not only inevitable for this set, it was mandatory and enforced by vocalist Ché, who made sure everyone in the front row was bopping their heads to his band and occasionally grabbing peoples' still heads to wave them up and down until they headbanged in compliance. From the slow, heavy headbanging stoner rock n'roll songs to the faster, hardcore moshing frenzies, the band kept the shows' level of energy at its utmost intensity with their roided, jaw-droopingly heavy songs and their remarkable stage presence and energy. Ché couldn't help but smile from the audiences' warm reception and was visibly determined to share and spread his good vibes with his fans, exclaiming "I hope you guys brought your dancing shoes with you!" while dancing around like a jolly leprechaun. As ill circumstances would have it, the bands' set was unfortunately cut short due to volume issues, to the disappointment of a pumped up crowd that had obviously not had enough time to put their dancing shoes to good use. Nevertheless, this unfortunate abrupt ending to the set did little to belittle the magnificence of these' fine gents' performance. An excellent show that would've left us with the exact same craving for more had lasted a full hour and a half.
After Herders' set came a long intermission. News had broken out that Eyehategod had been blocked at the French border earlier today, leading to certain uncertainties regarding the closing set of the evening. After a few news briefings by the staff at Stoned Gatherings, the men of the hour finally arrived at 11pm, unloaded and set up their gear in record timing and jumped right into business without a second to lose. The sludge-thirsty crowd that had been respectfully yet noneless impatiently waited an hour for the show snapped and thus the peaceful Glazart instantly turned into a chaotic warzone, raging to the thunderous sounds of New Orleans' most devastating Sludge Metal act, fronted by Mike Williams' tortured screams. With a heavily armed set of songs, the band opened fire and unleashed every bit of the undying rage that have earned them their household name in metal. From slow sludgy neck breakers to their fast-paced, punk-driven tracks, Eyehategod did not take long to tear the venue down with their napalm-fused sound.
Being that I imperatively needed to get home before the metro stopped running, I unfortunately had no choice but to leave about halfway through the bands' set. Despite this regrettable situation that was being anyone’s' control, I really enjoyed the set and I rode back home with a great smile of satisfaction on my face. Stoned Gatherings shows have yet to let me down, and despite a few unfortunate technical issues, every artist gave it their best and each of them absolutely killed it, making for yet another great night to remember.
Robin
PS: I'd like to yet again send my thanks to Stoned Gatherings for making this review possible. Be sure to visit their website to find out about their upcoming shows.
Stoned Gatherings
Official Website
http://stoned-gatherings.com/
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/stonedgatherings.shows?fref=ts
http://stoned-gatherings.com/
https://www.facebook.com/stonedgatherings.shows?fref=ts
The Hooten Hallers
Official Website
http://www.thehootenhallers.com/
Official Bandcamp
https://thehootenhallers.bandcamp.com/
Official Website
http://www.thehootenhallers.com/
Official Bandcamp
https://thehootenhallers.bandcamp.com/
Herder
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/herderisharder
Official Bandcamp
https://herder.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/herderisharder
Official Bandcamp
https://herder.bandcamp.com/
Official Bandcamp
https://eyehategod.bandcamp.com/
Facebookhttps://eyehategod.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialEyeHateGod
