Thrash N' Bang!!!

Swarm Of Eyes / The River Neva / Supernaut / Ratchaburi / Sweet Destruction
The Lucky Dog Music Hall, Worcester, MA     1/28/12

This week Slimedog, Jimmy and I are lookin’ to get lucky at the Lucky Dog Music Hall in Worcester, MA (woof!). A bit of a rock n’ roll icon, the Lucky Dog has hosted the likes of Aerosmith, Boston, Korn, Godsmack and Stain’d, to name a few. But back in 1981, when the club was called, Sir Morgan’s Cove, they hosted none other than the legendary gents from across the pond, the Rolling Stones, as they readied for their upcoming world tour. Truly a once in a life time experience (yeee haaa!!).

And tonight, TNB is very excited to be at The Dog as they host one of our favorite local metal bands, Swarm Of Eyes, along with 4 other very cool bands. You may remember, a few months back, I reviewed the Swarm’s new CD, ‘Designing The Dystopia’, and was completely blown away by it’s sound and energy (you can find the review here). And, if that isn’t enough, Slimedog will be conducting an interview with the Swarm, which you’ll be able to check out a bit later on TNB.

We got to the Lucky Dog a bit early (cause’ we wanted to get good seats), but they turned us away because it wasn’t the witching hour yet (… speaking of witch, did I mention Supernaut is also playing tonight, waaay coool!). So Slimey and Jimmy go across the street to a little Irish pub, while I go try to see a man about a horse (chili …, can’t live with it, can’t live without it!). Unfortunately for me, I never make it back to the show due to circumstances beyond my control (…. a story for another time), so JT will be picking up the story from here…

Cool, OK Andy, too bad about your pants man. So anyway, Slimedog and I are in the Irish pub across the street from The Dog having a couple of brews, when Robert Plant from Led Zeppelin walks in. Then Slimedog slaps me on the head and says, “That’s not Robert Plant, you idiot”. So I look a little closer and notice it’s just an old lady humming ‘Black Dog’ (… who knew?). So anyway, we have a few beers and start to get comfortable. My ass finds a nice groove in the bar stool. A couple of cute babes walk in and I’m thinking to myself, cool place, I’m here for the duration. Then Slimedog says, “OK let’s go, we have things to do…”. He tells me he just got off the phone with Andy and he’s not gonna be joining us for awhile. Reluctantly, I say OK and we head back over to The Dog.

Once inside The Dog, we find Randy, the lead singer of Swarm Of Eyes, and Slimey gets the interview all set up. Randy corals the rest of The Swarm and we head downstairs into the bowels of the club to do the interview. The Swarm dudes are awesome guys and couldn’t be more accommodating. The interview goes really well (be sure to check it out when Slimy spews it forth). We thank the guys for their time and head back upstairs to get ready for the show.

The first band up is called, ‘Sweet Destruction’ out of Haverhill, MA. They kick start the evening the right way with a cool rendition of Sabbath’s, ‘Children Of The Grave’. These dudes combine a classic metal style with a kind of doom and groove. Slimey and I are both diggin’ their tunes and begin to settle into The Dog’s sights and sounds. We both notice that the sound is fantastic for live music (not too loud, not too soft, …just right!). Sweet Destruction plays on as the club fills up.

The next band up is ‘Ratchaburi’, hailing from Boston, MA. These guys also embody a classic metal rock blend, but with a more funky, rappy edge. At times exuding a sound that’s a cross between the Red Hot Chili’s and Nine Inch Nails. They keep the energy flowing and the party atmosphere moving in the right direction. Just then my cell rings and it’s the Bang-man. He sounds frantic. He says he’s somehow lost his pants and is being terrorized in the backstreets of Worcester. He says he has to go and quickly hangs up. I wonder for a brief moment whether we should be concerned, but Slimy says “don’t worry, he’ll be OK”. So I go back to the bar and get another drink.

Randy swings by and tells us his band is up next so we’d better get front and center. We excitedly comply and head over to the stage area for the onslaught. And what an incredible onslaught is was. The Swarm sounds amazing and completely blows us away. They start off with the great tune. ‘Enter The Circle’ followed by ‘Ruins Of My Last Salvation’. The energy generated is ginormous and for the first time ever, Slimedog is totally speechless. Simply put, Swarm Of Eyes Rocks Out!!. They finish their amazing set with Slimey, me and the rest of the crowd screaming for more. Make sure you stick this entry in your Todo list before you die, “1) See the Swarm Of Eyes”.

At this point, if the show had ended after the Swarm, Slimey and I would have been quite satisfied. After all, how could this great evening of metal possibly get any better. Well let me tell you how it can get better. The next band up is called, ‘The River Neva’ and these guys are from Worcester, MA. I only have two words to describe this band, “Fuckin Awesome!”. They play a blend of progressive hardcore death that will knock your socks off. ‘Ambush From All Sides’ is a very cool tune. Their drummer was amazing and, even more impressive, it was his first gig with the band. Great set. Great band. I can’t wait to check them out again. Be sure to find their TNB band profile here.

Slimey’s cell rings and it’s Andy. He says he’s a bit bruised and beaten, but otherwise, fine. He’s managed to abscond a skirt to replace his pants (don’t ask) and will meet us in a half hour. We say fine and turn our attention towards the last band of night, ‘Supernaut’ and the Black Sabbath experience. Now, if any of you folks out there are Sabbath enthusiasts, you have got to check these guys out. Supernaut puts on a fantastic show and their sound is phenomenal. With all due respect to the great Oz, both Slimy and I can’t help noticing how well Supernaut’s vocalist performs all the tunes. Slimey sheepishly admits that he may actually like these guys over the originals. I certainly can’t argue with his point. Supernaut goes on to complete an awesome set.

I decide to hit the head one last time before leaving the club. When I come out of the restroom the only folks left in the the Lucky Dog are the staff and Slimedog. I turn to Slimedog and ask him what happened to everybody. He says he’s not sure, but he thinks the ground opened up and swallowed them up. I tell him it’s a good thing he doesn’t taste very good then.

We leave the club and meet Andy outside. I look him over and compliment him on the nice skirt, but feel the lipstick is a bit over the top. We jump into the bat mobile and start our long trek back to reality. As Andy hits the accelerator, I stare out the window and watch the landscape become a blur. My eyelids droop and my mind swirls into a surreal semi-consciousness. As my world darkens around me and the wall of sleep descends upon my brain, there’s only one meaningful thought left in my head. “Wow, what a great fuckin’ show that was.”

(Jimmy Thrash)/(Intro by Andy Bang)