After a dozen hardcore and heavy metal bands performed a rowdy show to a packed house last Saturday at The Cruise Inn in Lackawanna, the venue might appear older than it already looks. Among the more popular names to play were Between the Buried and Me, Every Time I Die and Integrity. Mixed among them were acts that could be placed in one of three categories: up and coming, on the way out, and soon-to-be forgotten.
The first band to engage the audience into true, tear-your-head-off moshing was If Hope Dies, a hardcore band from Auburn, N.Y. But aside from their popularity in the scene, there is little about the band that stands out. The group would have been much more entertaining to first-time listeners if they would display some of the melody featured on their first LP, "Siege Equipment for Spiritual Decline."
Saturday's show, despite the numerous bands on the set list, was built entirely upon a tour stop originally scheduled only for three bands: Between the Buried and Me, The Red Chord and Premonitions of War.
Premonitions of War was the first band on the official lineup to play. This group and its incredible follow-up, The Red Chord, belong in the "up-and-coming" category more than any of the other bands of the evening. The group provides a distinct, if sometimes awkward, blend of death metal and hardcore. The positive crowd response given to each of these bands was duly warranted.
Between the Buried and Me have been pulling off this act for a while. They use melodic hardcore interludes, death metal breakdowns and intellectual lyrics to create a sound that is very much their own.
Buffalo's favorite hardcore band, Every Time I Die, took the stage next. Nobody in attendance will forget the destruction that ensued. After a couple of songs off their first and only LP, "Last Night in Town," lead singer Keith Buckley asked for the crowd's assistance in reducing The Cruise to shambles.
Having already broken the ceiling tiles, Buckley held a large piece of one of the fragments up and said, "You see this? I'm not telling you what to do ... but I want to see more of it!"
Some were happy to oblige. Fans climbed up on each others' shoulders and grabbed whatever they could from the ceiling in an attempt to bring it back down with them. Others went for the ceiling fans, grabbing and breaking off the paddles. One young man jumped up on stage and, as if on monkey bars, grabbed the ceiling grid with his feet. After he fell flat on his back, the sound technician got on the microphone and started screaming, "Hey! Hey! Stay off the ceiling!"
Many left after the mayhem subsided, while the next band was setting up. It's a shame and their loss. Dead Even, a young band from Cleveland, made a great impression during their first show in Buffalo. Lead singer JC gave the most impressive performance of any single band member of the entire night. Only the lead singer of Between the Buried matched his vocal range and Me's Tommy Rogers and his thrashing gyrations showed how badly he wanted to give a performance to remember.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
