I don't subscribe to fairy tales or superstition. However, I can't help but think that "the gods" have welcomed me into their good graces any time I'm able to find a spot in the parking lot of The Marquee Theater AFTER the doors have opened. I'm pretty sure you have a better chance of being struck by lightning twice in the same open field on a sunny day.
Pass the plate! We've got a believer!
My two friends and I rolled up to the venue around 7pm. The lot was surprisingly sparse. No line for tickets or entry. I know...weird. We quickly got our tickets and suffered the shoeless pat-down. I understand the need for security, but come on - it's GWAR and Every Time I Die.
A) everyone will probably be too drunk to even start an argument by 8:30pm
B) GWAR will have more weapons onstage than anyone in the crowd -- hey, a plastic sword is still a sword
After an emergency bathroom run (yeah, I'm that guy that forgets to go before leaving the house) we do the standard merch parusal, making mental notes of what we're gonna buy before the sweaty masses descend upon the t-shirt counter, coalescing into one fleshy mess, slurring cries of "THAT ONE! NO, THAT ONE!"
Upon entering the main room I quickly realize we've broken the cardinal rule (which I've made up) of an Every Time I Die show. We didn't properly pre-game. This isn't so much a concert as it is a party. So...a round of Kiltlifter to kick things off. It's got a high alcohol content to jumpstart that buzz and is locally brewed so Arizona residents can say, "I'm not an alcoholic, I'm a small business promoter." Oh, and it's delicious.
The first band to take the stage was Warbeast from Dallas, Tx. I had never heard their music before, but they clearly made an impression on me, as the first note I wrote myself regarding the show was "Warbeast - holy fucking thrash!" If you don't like beer, beards, and Slayer you definitely won't like this band. If you do, congratulations on having a clue.
Between bouts of neckbreaking headbanging, the vocalist would introduce the band to the crowd. Imagine if Phil Anselmo were a proffessional wrestling announcer. That's what I heard. And despite the fact that Warbeast is from Texas, I swear the bass player spoke like a Gaelic pirate.
They played a great set. A little short, but sweet. I'll definitely be picking up their album soon. I didn't purchase it at the show, because I had already promised that all of my money would find a good home with ETID and the Marquee bar.
In the spirit of pacing, we switched to PBR (one of my favorite cheap beers) before heading over to purchase ETID merch. I went against my better judgement and only purchased ONE t-shirt. Pretty sure my buddy bought three, putting his closet total somewhere between 12-15. He is a good man.
We finished our beers and made sure to grab another on our way into the main room. Apparently everyone else decided to hit the bar right after us. We were able to casually stroll right to the front of the stage, as easily as we found our parking space earlier in the evening. We slammed the remainder of our beers while ETID's techs finished sound check. The only way to properly enjoy Every Time I Die is to go completely ape-shit and we didn't wanna spill our drinks.
I've said this before and I'll say it again: if you don't like Every Time I Die, we probably aren't friends. I know a lot of cool people, so I'm not afraid to lose a few of you. Just saying...
The venue had filled up pretty good behind us by the time they hit the stage. And holy shit, did they come out swinging in all their southern-tinged hardcore/punk rock fury! This performance was clearly for their longtime fans/superfans. They opened up their set with "Bored Stiff," a track off their second LP (or third if you're a superfan). The first few notes sparked a circle pit like flash paper in a forest fire. I was pleasantly surprised at how much of the crowd knew the song.
Of course, my friends and I immediately realized that the gentleman playing bass was NOT Josh Newton. Upon tweeting him my confusion, he replied that he had left the band. Bit of a bummer...but I digress.
In what seemed to be an attempt to up the "old school" ante, the band followed with "She's My Rushmore" - a song they released 8 years and 3 albums ago. They, in fact, played around 4 or 5 songs from their first record (or second, again, if you're a superfan), "Hot Damn!"
About halfway into their set, ETID announced that they were gonna play a brand new song. Amidst my jaw-dropped shock and awe, my friend simply said "watch." Apparently he'd seen all the wonder and glory of this new tune performed live via YouTube.
The song was called "Underwater Bimbos From Outer Space." I can't even type that without smiling. If this song is any indication of the type of material that will be found on their upcoming album, it's gonna be the best record they've released so far. I'm calling it now.
The band continued to kick ass, playing some old, some not-so-old, and some not-at-all-old material. Their song "We'rewolf" was dubbed by frontman Keith Buckley as, "the official party song of 2011...and probably 2012." Can't argue with you, sir. ETID ended their set with the fan favorite, "Floater." Yes...another classic nearly a decade old.
With Joker grins tattooed across our faces and dripping with sweat, my buddies and I headed in for a refill. We were all quite hoarse from screaming along for 40+ minutes. So we felt we needed to whet our whistles. To our dismay, they were SOLD OUT of PBR. I'll repeat myself. Every Time I Die played...and The Marquee ran out of PBR. Did they mistake us all for hipsters who would only drink a single beer in hopes of looking uber ironic? No! We're frugal and thirsty!
Had to settle for Bud Light...eh.
As the stage was set for GWAR, we realized we were pretty exhausted from ETID. So we hung in the back and drank our beers.
Oh...if you've never heard of GWAR (what?!), here's what they look like...
Yeah...
Since this is a lengthy entry already, I won't go into as much detail with GWAR's performance. Let me just say that if you ever get the chance to see them live...do it. Don't even question it. If you enjoy metallic punk rock music, horror films, and watching pop culture figures being disemboweled and/or beheaded onstage, you will love this band. They put on one of the best shows I've seen. It's entertaining as all hell. You don't go to a GWAR show for intellectual stimulation or emotional catharsis. You go to a GWAR show to drink beer, bang your head, and laugh your ass off! And we did exactly that...
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