Band:As I Lay Dying Album:Shadows Are Security Record Company:Metal Blade Writer: Linda Ode Click Album Cover To Buy Now

As I Lay Dying - Norma Jean - A Life Once Lost - Inked in Blood December 16, 2005 El Corazon - Seattle, WA

I was definitely excited to do this show after listening to Shadows Are Security, the newest album from As I Lay Dying. I was set up to interview Nick from As I Lay Dying at 5 pm, and Bob from A Life Once Lost at 5:30. Well, I got there at 4:50 and they were still doing sound check, so I was told to wait outside and they’d come get me. I left my gloves in the car, so I got to stand outside and freeze for 40 minutes until I was finally let in to interview Bob. I knew I still had to get my interview with Nick done. Bob told me to look for the guy with pretty eyes. With that bit of advice, Nick was very easy to find and we got the interview done quickly.

I did end up missing the first band. After meeting up with my husband, we went in and tried to get a spot on the floor for A Life Once Lost. I should have known better than to try to stand in the crowd and take pictures at a sold-out show. As soon as the first note escaped the speakers, the crowd started going insane! I had to get out. One thing you should know about all-ages metal shows is that every kid in there thinks they’re a fucking bad-ass and you have to practically punch people in the face to get them to let you out. After I found a better spot back by the merch tables I attempted again to actually get some pictures. Since I have this crazy new-fangled camera, I’m just going to be honest here and say I couldn’t figure out how to get it to just point and shoot, so my pictures didn’t turn out the best for this set. The band itself was pretty good. They had some solid riffs, and there was this awesome choral epic thing they had programmed to play before they came out. I would have liked to have had a CD of theirs to compare the live performance with, but I don’t. I’ll just say I really like them for what it was. They were less wussy than other bands of the same style, that’s for sure.

Norma Jean was next up, and I must say I was impressed. I heard good things about this band from my cousin. She wasn’t lying. They put on a great show. Very energetic with some good metal riffs. Again, I wouldn’t use the word 'wussy' to describe this band. In fact with as much presence and power they have, I’d be afraid to even SAY the word 'wussy' around them. Security had some crazy bastards on their hands during this set. I was near the door, so I had a closeup view as they were trying to kick two people out. One of them was a skinny goth dude in a mesh shirt. As he realized he was getting kicked out, he started going crazy. It took four security guys to force him onto the ground and somehow get him out of the building. Why is it that every show I go to, a fight breaks out? Abrasive Rock is going to have to start sending me to shows with a bodyguard.

Finally I got a spot by a pole and I decided to stay there. I was still there when As I Lay Dying came out. They put on a killer show. They seem to know how to pull the audience in. They were really tight. The vocals were amazing. I don’t know how he screams like that night after night. There was a great drum solo about two minutes long. As an encore they came out and did two songs. One was the last track of the newest album. I had kind of predicted that, as that track has about 1:45 of weird noise at the beginning - just enough time for them to run back and drink some water or whatever it is they do. The other one was a song I didn’t know. I think the singer introduced it as an old one. It seemed like most of the fans there knew it. I was just trying to get a couple more pictures in.

There are a few things that suck about this venue, which I know probably most people have already gone over. But, since it was my first time covering a show here, I’m going to talk about it anyway. Of course there’s the pole on the stage, I guess it’s supposed to be structural or something, but really it’s just annoying. It’s very hard to get pictures of the musician on the other side of the pole, especially when you’re on the opposite side of the club. Another thing is that when they “sell out” a show, they must sell the capacity of the bar side and the showroom, but they must know by now that the showroom will be full and the bar will be empty. Especially at an all-ages show. So in order to get anywhere you have to muscle your way through teeny-boppers, bad-asses and sweaty shirtless dudes. It’s just wrong. The last thing is that they need to make it easier for “press” people to get their interviews and photos taken care of. I suppose I’ll just have to get a spot early and stay there for photos next time. Also, instead of any sort of “photo pass” they just wrote PHOTO on my hand. Three different security guys shined their flashlight in my face and told me to put my camera away, only for me to have to show them my hand.

To sum up, I’d have to say that the show was great, and I thought all the bands did a really good job. The venue, however, leaves something to be desired.

Band:As I Lay Dying Album:Shadows Are Security Record Company:Metal Blade Writer: Linda Ode Click Album Cover To Buy Now

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