My First Week...
Greetings and salutations.
A week into my life as the Phantom, and I’m already being welcomed with open arms (the dead roses, death threats, and slashed tires were quite flattering) and so let me just start by saying a big “thank you” to everyone who’s already on my case…before I even write a review…
For my first excursion into the land of the loud, I took a much needed drive out to Kessler Mill Road in Salem to a great place called Shooters. Maybe you’ve heard of it. No? Don’t worry. You will. This particular trip was on a Thursday night, so seeing a packed parking lot was almost a welcome shock. Almost, but then I still had to find a place to park. I’d been told by a lot of people that Shooters was booking their Thursday nights to fill the void left by the departure of Roanoke’s former hard rock haven, Factory 324. I’d heard good things about local group The Venus Transit, and so with a cool venue and promising act, it seemed like a good place to start.
As you’ll recall last week, I told you that every show in town isn’t just “21 and up”. True to my word, the Thursday night shows at Shooters are all ages (just 21 to drink), and I was immediately impressed by the draw that The Venus Transit and their opening act, Insane Solitude had managed on weeknight show. I had high hopes.
Admittedly, I had chosen this gig on the strength of the Venus demo that I’d heard, but first impressions are important in the business, and Insane Solitude made a strong showing. You won’t find much screamo/hardcore in my music collection, but it doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the form. Underneathe the growls, I could tell there were talented songwriters in the group. Unfortunately, none of them made it out to the show, and in their place was a band armed with good songs in favor of the great ones I suspect they’re capable of writing. And while it could take time for them to develop more standout material, their delivery and performance reminded me of a cross between Sepultura and Black Label Society, and their stage presence was remarkably good for younger guys.
Onto The Venus Transit who, aside from a few technical glitches, didn’t do too badly. Musically, they were different than what I’d expected, even when compared to their demo. The tracks I’d heard were flavored with experimental elements that, when taken away in a live context, left them more punk-pop than progressive. Their sense of melody was refreshing, and they’re definitely on their way to a unique sound among their peers in the region. On the road to that sound, though, I should point out that there isn’t a regular gig in town that requires you to have a wireless system for your instrument. It’s a good idea to remember that, in Roanoke at least, stages are generally built to be about the same size as the restroom or smaller, and so having the freedom to roam about is almost pointless. It’s especially pointless if the unit decides to fail on you two songs into your set.
The overall performance was entertaining, mostly punctuated by the erratic behavior of the guitarist who seemed to be leading the band in a series of musical spasms, and the lanky swagger of the singer. In my experience, the role of the too-cool frontman is always a difficult one to peg – you have to remain distant enough to appear confident and slightly mysterious, yet retain enough charm to avoid appearing utterly uninterested, and thusly uninspired. For the most part, Venus’ singer maintained this balance for the whole of the show, holding my interest with his command of the stage and acting out with enough energetic frustration to make his tantrums believable. Only during the aforementioned technical glitches did he seem uncomfortable, and I consider that to be a simple lack of experience.
These two young groups are both worth your time if you like your crunch with a slice of melody. While Insane Solitude is most definitely for the harder crowd, they have a certain accessible quality to their music that makes their brutality go down smoother than most, and that’s a key to wider success, at least in this area. The Venus Transit are as entertaining as they are talented, and it will be interesting to see where they go with their sound as they bridge that gap between who they are in the safety of the studio and who they become when faced with the obstacles of performing live.
That’s all for this edition. I’ll be out and about this weekend in search of someone, so pay attention – you might just find your name under my pen. Until next we meet…
- The Phantom
A week into my life as the Phantom, and I’m already being welcomed with open arms (the dead roses, death threats, and slashed tires were quite flattering) and so let me just start by saying a big “thank you” to everyone who’s already on my case…before I even write a review…
For my first excursion into the land of the loud, I took a much needed drive out to Kessler Mill Road in Salem to a great place called Shooters. Maybe you’ve heard of it. No? Don’t worry. You will. This particular trip was on a Thursday night, so seeing a packed parking lot was almost a welcome shock. Almost, but then I still had to find a place to park. I’d been told by a lot of people that Shooters was booking their Thursday nights to fill the void left by the departure of Roanoke’s former hard rock haven, Factory 324. I’d heard good things about local group The Venus Transit, and so with a cool venue and promising act, it seemed like a good place to start.
As you’ll recall last week, I told you that every show in town isn’t just “21 and up”. True to my word, the Thursday night shows at Shooters are all ages (just 21 to drink), and I was immediately impressed by the draw that The Venus Transit and their opening act, Insane Solitude had managed on weeknight show. I had high hopes.
Admittedly, I had chosen this gig on the strength of the Venus demo that I’d heard, but first impressions are important in the business, and Insane Solitude made a strong showing. You won’t find much screamo/hardcore in my music collection, but it doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the form. Underneathe the growls, I could tell there were talented songwriters in the group. Unfortunately, none of them made it out to the show, and in their place was a band armed with good songs in favor of the great ones I suspect they’re capable of writing. And while it could take time for them to develop more standout material, their delivery and performance reminded me of a cross between Sepultura and Black Label Society, and their stage presence was remarkably good for younger guys.
Onto The Venus Transit who, aside from a few technical glitches, didn’t do too badly. Musically, they were different than what I’d expected, even when compared to their demo. The tracks I’d heard were flavored with experimental elements that, when taken away in a live context, left them more punk-pop than progressive. Their sense of melody was refreshing, and they’re definitely on their way to a unique sound among their peers in the region. On the road to that sound, though, I should point out that there isn’t a regular gig in town that requires you to have a wireless system for your instrument. It’s a good idea to remember that, in Roanoke at least, stages are generally built to be about the same size as the restroom or smaller, and so having the freedom to roam about is almost pointless. It’s especially pointless if the unit decides to fail on you two songs into your set.
The overall performance was entertaining, mostly punctuated by the erratic behavior of the guitarist who seemed to be leading the band in a series of musical spasms, and the lanky swagger of the singer. In my experience, the role of the too-cool frontman is always a difficult one to peg – you have to remain distant enough to appear confident and slightly mysterious, yet retain enough charm to avoid appearing utterly uninterested, and thusly uninspired. For the most part, Venus’ singer maintained this balance for the whole of the show, holding my interest with his command of the stage and acting out with enough energetic frustration to make his tantrums believable. Only during the aforementioned technical glitches did he seem uncomfortable, and I consider that to be a simple lack of experience.
These two young groups are both worth your time if you like your crunch with a slice of melody. While Insane Solitude is most definitely for the harder crowd, they have a certain accessible quality to their music that makes their brutality go down smoother than most, and that’s a key to wider success, at least in this area. The Venus Transit are as entertaining as they are talented, and it will be interesting to see where they go with their sound as they bridge that gap between who they are in the safety of the studio and who they become when faced with the obstacles of performing live.
That’s all for this edition. I’ll be out and about this weekend in search of someone, so pay attention – you might just find your name under my pen. Until next we meet…
- The Phantom
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