Live Review: Down w/ Voivod, Danava and Weedeater, August 10th, Vancouver, BC
August 13th, 2009 Filed under: Reviews - Live, Shooting Gallery by admin
(Photo – Jamie Sands)
Live Review – Down w/ Voivod, Danava and Weedeater
Monday, August 10, 2009
Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC.
Setting the pace, Weedeater took the stage with a hazy green glow and a wall of distorted feedback. Their choice intro for many of their songs, feedback was usually broken by drummer Keko’s heavy handed beats. Though he threw down his hypnotic rhythms with solid intensity, he did so while looking like a man fighting off monsters during a bad acid trip. The strangeness did not end there by any means. Frontman and bassist Dixie had this weird connection with Keko throughout the set, instigating beats out of him all the while screaming lines like a wild-eyed psychotic.
When the drone of Weedeater dissipated, Portland, Oregon’s Danava followed with a highly improvisational hard rock jam session. Sounding a lot like a jacked up Black Sabbath, these guys played through their guitar driven set without much small talk; the whole thing felt like 3 very long, intricate songs. One of the highlights of their set occurred when Phil Anselmo appeared from side stage, guitar in hand and engaged in an epic solo duel with frontman/guitarist Dusty Sparkles. The minutes long solo ended with a climax that got the attention of everyone in the room.
Holding down the tour for Canada, Quebec’s beloved Voivod unfortunately played a pretty forgettable set. Though all the ingredients were there- original bassist Blacky replacing Jason Newstead for the live stuff – there seemed to be something missing. It could’ve been because they followed the very dynamic Danava, but after a while their songs served as merely a countdown to the Down set.
Two years since the infamous “An Evening with Down” changed the lives of many Vancouver metal heads, the boys came back prepared to lay out another devastatingly excellent show. Playing tracks mainly from Nola and Over the Under, they were met once again with a full house and a lot of love. The only negative aspect was the obvious absence of Rex Brown (temporarily replaced for a few dates by Danny Theriot). This did not come close to putting a damper on the night though as Pepper Keenan and Kirk Windstein (guitars) held their own and did a great job working the crowd. And of course, Phil did what Phil does and made sure every single person in the venue was paying attention and having a good time. Love him or hate him, when he’s on he’s supernatural. Lucky for us, everything went as hoped and Down put out a great set worthy of past efforts and strong enough to bring us back next time they roll through town.
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By Alxs Ness
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[...] (10) in Vancouver, Anselmo actually strapped on a guitar and did some shredding with them. From abortmag: When the drone of Weedeater dissipated, Portland, Oregon’s Danava followed with a highly [...]