Detroit had one hell of a treat Saturday night as legendary St Andrews Hall was hosting more metal than a scrap yard.  We haven’t been to the historic venue in way too long and were greeted by a new security team.   These guys and gals were above the title “security”,  they greeted fans with enthusiasm and helpful directions to make their stay more enjoyable.  Taking time to point out key locations like the smoking section and restrooms.   I was really impressed with the warm greeting.   This was a sold out show to a rowdy (but  cool) crowd.  The lineup was so good that I believe it could have sold out without the crowd favorite, Static X. 

The night kicked off with a band that I was not familiar with, Cultus Black.  They first hit the music scene in 2019 with their melodic metal that fit perfectly with the others on tour.  It was a solid start for the night as the band has a unique and polished sound.  The crowd only took about 20 seconds to warm up to these guys as the provide a wide range of melody, growls and screams. The crowd was clearly ready to go as the mosh pit got bigger and bigger and crowd surfers started to flow.  If you’d like a taste of their sound,  visit their web site  media page —>   www.cultusblack.com/media

When I first started covering concerts,  I would frequent the Hayloft in Mt Clemens, Mi.  This was the venue where I cut my teeth.  I remember being there for the first time to see a local favorite, Critical Bill who was opening for Mushroomhead.  I was not ready for what I was about to witness.   Mushroomhead’s music was a sound I had not experienced and the stage presence was surreal to say the least.  I immediately fell in love with the music.  The tribal water drums,  the eerie vocals,  the strength and power of the screams… I was blown away!  They are still at the top of my playlists to this day and I just never tire of their style.   With over 30 years of production under their belt,  the band has been through a lot of changes.  Now I won’t sugar coat that band members of the past are sorely missed as they were all unique, dynamic and seemingly essential but at the same time,  through all the changes, there is still a fire burning at the core of Mushroomhead.  It was nice to see the band hanging out all night at the Shelter (a club in the basement of St Andrews). The guys were consistently approached by fans and seemed to really be basking in the energy of the environment.  Overall,  the performance was stellar including the expected crowd surfing and an unexpected hand stand on top of the crowd.   Mushroomhead was unreal as usual!  I’ll also add that seeing the guys join in with Fear Factory later that night was just too cool for words.  They kept rotating in and out throughout the set on several songs and they meshed together quite well.

Taking the stage soon after was a band most are very familiar with, Dope.  These guys have been grinding out tours for 25 years and have put out some fantastic music over the decades.  They are celebrating their most recent release (from last month) “Blood Money Part Zer0”, an album that shows no signs of slowing down from their beginnings in 1997. In fact,  I would put this album up against anything they have produced in the past.    Still going strong,  front man Edsel Dope expressed his rightful displeasure of the current state of the music industry and the mind numbing effects of social media.  Explaining how a very tailored samplings of music hit the main stream while so much good music just gets buried by all the music outlets.  Edsel and the band have taken full control of their creativity by becoming fully independent of the confines of management,  publicity, and production.  It was really good to see them doing so well.  I’ve seen them several times to date and they demonstrate a true passion for their art on stage. Dope could easily carry the weight of being the headline act on their own with all the great music they have produced over the years and having such a large fan base so it was a very special treat for the audience to witness this tour of heavy hitting nu-metal.  Do your ears a solid favor and check out the latest from these guys—> https://dopetheband.com/collections/blood-money-part-zer0

Fear Factory would take the stage next and I had the pleasure of running doubly duty on this set.  Not only was I covering for Full Access Detroit, but I was also working with Dr Nadia Azar and Drummerlab which is a study of drummer mechanics and ergonomics.  If you geek out to drummer stuff,  you want to look the literal Doc of Rock up. She’s always looking for new drummers to study and also has a high interest in percussionists who suffer from repetitive motion injuries.  Her website is here https://thedrummerlab.com/ .   I had the pleasure of hanging out with the band before their set and I’m a bit low key and on the shy side in these situations.  But these guys were genuine, friendly and full of fun stories.  Watching them interact with the other bands, roadies, and other workers was cool because their posture was no different with anyone from any status. While I was there and in the company of rock stars,  I didn’t feel like they were on some other level, they were easy to approach and just happy to be hanging out.  On stage,  these guys absolutely fed off of every bit of energy that the previous bands had built up.  This was my first time seeing them live and they were much more refined and a lot deeper than recorded music can portray.  Seeing a band live always puts a different look, feel and vibe than just hearing a recorded track.   For some, its for the good, and for others – not so much.  Fear Factory was definitely on the plus side of that coin.   While I’ve always felt FF was good,  this show elevated them a notch or 10 in my book.  As mentioned,  having members of Mushroomhead join in on the festivities was like pouring gasoline on an already raging fire.  Not only good guys to be around but damn good performers that had that place rocking from front to back. 

Another first for me was Static X.   Being how much a absolutely love this band,  I’m disappointed that I haven’t seen one of their shows before this.   Full Access Detroit has covered the band on a few occasions but it seems that I always had some obstacle that prevented me from covering personally.  As high as my expectations were,  the band absolutely exceeded my premonition on every level.  The show started with a warning from the tour manager that things might get nuts (it did).   If the crowd surfing got to be too heavy,  we would have to cut shooting short and shoot from the crowd (photography and circle pits don’t mix).  Walls of LED lights surrounded the band and Xer0 was larger than life.  I swear that with his electric cable for  hair, robotic mask and light up eyes, he was about 9 feet tall.  One word-  ominous.   The audio was not outdone by the looks,  the band sounded phenomenal.  It actually pisses me off that I haven’t seen these guys at least a dozen times by now.  I assure you that I will break down any barriers in the future when they come to town.   On a side note,  I had the pleasure of meeting up with Ken Jay, drummer and founding member for Static X.  He expressed interest in being part of Dr Nadia’s study next time their show is in town as he already logs his performances much like an athlete. That gives me even more anticipation for the next show!   

All in all,  this show was a 10/10 for me as it was heavy hitting bands,  solid performances, and a few “firsts” for me.  It was also fantastic to be back at St Andys and of course,  stopping for nationally renowned wings at Sweetwater Tavern across the street for an after show dinner.   Thanks to Detroit Media Magazine for picking up the tab,  I got you next time around.  

~Joe