Last night, I headed over to Axis with Bogie to see Dredg. I had heard a little of their music before the show, but was somewhat going in blind. We got in around 7 and the place was still semi-empty, but there was a long line for Will Call. After grabbing some beers, we settled in to some space behind the soundboard, which is usually the best place to hear the music, as you are getting the same sound as the sound guy :)
The first band to the stage was Day One Symphony. These guys were very Radiohead influenced. I saw spots of brilliance, but overall, these guys were just ok. I think they have a ton of potential, but they need some more coherence. It seemed like a lot of their songs started and ended weak, but had some great middles. These guys played about 20 or 30 mins.
The next band out Circa Survive. They came out real heavy and I was looking forward to hearing something great. And then the singer started "singing". I can't really call it singing. He was more screaming, very off-key. Bogie actually turned to me and asked if it was a joke. The stranger part was they had fans in the audience. I gave them a second chance, thinking the singer might just have had an off night, I listened to some of their stuff on their web site today. It's better (and not as processed as I thought it would be), but still doesn't thrill me.
Then Dredg came out. These guys ROCKED. A lot heavier than I thought they were going to be, but at the same time very melodic. Their singer has an awesome voice. Their sound really is comparable to anyone out there. Maybe Devon Towsend's Ocean Machine, but it's also a bunch different. You have to check them out. The funny part was the singer apologized for his voice starting to go out. I laughed since I thought he sounded great and the previous singer sounded like he should have been apologizing.
The crowd at this show definitely made me feel old. At least half, if not three quarters of the crowd didn't have wristbands, meaning they were under 21. Note to the youngins: Take a shower before you go out at night. Some kid was standing by me who must have been playing sports or something during the day and then threw on a sweatshirt and came to the show. He STANK.
The sad part of the evening was after 3+ hours of being on my feet I was hurting. It sucks getting old.
