Tuesday was one of those terrible, no good, very bad kind of days for me. I was swamped with my day job which, it’s my day job, but left me zero time to work on everything else I have going on. It was frustrating, and by the time I left work, all I wanted to do was curl up in my closet and cry (what can I say? I’m an emo kid who hasn’t quite grown up all the way). I really thought about bailing on the show because of the I had had. I wanted to stay home and cry while trying to catch up on work, but I had committed to the show, and honestly, a show was just what I needed. Thankfully for me, the dark and ominous vibes given off throughout the night at The Fine Line in Minneapolis matched my moodiness and own darkness oh so perfectly.
Florida-based Worm got the night started off. I would say that they started it off with a bang, but there was no bang. Their set was dark through and through, from the music to the ambiance. With giant clouds of fog puffing out to cover up the stage as the band remained in almost complete blue-tinted darkness, there was something just so dramatic yet so perfect about their set. It’s black metal with a slight symphonic twist to it. Every track had a very royal and epic feeling to it while remaining completely dark. Did I mention that it was dark? I really can not understate that enough, but I feel like you are going to see what I mean in the pictures of this band (and the two acts to follow). It was a struggle to photograph, but I truly loved the challenge and feel like, without the intense darkness, this set would not have been as impactful.
I knew this would be an intense show, but I don’t think I quite fathomed just how intensely it would hit me. I got lost in Worm’s slow yet intense world that only ever brightened when there was a ripping guitar solo. I was captivated by how the vocalist would grab certain props from a small table beside him. From an ornate candelabra to a goblet of what looked like a blood-type substance, this band lived the darkness, and it really helped sell me on their performance. Sure, sonically, I found this band to be a bit redundant by the time it was said and done, as every track just felt like darkness, but the rest of the audience was into it and clearly had been waiting for quite some time to see this young band do their thing.
Dallas, Texas-based Frozen Soul was up next. This band was definitely a bit more my speed with their classic death metal sound that sometimes seemed to have an almost hardcore influence to it. Whereas the audience just stood in the darkness during Worm’s set, everyone seemed to get amped as Frozen Soul kicked off, and, almost instantly, there was a smattering of stage divers and a massive pit that had swallowed up most of the floor. I kept my distance for fear of something happening to my camera, but, really, that was difficult. Something about this band’s energy caught me, and I wanted to be right up there in all of the action. Although I did hold back, this is one of those bands that I want to see again without a camera in hand where I can just be a fan and really let loose.Frozen Soul came off as larger-than-life. Part of this is due to the sheer size of vocalist Chad Green (this guy looks like a dang wrestler) but the other part was the sound. I loved how the power of this group’s sound juxtaposed that of Worm. It was as if I was seeing the same amount of power but it was being presented in a completely different light (although it was still super dark throughout the venue during Frozen Soul’s set). If you are one of those people who feel like all metal music sounds the same, this would have been the show to prove to you how wrong that is, and that really had me excited about the night in general.
Headlining the Tuesday night metal extravaganza was none other than Gatecreeper from Phoenix, Arizona. Gatecreeper kept up with the more classic death metal sound that Frozen Soul had laid out but expanded on it with their signature ferocity and energy. There were finally some lights hitting the stage as Gatecreeper played through their set, but I felt like I spent the majority of their set watching the audience. This band has been to the cities before, yet this feeling in the air would have led me to believe this was their first time in town. There was just this undeniable sense of excitement that radiated throughout the intimate venue, adding that special sparkle to an already dazzling night. Okay, wait, I was at a metal show, it should be that it added a special darkness to an already pitch-black night. Whatever, you get what I’m trying to say.Although I fell out of the metal scene quite some time ago, bands like Gatecreeper keep me interested in the scene. Sure, I’m spending most of my days listening to calmer sounds that make me smile, but there’s just something about Gatecreeper’s overall original sound that has me wondering if I should jump back in and find more bands like them that are out there. I think I know that there won’t be. Honestly, although you may say that all metal sounds the same, there’s something super unique and perfect about this group’s sound, and I just don’t think I’ll find another band like them out there right now.
Spending Tuesday night dipping my toes back into the metal scene was the perfect way to end my terrible, no-good, very bad day. Here’s to hoping that my Wednesday is a little bit better because of it.