THE 2017 METAL ALLIANCE TOUR
w/ OVERKILL, CROWBAR, HAVOK, BLACK FAST, INVIDIA
@ GAS MONKEY BAR AND GRILL – 20 September 2017
by Jerry Rutherford
There are few tours currently making the rounds that, unintentionally or not, show just how Metal and heavy music in general continues to be a timeless entity. This year’s edition of the Metal Alliance package is certainly one of those that will be bulldozing into Dallas’ Gas Monkey Bar And Grill on Wednesday September 20. You should be there to experience as much of it as you can. Kicking off with the one-two punch of Invidia and Black Fast, both bands are prime go-to points when it comes to talking about something new to check out.
The latter, hailing from St Louis, Missouri, is one of those type groups who’ve been sluggin’ away in vans rolling through club after club across the country cementing a name for themselves through serious determination plus some ripping live shows. Terms Of Surrender is the title of their most recent album and the label who released it, eOne Music, made a smart move in doing so. On top of that slab of piledriving-yet-precise thrash pummel these guys have also taken this writer’s favorite Thin Lizzy track “Thunder And Lightning” and ramped it up to tremendous effect. Another huge Lizzy fan besides myself in Crowbar’s Kirk Windstein is out with these guys as well so here’s hoping we get a little run through on that one together in DFW.
Invidia, not unlike Black Fast, have also been ones to go out, cut their teeth and pay dues. In rather short order it seems like they’ve taken their collective resume (wikipedia it kids, ya might recognize some names), crumpled that up and tossed it away to do something that not only holds its own against their peers but also relies more on maintaining a muscular identity rather than pandering to what makes things commercially “click” these days. With only a year or so behind them in the books it would be wise to take advantage of that dark, brooding edge so they can fit in on more tours like this. Those bigger stages and/or radio fests obviously aren’t out of the picture for ‘em though.
Now for the two most notable names on Metal Alliance 2017 that reinforce what was stated in this whole word-barf to begin with. Overkill and Crowbar were an integral part of defining a pair of decades when it came to shaping the landscape of sonic aggression during the 80’s and 90’s. As we all stand tall and still celebrate the genre more than ever before both bands have wound up releasing strings of relevant and oftentimes – for the fans and the bands themselves – revitalizing records over the years. The true grit and the drive to remain worth a damn to followers old and new is equally embedded in their DNA when it comes to Overkill and Crowbar. Whether it’s the vicious, east coast-fueled steamroll behind vocalist Bobby Blitz’s signature snarl or Kirk Windstein’s pensive catharsis over an onslaught of southern riff avalanche anything close to complete disappointment is totally out of the question. Are you ready to raise your horn fists and headbang??? You better be with all this in addition to Denver Colorado’s Havok who’s also on board to break necks and remind us all that the past, present and future of the most powerful music on the planet can never be denied.
Jerry Rutherford is an independent, freelance, wielder of words for any and everything metal. He forges his pen now for The Bird’s Nest after a hiatus from the craft and the demise of heavy hitting music magazines like RIP and METAL MANIACS and a handful of other rags from the last 20 years. Follow him on Facebook by clicking here.
