Quicksand at the House of Blues San Diego

One of my all time favorite bands has to be Quicksand. Their albums Slip and Manic Compression came out at a impressionable time in my life and has remained in constant rotation for nearly twenty years now. As I've gone through some medical problems for the last two years, I still find myself dialing up Quicksand to help me get through the difficult times.

 

I was truly amazed to see them reunite at the Glass House in June 2012 and beyond excited to see them get a top billing at FYF Festival. The only bright spot of 2013 has been that I catching them at the Fonda Theatre for Stereogum and at the Glass House for OC Weekly. Although I wasn't feeling particularly well, I made the trek to San Diego to catch their final date in California.  It was a show that I will never forget.



With only two albums, I didn't expect Quicksand to switch up their setlist too drastically. Armed with his Fender Jaguar bass, Sergio Vega tore into the familiar bass groove of "Omission". Walter Schreifels emerged from the shadows with a white Fender Telecaster to slam out the power chords while Thomas Capone had his familiar Les Paul gold top for their crushing guitar assault. It was impressive to hear the audience chant the lyrics to "Unfulfilled" and "Head To Wall" as my three songs in the photo pit seemly went by in seconds.



Sporting a different shirt from the Smiths compared to the Fonda show, Vega bounced around the stage as he anchored the concrete heaviness of "Fazer". I still vividly remember seeing that video on MTV Headbanger's ball and running down to the Wherehouse and purchasing the album the next day. Kids these days will never understand that feeling. Alan Cage was pounded on his kit for the steamrolling "Too Official" which is drenched with slashing drop-d power chords.



The great thing about this reunion is that all the original members are involved and that there is still a great deal of inherent musical chemistry between all the members. I spotted numerous smiles on stage as they spotted the huge mosh pit viciously swirling in the center of the floor. Vega's bass barrage continued on "Freezing Process" as it dictates the direction of the song. Schreifels sounded phenomenal throughout the evening as he blasted into the furious barking vocals of "Lie And Wait".




Time flew by as they whipped through "Divorce" and "Slip" before crushing one of my favorite tracks from Manic Compression "Thorn In My Side" with its rapidly descending bass groove. Capone summoned up some bursts of guitar feedback for "Dine Alone" and I found myself forgetting about how sick I had felt earlier in the day and was glad I toughed it out to see them once again. "How Soon Is Now?" was flawless and still remains one of my favorite covers of The Smiths.



I was amazed to hear "Skinny (It's Overflowing)" as Quicksand resurrected the song at the Glass House to my delight. Schreifels had thanked the crowd stating how much fun he has had during this reunion and apologized for not coming back sooner. "Can Opener" closed out their set and ended my unforgettable run of Quicksand shows. Quicksand was recently nominated for a Revolver Golden God Award for comeback of the year and I implore you to cast as many votes for Quicksand as possible here. Thank you Quicksand and I hope to see you again soon.

 Setlist:
"Omission"
"Unfulfilled"
"Head To Wall"
"Fazer"
"Too Official"
"Freezing Process"
"Brown Gargantuan"
"Lie And Wait"
"Delusional"
"Divorce"
"Slip"
"Thorn In My Side"
"Blister"
"Dine Alone"
"How Soon Is Now?"
"Shovel"
"Landmine Spring"
"Skinny (It's Overflowing)"
"Can Opener"

Deftones at the House of Blues San Diego

While the year isn't over, Koi No Yokan might race to the finish as being my most listened to album all year. Interviewing Chino Moreno a few months ago was definitely a highlight of the year as I've been a longtime supporter of the Deftones dating back to when I saw them on the Warped Tour during the Adrenaline tour. Most fans of Deftones are accustomed to lengthy delays between albums but the inclusion of Sergio Vega on bass has seemed to reinvigorate the band as they basically leveled a beyond sold out House of Blues San Diego.



You could feel the energy in the room start to surge as the lights dimmed. Grasping his signature black ESP eight string guitar, Stephen Carpenter unleashed a sonic storm with the crushing riff of "Diamond Eyes" as Frank Delgado manned his synthesizer station adding samples and layers. It was going to be a crazy night as Moreno dove right in front of me into the crowd. This usually doesn't happen in the first three songs.



It was a barrage of riff after crushing riff. "Rocket Skates" and "Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)" made the whole floor of the House of Blues one large mosh pit. Usually the energy level drops when bands play new songs at concerts. This definitely was not the case during "Poltergeist" as the crowd echoed the electronic hand claps before Carpenter and Vega unloaded their locked-in bone rattling guitar and bass bludgeoning. Moreno picked up a Gibson SG guitar to add shades of texture to "Rosemary".



"Feiticeira" kept the mosh pit spinning as Moreno sounded demonic with his processed screams as Abe  Cunningham dutifully crushed his drum kit. Stepping into their dark and ambient phase, "Digital Bath" melted smoothly into "Knife Party". The dreamy intro of "Tempest" could lull you into sleep before the main riff kicks in and kicks you in the face. Deftones are masters of utilizing song dynamics and "Tempest " is a beautiful example of pacing and song structure.



Stepping into a time machine and landing in 1991, "Fireal" and "Engine No. 9" were white hot with Moreno never missing a beat on the vocals. The crowd up front was getting punished but still sang along every word to "Change (In the House of Flies). One of the most impressive performances was that of "Passenger" as the band was completely locked in and Moreno handled both his and Maynard James Keenan's vocals effortlessly.



The overall volume was deafening as the Deftones had brought in extra speakers as if they were playing an arena. "Bloody Cape" sounded so gigantic that a light bulb literally unscrewed itself and fell from the ceiling. That is a concert first. A heavy textural dispatch of guitars soon melted into the jackhammer riff of "Bored". "7 Words" sadly brought the evening to a close but I was only slightly relieved that I would possibly catch their show at the Hollywood Palladium. Koi No Yokan will be favorite album of 2012.

Deftones setlist at the House of Blues San Diego (11/19/12)
01 Diamond Eyes
02 Rocket Skates
03 Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)
04 My Own Summer (Shove It)
05 Poltergeist
06 Rosemary
07 Swerve City
08 Feiticeira
09 Digital Bath
10 Knife Party
11 Tempest
12 Fireal
13 Engine No. 9
14 Riviere
15 Change (In the House of Flies)
16 Passenger
17 Bloody Cape
18 Bored
19 7 Words

Strung Out at the House of Blues San Diego

Strung Out have long been one of my favorite bands. Their unique fusion of metal and punk immediately made me a fan when I picked up their debut record Another Day In Paradise in 1994. My first concert for Strung Out happened while vacationing in London in 1996,  my brother and I happened upon a flyer saying Strung Out was playing a local pub in support of their sophomore album Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues. We immediately knew what we were going to do that particular night and were blown away.

The Sheds


With an early start of 7:30, I had walked into the House of Blues San Diego after the third song by punk upstarts The Sheds. Sounding like a more metallic version of Lagwagon, The Sheds had some good melodic punk songs and their drummer was going bonkers on his kit. Their latest album is Self/Doubt on Rite of Passage records.

Such Gold


Tapping into a more technical melodic metallic punk vein akin to Strung Out, Such Gold whipped through a ferocious set led by vocalist Ben Kotin. Their debut album Misadventures was just released on Razor & Tie records.

The Swellers
 

Churning out a more straight up meat and potatoes punk rock, The Swellers showed their off their years of touring with a finely tuned set backed by brothers Nick and Jonathan Diener. Their new EP Running Out Of Places To Go will be out on October 16th.

Strung Out


Strung Out have always put on phenomenal shows. It is exhilarating to see the frantic dueling fretwork of guitarists Rob Ramos and Jake Kiley as they are the Dave Murray and Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden) of punk rock. The factor that made this show special was the band was going to play their second and third albums Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues and Twisted By Design in its entirety.

Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues was one of the soundtracks to my college life. The hyperkinetic guitars backed by Jason Cruz's rapid fire vocals with a not so subtle injection of their heavy metal influences showed Strung Out refining their trademark sound. A smile hit my face as the blazing bass line of "Firecracker" ignited the mosh pit at the House of Blues San Diego.

Knowing they would play the album in its entirety took the surprise element out of a show but it also led to a building of excitement as they plowed through "Better Days" and "Solitaire". Ramos and Kiley are still fast as ever navigating their fretboards propelled by the unheralded drumming of Jordan Burns. "Gear Box" was blazing fast as the band was hitting their stride.

One of the heaviest songs on the album "Bring Out Your Dead" was thick and crunchy as I had flashbacks of seeing their old bass player Jim Cherry scream out the title of the song on background vocals. "Rottin' Apple" was another favorite as I remember hearing the song on a Fat Wreck Chords promotional sampler prior to the official release of the song.

It was hard to concentrate on the show when I wasn't headbanging along and throwing my fist in the air for the supersonic version of "Speedball". Cruz would occasionally jump down to the rail and give the microphone to rabid fans in the front to have them sing along. It seemed like seconds had passed when they closed out the first half of the show with "Wrong Side Of The Tracks".

Twisted By Design is a masterpiece. Strung Out had refined and honed their sound for their triumphant third release on Fat Wreck Chords. The sliding pick scrape and furiously drumming by Burns kicked off "Too Close To See". Throughout the evening I could hear various members of the crowd singing along word for word. "Mind Of My Own" was one such song with Cruz still sounding great on vocals.

"Crosswords" was another barn burner with its palm muted power chords serving as machine gun fire for the bazooka blasts of drums. The highlight of the set and my all time favorite song from Strung Out is "Iceburn" which veers into Slayer territory with its terrifying vocal delivery and nervous tension surrounding the entire song.

A sledgehammer bassline signaled the started of "Ultimate Devotion" and comes crashing down to razor sharp ending. "Tattoo" might one of the more melodic songs on the album but still retains the patented Strung Out crunch. Another crowd favorite "Matchbox" closed out the album in grand fashion. While I doubt they will ever repeat this tour, it was a very special evening to witness and I only wish I could catch more of these shows.

Beach House at the House of Blues San Diego

Check out my photos of Beach House at the House of Blues San Diego over at Stereogum.

The xx at the House of Blues San Diego

Coachella seemed liked a haze running around from stage to stage in order to capture as many bands as possible. One of the few sets that I vividly remember not wanting to leave was during The xx. Initially, their debut album didn't click with me right away but somehow their icy, cool tunes gained a sheen of repeat listening warmth.

Phantogram






A large white scrim hung in front of the stage positioned as the target for Phantogram's array of visuals that blended well with their arresting electronica laced dream pop. Supporting their latest release on Barsuk records Eyelid Movies, Phantogram conjured various twinkling synthesizers, pulsating synthesizer bass lines and textured guitars to hypnotize the audience.

The mix for Phantogram was criminally low as chatty patrons in the back of the bar were overpowering the band on stage. "Mouthful of Diamonds" was not nearly as propulsive as it should have been due to the lack of volume. Some fans in the front were yelling in between songs to tell the band to turn it up. Unfazed by the sound problems, Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter still managed to pull off a solid set.

Another visual aspect of their show that should be noted was their intermittent use of strobe lights during the noisy parts of their set that blitzed your sensorium. Despite the sound problems, Phantogram is on my list of bands to check out when they come back around the area.

The xx







Icy. Calculated. Cool. These are just some adjectives that raced across my mind while watching The xx. Ever since I started photographing concerts, paying attention to lighting is a vital component to capturing the right moment. The lighting director for The xx deserves an award for their outstanding use of lighs in a concert setting.

A large white scrim flashed the shadows of Romy Croft and Oliver Sim while they initiated the tension mounting "Intro". When the scrim dropped, the band immediately started into "Crystalised". The lighting director methodically alternated the spotlight between Croft and Sim when they were trading vocals. Visually, it made the members pop out of thin air and vaporize instantly after singing their respective part.

Knowing the songs was key for the first three songs as I quickly aimed my camera back and forth. The sparseness of "Islands" was impressive with Sim adding some extra kick on his sliding bass notes. Croft deftly handed the ringing guitar notes of "Heart Skipped A Beat" while Jamie Smith pounded away at his electronic drum pad.

Things became moody with the calm quietness of "Shelter" as the tension building guitars would ignite momentarily before quickly folding back into a wash of reverb. The lack of drums throughout the track pulls in the listener and adds a shade of contrast to the bleakness of the song.

Twinkling keyboards of "VCR" elicited cheers from the crowd as many started to sing along. The xx would sequentially tackle "Basic Space", "Infinity" and "Night Time" to close their main set. The background of the stage changed to numerous illuminated "Stars" for another visual ace serving as the perfect encore.

The fire alarms that went off before The xx played should have sounded at the ending of their set. It was that good. The xx will be back on 9/22 at the Hollywood Palladium.