(Pictured is vocalist and our dear fun Papa, Lars Göran Petrov and current touring guitarist Guilherme Miranda)
We rose from the concert hibernation and in to the pit of Entombed AD! What better band than these brutal Swedes to kick start Ugh Metal’s concert season? The Jan.16 show at Brick By Brick was memorable for many reasons, and we’re not just talking about Entombed AD’s frontman Lars Göran Petrov. But before we venture to the core of this sarcophagus, Poison Headache was the antidote for the 2016 blues.
Jenny Oh: You know, it was my first time watching Poison Headache and I felt like I really missed out, man. I know I’m a terrible San Diegan!
Chuggo the Klown: It was our first time, dummy. We didn’t see them the first time because we were still recovering from HeadFest, which happened to be the day before!
J: Oh… Yeah. Anyway, it was great to finally see them in action. It’s no secret why they’re gaining so much momentum.
C: The shocking part is that there’s no bass… sorry Murderface! Still it was great that I finally heard “Sin Eater” live!
J: They brought their A game and wouldn’t have been a Poison Headache show without “Rot With Me.”
C: No, gracias. Already rotting of my own volition thank you very much!
(Pictured is vocalist/guitarist/bassist Phil Sgrosso and backup vocalist/guitarist Andy Kukta)
J: You and your British shows and their fancy language. Well, you can’t escape the reaper, after all, it’s all part of “Death’s Design.” *wink, wink*
C: You done yet, Tony Robbins? I would like to continue to talk about this performance! Because it’s not every day you see a trio with nothing but a pair of guitars and a double bass drum, thundering their sounds through the night like they were the headliners!
J: I agree Mr. Tolkien! Their performance was boner inducing… enough to blast us off to the Turbid North!
C: Right you are my hobbit sibling! The moment they started, my eyes were alive!
J: Like their song, “Eyes Alive?”
C: Right… that was the name of the opener. Anyway, this Alaskan trio treated us to a night of groove and death metal.
J: The volatility of the “Pyramid Drones” and the mellow transition to the “Red Giant” was much like the unpredictability of the Alaskan weather. You can take the boys outta the North Pole and into Texas, but these dudes proved you can’t take the North Pole outta them!
(L to R: Vocalist/guitarist Nick Forkel and bassist/backup vocalist Chris O’Toole)
C: Right…? I was thinking Stargate, the movie not the show because these song titles sound like sci-fi and might have been tackled in the Stargate show. I still dunno what Santa had do with this band, though?
J: He has everything to do with this band! He must have been the inspiration for “Destroyer of Worlds” after all it sounded like it came out of the soundtrack for the fiery inferno…hmmm… good pick.
C: I think you mean Satan for this one… at least that’s what staunch Christians tell me. I was talking about the fat pimp from Christmas time.
J: Oh…! That fat ass… you can count on him and Turbid North to “Bring Home the Motherlode.” But no Chuggo, there’s a North Pole, Alaska. I’m pretty sure that fat sack of toys and peppermint doesn’t live there…
C: True that… putting his workshop in Palin country would be…
J: Full of Hell!?
C: Yes… incidentally, isn’t that the co-headliner of that night?
J: Oh yeah… these guys opened a whole new pandora’s box and unleashed a crusty-grindcore monster.
C: Yeah… although, visually, we got a punk show atmosphere to go along with that monster. The frontman, Dylan Walker, was all over the place.
J: Yeah he was! Thanks to Walker, my eyes and neck got to do a bit of cardio. He was bursting with that raw energy and there was never a dull moment. Full of Hell’s equipment was definitely out of this world and so fascinating… very mesmerizing.
C: Ah, yes, the biggest fucking mouthpiece I’ve ever seen. Walker busted out the mouthpiece of his mixer and went apeshit for “Pile of Dead Horses” and “Kopf.” Although, I was a bit concerned with it because the sounds that mouthpiece emitted sounded like the failed ignition from a car. But it made an interesting show that was far better in sound and performance than Skrillex.
J: Skrillex? Um… really? I’m sure 2010 and the sheep will defer with you.
C: Sheep are meant to be slaughtered! Either way, I can understand why Nails collaborated with these guys, same intensity and almost the same sounds.
J: For those that missed out on the Nails show last year, like yours truly, these guys reeled me back in to the crustcore loop.
C: You were never in the loop!
J: Shut up! Now let’s talk about Papa Lars.
C: Ah yes… now that our interns had the absolute pleasure to meet the man, 2017 was a great kick off! It was so nice to see Papa Lars and company. Most importantly, AD or not, they’re shows are opposite of “Midas In Reverse.”
J: Like always, Papa Lars is the life of the party and we can always count on him to give us a swig from his bottle of vodka in exchange for beer sips. Our reunion wasn’t complete without some crazy stories and classic Entombed songs.
C: Too bad the original line up isn’t together but it’s awesome to hear “Stranger Aeons” and “Living Dead” live.
J: Though the majority of the set list blasted us to the past, Lars and the rest of Entombed A.D. injected these classics with booze, sweat, mucus and exuberance!
C: Also a bit of freshness with their current touring guitarist, Guilherme Miranda. That guy ruled and kept up. And was the token Brazilian amongst the Swedes.
J: This show felt like a belated New Year’s celebration filled with plenty of VODKA and fun… hmmm… this was a big family reunion done right.
C: Yeah… the one you would like to attend to and stay for. Not the ones you dread because you know it’s going to be in some place in bum fuck nowhere. Hoping to see these legendary Swedes again in our humble abode!
J: Till next time, Papa Lars! Cheers!
Ugh Metal 