Rocktober 2016 with Kyng, Clutch, and Zakk Sabbath
A lovely night in midtown set the scene for some good old fashion metal at the Uptown Theater this Thursday night.
About an hour before the doors at 7:00, a group of fans had lined up at the door waiting to get inside. The parking lot was already starting to fill up quickly, with others were jamming out in their cars, trying to stave off the chilled, fall air.
When the doors finally opened up, the group lined up at the door nearly stretched past the venue. As thousands of eager fans rushed inside, we settled in for another night of music.
The show started off with LA trio Kyng, made up of Eddie Veliz on vocals and guitar, Tony Castaneda on bass and backing vocals, and Pepe Clark on drums. The group has been around since 2008 and has toured with the likes of Danzig, Megadeth, and Static-X.
Kyng really started off the night strong with their own brand of drundgy, sludgy metal. Eddie and Tony rocked out on pairs of sunburst guitars, while Pepe was still close to the action thrashing like an octopus on the drum set.
As the opening act, Kyng kept it neat and tidy. Eddie’s vocals are reminiscent of Danzig or Volbeat. My conclusion of this band is that their catchy as hell, and certainly do justice to their genre.
During the break, the audience on the floor grew more, and more, waiting for a chance to get close to the next act, Zakk Sabbath.
At this point in the show, I’d usually try myself to get center stage to take part in the action, but this time around, I found a seat in the back and enjoyed Zakk from the sidelines. Plus it made taking notes a whole lot easier.
The set opened up with “Children of the Grave”. Now when I first heard this was going to be Zakk Wylde covering Sabbath, I was initially kind of bored with the though. Boy was I wrong, though. Zakk definitely puts his own spin on the classics. In addition to being a pillar of the Mount Olympus of guitarists, Zakk also has some pretty impressive vocal chops. It’s always impressive to see someone shred and sing at the same time.
The set continued with “Snowblind,” and “Supernaut”. The way the songs transitioned and the massive guitar solos really set these songs apart from just covering the songs. The crowd absolutely lost it mid-set when they covered “War Pigs,” mostly because Zakk moved out and played in the middle of the crowd, his guitar chord stretching across the theater.
After some Kansas City related shout outs to hype the crowd, the set concluded with “Into the Void” and “Fairies Wear Boots”
Personally, I’m glad Zakk didn’t go with the obvious Black Sabbath covers for the set list. It made the covers seem personal to Zakk. Additionally, he really put his own spin on the classics and made them his own.
As our last band Clutch prepared to take the stage next, the crowd grew even bigger. Bathroom lines were long, merch tables were crowded, and the bar was filling up with people topping off their drinks for the upcoming act.
Clutch has been active since 1991. The band formed in Maryland. Neil Fallon is on vocals and guitar, Tim Suit is on guitar, Dan Manies on bass, and Jean-Paul Gaster is on drums. Clutch blends funk and roots style elements with metal to form an iconic sound that has swooned millions of followers. The band has often been compared to the modern American version of Black Sabbath.
Their set opened up with “The Mob Goes Wild” Fun fact about this song: the video was directed by Bam Margera! The set continued with “Cyprus Grove” from the same album Blast Tyrant released in 2004. They continued the set with “X-Ray visions and “Firebirds!” from their latest release Psychic Warfare.
In fact, a little less than half the set was comprised of their latest material, although the guys from Clutch generously sprinkled in older released from their varied catalog of music. A band with this kind of range that draws so many fans really knows how to wow the crowd.
Clutch closed the night with two encore performances: My personal favorite song of theirs “Electric Worry” and “The Wolf Man Kindly Requests…”
Well, there you have it folks. Another night captured by Josh, and Dallas.
Clutch will be touring through December and is making stops soon throughout the Midwest. Hell, if you missed them in Kansas City, they’ll be in Columbia, MO on the 24th at the Blue Note.
Tour dates can be found here: http://www.pro-rock.com/index.cfm?page=Tour
