Underoath devour KoKo

Brendan — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 23:08:02 +0000

Underoath – KoKo – 11 March 2010

Words by Brendan Monteiro / Photo’s by Marcus Maschwitz

Underoath is a band that has become synonymous with heavy progressive sounds, yet nothing could prepare anyone for the crushing performance and onslaught they would unleash on the senses tonight. The Floridians may state that they are a little out of practice, having been off from touring for 2 months, but tonight they show no lack in form and put together an experience like none before.

As the cheers and whistles for Underoath soar during a morbid spoken word intro, it’s almost hard to hear what is actually being said, the crowd is on the brink of total chaos. As the band make their entrance with the final words echoing out,

tonight is the night that it all stops
If your hearing this
your already part of the experience
everything
that you have ever known
about seeing, hearing and feeling
is going to change
forever

and Spencer hurls them straight into The Only Survivor Was Miraculously Unharmed, what happens next is total carnage with the floor section expanding and contracting with the flow of the song like a human time bomb ready to explode. Spencer sets In Regards To Myself off like an A-bomb on the crowd, it goes to show his massive range and incredible lyrics. Lines like

So tear another page from the book
Are you asleep or just alone?
Clear this room from your lungs

Go hand in hand with Spencer’s intense vocal delivery of the words, making the end result all the more staggering. Unfortunately to me I think that Aaron’s vocal’s could of been brought up a notch and upon listening to the live CD that was on sale at the show this theory is further cemented for me. That’s not to say that his vocals were off in any way, it’s just that I feel his vocals are just important as Spencer’s and the juxtaposition between the two vocalist is vital to the beauty of Underoath. In saying that Aaron’s drumming was electrifying, never have I seen a drummer pound away so intensely and furiously and at the same time playing with so much style. Style isn’t a big thing but in a live setting where the band is on display visually as much as it is sonically it’s an added treat to see someone play with so much flair. He makes everything looks so easy, and to stick the knife in further he sings amazingly too.

As for the other members of Underoath, they all put in 110% and the energy levels are kept constant throughout the show. Tim thrashes the hell out of his guitar, while Chris Dudley wreaks havoc upon his array of keys, synths and sample tools. The set list is border line perfect, encompassing a fair amount from Lost In The Sound Of Separation, Define The Great Line and two classics from They’re Only Chasing Safety. As for crowd response and interaction, I think there was not one song that didn’t please. The fact that Underoath put so much effort into not just playing each song perfectly but also making sure that each song rolls fluidly into the next one just adds more ambience to the experience.

Too Bright To See, Too Loud To Hear is by far my favourite from Underoath’s latest release. I love the way it has some of the most visually alluring melody’s I have ever heard, if you close your eyes the soundscapes sort of take you off to a different world. Then just as you totally relax it catapults into a blazing and fervent ending. Tonight the experience of this song is all the more hair tingling as every member of the audience helps with the rhythm in the mid-section. The night ends and the sadness that it’s all over hits home, lucky enough it’s only for the brief journey home until I can get the Live album, ram it in my CD player and re-live the experience over and over again.

The 69 Eyes return with their ninth studio album

Brendan — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 16:35:14 +0000

Sharpen your fangs, The Helsinki Vampires are back. And this time, they’re Back In Blood.

THE 69 EYES return with their ninth studio album, which has been hailed a latter-dayAppetite For Destruction. With blood on their hands and AC/DC on their stereo, the bloodsuckers have combined their past to focus on the future. Turning their back on the comic book glam of Angels, The Eyes have opened a heavier chapter in their musical career. For the first time this decade, honorary sixth vampire Johnny Lee Michaels has been granted temporary leave from the batcave and Matt Hyde (Slayer/Monster Magnet) has been invited over the threshold to produce the record.

“He’s cleaned the table and dusted the skeletons!” singer Jyrki 69 laughs. “It’s like when Rick Rubin helped The Cult discover themselves on Electric - we made a similar spiritual journey with Matt.”

Once again THE 69 EYES have their finger on the pulse of darkness with twelve goth ‘n’ roll anthems guaranteed to rock the crypt. “Unsurprisingly, the main inspiration for the album came from the vampire realm,” Jyrki explains. “We haven’t made a concept album but nearly all the songs have something to do with the undead or at least horror as a genre.” Delving into his movie collection, the singer focused on Jean Rollin’s erotic French flick Lips Of Blood, The Hunger and the modern-day opus Night Watch. “It’s almost like vampires are taking over the world!” he muses referring to the current Twilight mania.

The first single will be the tongue-in-cheek “Dead Girls Are Easy” – a nasty power anthem for sleazy pin-ups complete with a sing-a-long chorus aimed at those online chicks with the looks that kill! The video was recently shot and directed by MTV superstar and close friend Bam Margera, who was also responsible for the Eyes’ rock homage to ‘80s cult movie The Lost Boys. In addition to the video, the band have also produced 15 webisodes detailing the making of the record which will be unveiled on theirMySpace as well as Youtube (run dates: TBA).

The album opens with title track “Back In Blood”, which is a fast-paced wake-up call to the vampire king who’s been asleep for centuries and is now ready to rock. Blood is the new black and it’s never tasted this good: “2000 years – now, baby I’m back!” he sings, licking his lips. Jyrki describes the song as: “More Mötley than Mercy but with a Crüe made of Sisters.” The blood-thirsty swansong is an intimate piano and acoustic guitar-driven ballad called “Eternal”, performed as only a half-rottenVampire Lestat could on a sultry southern night…

Matt Hyde’s ultra-tight production has brought the danger back to THE 69 EYES’ sound. The producer reveals: “I’ve tried to feature the guitars, drums and vocals – the core sound of the band. I wanted them to rock and I wanted less emphasis on outside orchestration and keyboards with more real power and emotion through the performance itself.”

But it’s not just danger that Matt’s unleashed – he shares the same passion for horror and comics as Jyrki and the results of their marathon viewing sessions have seeped through onto disc. “We watched at least three movies every night while recording the vocals,” the frontman reveals. “We soon exhausted Matt’s DVD collection so we started renting everything we hadn’t seen from his local rental store. Once we’d got through everything they had there, we bought more and more and he’s now got a nice collection classic British Hammer films, cool 60s biker movies and vampire classics. Afterall, we couldn’t have made a record like this without Bela Lugosi or Christopher Lee watching over our shoulder!”

The artwork has been designed by Estevan Oriol, whose work has graced countless covers fromCypress Hill to The Transplants and Snoop Dogg. “I’ve been a fan of his iconic images for years – he’s like a present-day Andy Warhol. I’m so happy that he agreed to work with us because it’s given this record a real ‘made in LA’ stamp.”

Recording Back in Blood in Hollywood also put THE 69 EYES in a prime location for well-known visitors. Brides Of Destruction’s London LeGrand and Care Failure from Die Mannequin are among the familiar names listed on the credits. But this isn’t just a party album; it’s a great rock record… and if you’re into vampires, you’ll enjoy it even more!

“We’ve worked so hard over the last two years since Angels was released,” says Jyrki. “We played around 125 shows worldwide but all our sacrifices paved the way for the birth of this baby. Back In Blood is a culmination of 20 years worth of hard work.”

Clink Music Magazine » Timo-Timo

Underoath devour KoKo

The 69 Eyes return with their ninth studio album