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Talented, untalented under the same roof By Andy Chruscicki Monday, March 10, the Rockstar Energy Taste of Chaos tour came to the Main Street Armory in Rochester. It featured numerous bands and was headlined by Bullet for my Valentine, BlesstheFall, Atreyu and Avenged Sevenfold. The first bands to play were three Japanese rock bands that were a part of the JRock Revolution, along with Idiot Pilot. The first Japanese band was The Underneath. They didn’t get the crowd going, considering they played when everyone was still entering the venue. The next band, D’espairsRay, took the stage and was not a crowd pleaser. The sound resembled the European band H.I.M. and sounded bland. The next band was Idiot Pilot, which was nothing more than two kids playing guitar and their Mac laptop, trying to create music. It was the worst attempt at hard rock music I’ve ever heard. After Idiot Pilot, it finally came to the last opening band, MUCC. By this time the crowd was excited, but not to see MUCC. They were waiting for the first headliner, Bullet for my Valentine. MUCC played for a half-hour then left the stage. Bullet for my Valentine entered and as soon they started playing, the crowd went crazy. There was crowd surfing and mosh pits. The band opened with their latest single, “Scream, Aim, Fire,” which is the title of their sophomore album. Bullet for my Valentine’s set was nothing short of impressive. Lead guitarist Matt Tuck had the perfect voice for their music. They played numerous songs including, “Suffocating Under Words of Sorrow,” “Waking the Demon” and the fan favorite, “Tears don’t Fall.” The crowd went crazy when they played their first song, “Hand of Blood.” After about 45 minutes of insanity, Bullet for my Valentine ended the show with another song from their new album, the thrash-metal throwback, “Eye of the Storm.” Next up was BlesstheFall. The set was good, but the crowd didn’t seem to like them as much as Bullet for my Valentine. BlesstheFall also had a shorter set than Bullet for my Valentine. They played about four songs off their new album and then left the stage, making way for the next headliner, Atreyu. The Armory went dark and a black sheet was dropped in front of the stage. The opening riff of “Doomsday” started, the sheet was dropped and the crowd welcomed Atreyu, with lights and special effects highlighting. Atreyu was nothing short of fantastic. A majority of their songs were from their new album, Lead Sails and a Paper Anchor, including their latest single, “Falling Down,” “When Two are One,” “Becoming the Bull” and fan-favorite “Blow.” They then went back to their second studio album playing hits “The Crimson” and “Bleeding Mascara.” Throughout the show, Atreyu interacted with the crowd. Guitarist Dan Jacobs is by far one of the best shredders in modern music. Jacobs plays the guitar like Tom Brady throws touchdown passes. After about an hour, Atreyu ended the show with “Lip Gloss and Black.” It was great because the songs ends with a solo. All three guitarists played the solo behind their heads and as they finished the crowd went wild, chanting, “one more song.” But it was time for the main event, which was none other than Avenged Sevenfold. The opening organ to the single “Critical Acclaim” began. Then the guitar and drums kicked in and the stage lit up with fireworks, pyrotechnics, laser lights and even videos and pictures to go along with their songs. From then on, their set gained energy and never slowed down once. Avenged Sevenfold has some of the best musicians I have heard in the past five years. They showed this while playing the seven-minute epic song “Second Heartbeat.” The lead singer, M. Shadows, has vocals that boom and demand attention. The two-guitarist tandem named Zacky Vengeance and Synyster Gates play well with one another. Finally, drummer The Rev has started doubling with drums and vocals which make him that much more impressive. They also had a Vegas-style video when they played “Bat Country.” They played “Beast and the Harlot” and “Seize the Day” from their City of Evil album. They closed with their first single “Unholy Confessions.” They returned to the stage and played “A Little Piece of Heaven.” The arena filled with confetti and smoke. It was the perfect ending to an excellent group of musicians. |
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