Expect acrobatic antics and pulse-pounding music when Fever 333 takes the stage.
All photos by Wayne Edwards.
Links.
Website, https://www.fever333.com/
Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/fever333/
Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/artist/1B0155rdv175D1tQ8VH7Oy
YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/fever333
Blue Ridge Rock Festival coverage at Ryze-Up magazine, https://www.ryze-up.com/music-2/blue-ridge-rock-festival-2021/
Joyous Wolf’s Fearless Tour made a stop in the North Country on Friday night at Higher Ground.
Joyous Wolf is out on tour right now, supported by The Lonely Ones and Frame 42 on their current swing. On Friday night they played in the Showcase Lounge at Higher Ground in South Burlington. First up was Frame 42.
Frame 42 is a six-piece band from Michigan. They opened their set with a variety of classic rock cover tunes. It was nice to hear this old standards, but I liked the original music they played even better. Their songs do have a classic rock foundation to them, but the band’s compositional acumen – and performance – add unique twists and touches that sets them apart. You can hear their music on most streaming services. Check out their website (link below) to find out more about them.
The Lonely Ones took the stage next, and they play rock in a somewhat harder vein. Not much is known about them (from their website) other than their roster: Marty McCoy (guitar, vocals), Tommy Johnson (drums), Jymmy Tolland (bass, vocals), and Jake Earley (guitar, vocals). The music they play is guitar-driven hard rock. Their set was a lot of fun to see and hear, and I will always remember it for the completely unexpected cover of Queen’s “Flash’s Theme.”
Joyous Wolf has been playing a straight-forward, bluesy and soulful brand of rock and roll since 2014. The Southern California band released the EP Place In Time through Roadrunner Records in 2019, and there is a new album on the way. The musicians are Nick Reese (vocals), Blake Allard (guitar), Robert Sodaro (drums), and Greg Braccio (bass).
I have gotten used to seeing Joyous Wolf at festivals, most recently at Louder Than Life in Louisville. They always put on a great show and I never miss them when they play these big events. Seeing them in a club setting was a new experience. Being confined to a smaller stage did not diminish the energy of their performance at all.
They played a number of new songs off the upcoming album, as well as familiar pieces. In the intimate confines of the cozy Showcase Lounge, you are close enough to touch the band – their expressions and nuances are on full display in ways you miss when they perform on big stages. No matter where you see them, you are in for some excellent rock and roll.
Joyous Wolf is on the road for a few more weeks. Go check them out live if they play near you. It is a great show.
Photos by Wayne Edwards.
Links.
Joyous Wolf, https://fearless.joyouswolf.com/
Roadrunner Records, https://store.roadrunnerrecords.com/joyous-wolf.html
Frame 42, https://www.frame42.com/
The Lonely Ones, https://thelonelyones.net/
Higher Ground, https://highergroundmusic.com/
© Wayne Edwards.
In their twentieth year as a metal band Gojira issues their seventh full-length studio album and it is one of the very best.
Gojira is from France and they play heavy metal. The music has groove and progressive elements to it, and you do not mistake Gojira for another band when you hear their music. Magma (2016) is the most recent album up to now, and while they have been quiet on the recording front since it came out they have been playing live and dazzling fans continuously. The band is Jean-Michel Labadie (bass), Mario Duplantier (drums), Christian Andreu (guitars), Joe Duplantier (guitar and vocals).
There are eleven tracks on the album, beginning with “Born For One Thing.” The drum lays in a march cadence while the guitar wind-up does not prepare you for the metal when it kicks in a few seconds later. The composition is heavy and complex, syncopated and variegated, groovy and mysterious – all these things at once. “Amazonia” comes up next, with its subtle slither and shimmer. Its every element is mesmerizing, like an shamanic chant. The narrative is compelling and delivered with authority.
The songs on Fortitude are big and ambitious. Some are delivered on a softer register throughout, like “Another World” and others demonstrate an incredible range from peace to aggression, as in “Hold On.” Progressive influences live in and amongst the growling metal. And then there is the title track, which is a short reflective piece that transitions into “The Chant,” a song that builds into a powerful statement before handing off the torch to “The Sphinx” with its heavy and sinister posture. This set wraps on “Grind” featuring punishing percussion, whispering vocal savagery, and stabbing, whirling guitars.
I was expecting something big from Gojira on this new album. What they have done is even more than I expected. We are all going to be reading about how this album is setting a standard others will be compared to and let me add my voice to that chorus. I am sure Fortitude will be on the 2021 Best Of list. Highly recommended.
Fortitude is out now. Hit the website link below to investigate the options.
Live photo by Wayne Edwards, Aftershock Festival 2019.
Links.
Website, https://www.gojira-music.com/?frontpage=true
Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/GojiraMusic
Roadrunner Records, https://store.roadrunnerrecords.com/gojira.html
Flying Fiddlesticks Music Blog 