review by: Roberto Martinelli

With the sorry state that most death metal shows are in these days (scroll up to read the Immolation/Vader show for a rant on this topic), I'm beginning to warm up more and more to seeing hardcore bands play live. In terms of going to a show and being able to hear what the bands in question intended, then this show delivered. In particular Hopesfall was of special interest, as their new album, The Satellite Years, is one of the most brilliant records of the year (it turns out that their debut EP, No Wings to Speak of, is also brilliant) , so I had to see if they could reproduce in a live setting what they do on record.

First up was Murder Machine, a band that didn't really exist but a few months ago and was more or less thrown together. Not that you could notice, mind you, as the group's enjoyable, simple hardcore music fronted by Eric Thomas, whom many recognized as one of the more pleasant people who provide security for local shows, was a success. You could tell that the band was having fun, and it spilled over into the audience.

If the best bands should play last, then Hopesfall should have been headlining the show, as not surprisingly they blew away everyone else on the bill. This North Carolina quintet has deeply moved me (check out the review of The Satellite Years and our interview with the band) with their emotive riffs and rhythms, and unique flair for arrangements and knowing when to bring in some melodic verses and choruses to offset the passionate hardcore delivery. You could hear everything that the band was doing, and that was such a refreshing thing.

Avenged Sevenfold sounded good, but their material, the hardest of the bill, was a little redundant. It was mostly a case of Hopesfall being a real tough act to follow. Like the band before it, Avenged Sevenfold likes to throw in some clean vocals from time to time, but these sounded a little flat, kind of like the bottom would fall out from under them.

Atreyu was also good, having the most laid back in a rock way approach. Atreyu should have played second. The songs were ok, but again it was hard to keep my attention after such an excellent performance by Hopesfall.

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