home Concert Review Key Club 12/10/2000 – Shadows Fall, Nevermore and In Flames

Key Club 12/10/2000 – Shadows Fall, Nevermore and In Flames

The night started off outside of the Key Club in a line that went around the block. It was also kinda chilly out, but I knew that once I got inside it would be warm, just off the bodies that were there to catch a night of metal.

Shadows Fall : Photo by - Brian MayThe doors opened a bit before 7:30, but Shadows Fall didn’t take the stage until 8:50, so needless to say, the natives were restless. Shadows Fall, a Boston-based band made up of Brian Fair (Vocals), Matthew Bachand (Guitar / Vocals), Jonathan Donais (Lead Guitar / Vocals), Paul Romanko (Bass) and David “Knife” Germain (Drums), really put on a good show! Songs from their set included ‘Pain Glass Vision‘, ‘The First Nobel Truth‘ which was dedicated to both Nevermore and In Flames, and ‘To Ashes‘. Brian mentioned that he was under the weather with the ‘Swedish Flu’ and said that both he and Anders from In Flames had the Flu, but it didn’t stop Brian from screaming his ass off. This band possesses everything I like; the heavy, yet melodic vocals, and the double-kick of the drums.

Nevermore : Photo by - Brian MayThe next band to hit the stage was Nevermore, who took the stage and started to spark a flame under the pit monsters’ ass! The band performed songs from just about every one of their CDs, but mainly promoted their latest release, Dead Heart in a Dead World (Century Media). Nevermore was definitely spreading their disease with these songs, ‘The River Dragon Has Come‘, ‘Dead Heart In A Dead World‘, ‘The Seven Tongues Of God‘, ‘Sound of Silence‘ – a Simon & Garfunkel cover – and many other tunes. Nevermore, Warrel Dane (Vocals), Jim Sheppard (Bass), Jeff Loomis (Lead / Rhythm Guitar) and Van Williams (Drums), played an awesome set and the crowd sure seemed to like it, singing along with the majority of the songs. This was my first time to see Nevermore. I was supposed to see them a few months ago at the Roxy, but they canceled their set. I was very impressed with their show. When Nevermore left the stage, I was left wanting more, so I guess I’ll have to get a few CDs now, won’t I?

In Flames : Photo by - Brian MayNow it was time to see a band that I have been listening to since late ’96, In Flames! I’ve got a killer mp3 story about this band. When I get a chance to interview In Flames, I’ll share it with you then. I have been waiting to see this band play for years, and I know that I have missed a few shows, mainly at the Whisky, but this is a mistake that I will not let happen again. Like Nevermore, In Flames played songs from their whole catalog, but mostly played tracks from their current release, Clayman (Nuclear Blast). Some of the songs in In Flames’ flawless set included ‘Suburban Me‘, ‘Pinball Map‘, ‘Embody the Invisible‘, ‘Behind Space 99‘, ‘Episode 666‘ and ‘Moonshield‘. One of the kids in the crowd was yelling for Episode 666 all night, right up until the song before it when he yelled something different. Anders caught him on this, telling him that they were going to play ‘Episode 666’ very soon. I got a chuckle out of it. When the set was over and the band bid us all goodnight, I was a little sad to see them go. I was hoping for an encore, but it wasn’t going to happen.

In Flames are: Bjorn Gelotte (Guitars), Daniel Svensson (Drums), Jesper Stromblad (Guitars), Anders Friden (Vocals) and Peter Iwers (Bass). But for this leg of the tour, Peter Iwers was on parental leave so Dick Lovgren, who is on loan from Armageddon, filled in for him. This bands guitar work is simply amazing, and that is what caught my ear all those years ago. The whole package is just something you do NOT want to miss. I know I won’t miss them when they play in L.A.again!

metalboyBrian
brian@unearthed.com

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