November 29th, 2009 - Gwar, Job For A Cowboy, The Red Chord @ King Cat Theater
I’m always a sucker for a good old fashion metal show even if it’s going down on a Sunday evening. Last Sunday in particular was an ass kicker because the mighty Gwar was in town at the King Cat Theater celebrating their 25th anniversary with support from Job for a Cowboy and The Red Chord.
Both openers have been frontrunners of the nu-school class of American death metal or more technically deathcore in recent years and both bands were of course punishing to say the least, which was expected. The Red Chord caught my ear in 2005 with ‘Clients’ and I saw them on many occasions between 2005 and 2006. They seemed to tour relentlessly, most of the time coming through on great bills much like Gwar’s 2006 stop in Seattle which also featured Municipal Waste. For some reason 2007’s ‘Prey for Eyes’ fell flat for me but I have been giving the band another listen with 2009’s ‘Fed Through the Teeth Machine’ (great album title by the way). The thing about The Red Chord is they are a band best experienced live, mainly because Guy Kozowyk’s unbelievably powerful and guttural vocal style and the bands tight death chug are conducive to bashing your neighbor in a pit.
One of the only touring metal bands in recent years to slip through my concert going fingers has been Job for a Cowboy. JFAC like The Red Chord blipped on my metal radar in 2005 via a viral online presence prior to the release of their excellent debut EP ‘Doom’. This record was so utterly and ridiculously barbaric and fresh that everyone including me thought this band was going to be some sort of savior or at least bring extreme metal to a whole new stratosphere. Well, it didn’t quite happen like that for some reason. Both of JFOC full lengths have been worthy deathcore efforts but nothing ground breaking like their initial effort may have hinted. JFOC as a whole was kick ass live, they too are a bunch of young dudes with serious metal chops. When they played “Knee Deep” off ‘Doom’ it was Earth shattering but I was really hoping that Jonny Davy’s multiple personality metal vocals would have come through more clear; his Mr. Hide was roaring while his Dr. Jekyll fell flat.Where to begin…
Gwar’s “Behind the Murder” mockumentary premised the crowd for the slaughter. Oderus’s pension for “CRACK” has Gwar returning to Earth for another taste, and as another elaborate stag plot unfolded Gwar brought back some old favorites for this 25th Anniversary tour including manager Sleazy P. Martini, and even Techno Destructo and his brother Sawborg Destructo were added to the mix of onstage visitors.
The crowd willingly drank from the Cuttlefish of Cthulu AKA Oderus’s giant space member all night while Gwar shredded through favorites like “Saddam A Go Go” from 1994’s ‘This Toilet Earth’ and tasty tracks like “Bring Back the Bomb” from ‘War Party’ which showcased Gwar’s 2004 return to form and heavier moments. The set pretty much ran the gamut of Gwar’s 25 year residence on Earth, and they only stopped to slash Michael Jackson’s face off, battle a giant cyborg, and dismember our current president—No pity from Gwar!
Since the mid-2000’s explosion of metal into a more mainstream audience, Gwar has capitalized by inserting themselves into a must-see-in-concert legendary cult metal band role; appealing to young metal heads from all around due to their speedy riffs and outlandish onstage antics. With the release of their 4th solid thrash metal record in a row, 2009’s “Lust in Space” proves Gwar is stronger than ever. This show marked my 5th Gwar experience, and it was no-less obscene, no-less bloody, no-less over-the-top, and every bit of ass kickingly fun as the first time. I’m still sporting some Michael Jackson DNA on my converse and I don’t see myself washing it off anytime soon. 
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