Last year's Choicefest allowed longtime promoter/superfan
Adam Noble Bass to spread his thrusting, fist-pumping wing and fly like the jovial,
gregarious eagle of the PNW heavy music scene that he is. Due to the success that his promotion company, Ladies' Choice, saw last April with the “No All-Dude Bands” theme, it has now
become an annual event – one WORTHY enough that SRG will devote a show preview
to each of the three spectacular events he has lined up again for this coming
weekend.
It all starts on Thursday with the resounding clang
of some of the heaviest metal our fair region has to offer. Four bands at the Highline on Cap Hill, and, sticking to the theme, each one will have at least one female member. It will also serve as a benefit show for Theories
vocalist, Rick Powell, who was shot while on break outside of his Crown Car in
West Seattle earlier this month. He is
scheduled to make a full recovery, but not without missing a few months of
work. He’s one tough motherfucker! If you come to the show, you’re helping him out
as well as helping the entire scene to show how much we care about one another. But also, you are helping yourself to a bunch
of great metal and a kickass night.
Back in the day—before they had signed to Alternative
Tentacles, before their live performances became a rare and special event—veteran
crust ‘n’ grind quartet, Skarp, used
to scare me a little. Perhaps it was the
sheer, palpable intensity they would exude in those small, dark rooms that the
more extreme types of music were relegated to at the time. Or maybe it was Joe Grindo’s (Book of Black
Earth, Splatterhouse, etc.) maniacal drumming that made my heart begin to pump
overtime, striving in vain to align itself in perfect syncopation with the
endless blast beats and brick wall stops…
Whatever it was, I can’t wait to get another taste of it at the Highline.
Portland’s Transient
also bring the grind as well as anyone out there, with a similar level of intensity
to the headliners described above. It’s
great fun to watch the diminutive vocalist, Krysta Martinez (recently back from
an international tour with Landmine Marathon), as she transitions between a
fire-breathing, growling, unholy dragon, with some of the greatest range and rage
one could expect to find in extreme music from any era, to a grinning and
gracious host as she takes a moment to catch her breath between songs.
The filthy and fantastic Don
Peyote and relative new-comers Murder
in the Wood are opening. The former
are always a blast to see, and really help make this solid bill even more
impressive, while the latter are honestly new to me – but that is what makes
these kinds of fests exciting, and it’s nice to get the chance to check out a Superfan-approved
new band on the scene. (UPDATE: Unfortunately, Murder in the Wood will be unable to make the show. But, it's still an incredible three-band bill for a measly eight bucks!)
Check back tomorrow for more Choicefest II previews!
