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Tommy Chong said:
Tell me mate, do you like these guys:

Click to expand...

It's not quite at my sweet spot of [insanely technical, the songwriting rips], but it's quite good. I really like their technical side. They remind me a bit of a local band here that never quite made it. Less distortion, similar technical approach.

It qualifies for my 'worth your time live' assessment, going in. I would be hoping for something around Vektor, live. Quality, sounds worth a headline club pay at the right price irrespective of the rest of the bill. Can weight a coin flip if you're considering forking out for a main act in a big venue, and perhaps worth in a club/amphitheater at the right price if you just went to see them and walked out on the main act. I once did that at $10 a ticket to see Collective Soul again, and skipped the Goo Goo Dolls. Collective Soul always wrecks live.

For perspective, I also said 'worth your time live' about Saxon to my ex, and then watched them blast Priest off the stage as the opening act. Not that she agreed. I'm taking the kids as the tiebreaker, on that one.
 
Martin Alvito said:
It's not quite at my sweet spot of [insanely technical, the songwriting rips], but it's quite good. I really like their technical side. They remind me a bit of a local band here that never quite made it. Less distortion, similar technical approach.

It qualifies for my 'worth your time live' assessment, going in. I would be hoping for something around Vektor, live. Quality, sounds worth a headline club pay at the right price irrespective of the rest of the bill. Can weight a coin flip if you're considering forking out for a main act in a big venue, and perhaps worth in a club/amphitheater at the right price if you just went to see them and walked out on the main act. I once did that at $10 a ticket to see Collective Soul again, and skipped the Goo Goo Dolls. Collective Soul always wrecks live.

For perspective, I also said 'worth your time live' about Saxon to my ex, and then watched them blast Priest off the stage as the opening act. Not that she agreed. I'm taking the kids as the tiebreaker, on that one.
Click to expand...

Have you ever listened to Unwound? Their technique is mad for 3 people, but fairly similar to the above

 

Martin Alvito said:
It's not quite at my sweet spot of [insanely technical, the songwriting rips], but it's quite good. I really like their technical side. They remind me a bit of a local band here that never quite made it. Less distortion, similar technical approach.

It qualifies for my 'worth your time live' assessment, going in. I would be hoping for something around Vektor, live. Quality, sounds worth a headline club pay at the right price irrespective of the rest of the bill. Can weight a coin flip if you're considering forking out for a main act in a big venue, and perhaps worth in a club/amphitheater at the right price if you just went to see them and walked out on the main act. I once did that at $10 a ticket to see Collective Soul again, and skipped the Goo Goo Dolls. Collective Soul always wrecks live.

For perspective, I also said 'worth your time live' about Saxon to my ex, and then watched them blast Priest off the stage as the opening act. Not that she agreed. I'm taking the kids as the tiebreaker, on that one.
Click to expand...
It helps to have a large variety of musical tastes... Sometimes you want to chill with the soft stuff...



And sometimes you just want to thrash out! 😜
 
coollino said:
Have you ever listened to Unwound? Their technique is mad for 3 people, but fairly similar to the above

Click to expand...

I heard technical power trio. You have my immediate interest.

And, yeah, this is serious quality. It really is that subjective. I don't love the whole thing after about 2:00, but this is nasty. One of the interesting things about a power trio is that there is zero room for fat. I tend to go as bassists go, and the power trio where the bassist is not first-rate has not been born. The quality of the lead then usually becomes the separating factor, unless the drummer is a god.
Tommy Chong said:
It helps to have a large variety of musical tastes... Sometimes you want to chill with the soft stuff...



And sometimes you just want to thrash out! 😜
Click to expand...

I do, but I'm a touch old school about that one. If I'm just putting horns up in the air, odds are it's an old-schoool thrash band like the Big Four, Testament, Overkill, Exodus or Flotsam. I don't listen to a ton of Metallica these days. I tend to think it's a complexity thing, but my freshman psychology prof might have been right to call out habituation, as he felt about Rush.
 

Martin Alvito said:
I heard technical power trio. You have my immediate interest.

And, yeah, this is serious quality. It really is that subjective. I don't love the whole thing after about 2:00, but this is nasty. One of the interesting things about a power trio is that there is zero room for fat. I tend to go as bassists go, and the power trio where the bassist is not first-rate has not been born. The quality of the lead then usually becomes the separating factor, unless the drummer is a god.

I do, but I'm a touch old school about that one. If I'm just putting horns up in the air, odds are it's an old-schoool thrash band like the Big Four, Testament, Overkill, Exodus or Flotsam. I don't listen to a ton of Metallica these days. I tend to think it's a complexity thing, but my freshman psychology prof might have been right to call out habituation, as he felt about Rush.
Click to expand...
I enjoy the technical side as well. It's been a while, but I use to enjoy going to watch the philharmonic when they invited an insane virtuoso from some obscure eastern European country to come and play a violin or piano concerto. I loved getting front row seats to watch them go to town on their instrument!
 
Tommy Chong said:
I enjoy the technical side as well. It's been a while, but I use to enjoy going to watch the philharmonic when they invited an insane virtuoso from some obscure eastern European country to come and play a violin or piano concerto. I loved getting front row seats to watch them go to town on their instrument!
Click to expand...
When I lived in Nashville, there were these three guys that were absolutely insane. Upright bass (mostly), fiddle/mandolin and a dobro. Complete insanity. Prog rock with the weirdest instruments ever. Totally worth the watch, more than once, which I did.

Of course, that's was a town at the time where it was hard to trip without stumbling over someone with more musical talent than we will ever have. Guy at the Enterprise rental who drove me to get my car back from the body shop had won multiple independent music awards (for some dirty R&B), that sort of thing.
 
Martin Alvito said:
When I lived in Nashville, there were these three guys that were absolutely insane. Upright bass (mostly), fiddle/mandolin and a dobro. Complete insanity. Prog rock with the weirdest instruments ever. Totally worth the watch, more than once, which I did.

Of course, that's was a town at the time where it was hard to trip without stumbling over someone with more musical talent that we will ever have. Guy at the Enterprise rental who drove me to get my car back from the body shop had won multiple independent music awards (for some dirty R&B), that sort of thing.
Click to expand...
I would wait at the crossroads until midnight for the devil himself and sell my soul in exchange for proper musical talent... 😂
 
Anyway, if you want to hear (get wrecked by YouTube) the two guys I would pay good money to see do a 25th anniversary tour for a classic album:



Did see Vai play all of Passion and Warfare on that tour, and every bit of it destroyed. I would travel for these two reunited the way I would for Gary and Nuno, though,
 

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