This was an important show for me. After over a year away from covering shows, managing my mental health and just staying busy with work, I came to a point where I needed to get out to shows again and do the thing that gives me a level of passion and enjoyment. I’ve missed this.
I remember sitting in my car in 2001, finishing up my high school diploma, indulging in L.D. 50, Mudvayne’s major label debut. I’d heard nothing like it before. I was still getting my feet wet with metal, and diving head first into the math metal of Mudvayne exposed my young ears to “Death Blooms”, “Nothing to Gein”, and, of course, “Dig”. That album itself is unlike anything I’ve experienced still to this day. I’ve seen them twice since then, once in 2002, and again in 2005 at the Fillmore in Denver. Years later in 2014, I would travel to Manhattan, KS and R.C. McGraws, where Hellyeah! would stop at in between stops in Council Bluffs, IA and Dallas, TX supporting their “Blood for Blood” album. Getting to meet Chad and Vinnie after the show was the highlight of the evening, aside from seeing this supergroup that playing bigger venues through their tour, and seeing them stop at this small venue in the middle of EMAW country for a show.
But, I digress…
My first time at the Voodoo Lounge was met with friendly staff, security, and amazing sound. Definitely putting this on the list of places to see more shows as often as I can.
Devil’s Cut
Hailing from Louisville, KY, they feel like what modern Hard Rock should be. Lead Singer William Landrum never stood in the same place for more than a few seconds, constantly keeping the attention of the crowd as they introduced the attendees to their brand of Kentucky Metal. Even their “let’s slow it down a little bit” was punctuated by the same driving rhythm as the rest of their set. Without a doubt, no rest for the wicked this entire set. Their debut album “Roadkill” is out now.
Setlist: Backfire, Drop Dead (End), Drink with the Devil, Ruin My Life, Worth a Shot, Welcome to Kentucky, Missing a Memory, Insomnia, Roadkill.
Butcher Babies
Butcher Babies have been around for a while. I’ve been aware of them since they first came together in the early ’10s, but haven’t followed them much beyond recognizing the name. Getting to actually see a band you’ve only heard about, is a wake up call. If you’ve heard a bands name, but never explored them, that’s your calling card to go see them every chance you get. And the Butcher Babies are a perfect example. Their stage presence, production quality, and sound shows their experience and thirst for theatrics. Lead singer Heidi Shepherd’s movements across the stage and into the crowd felt cinematic at times, positioned perfectly with the back lighting. Her voice ranges from angelic to digging down deep demonic. She knows how to keep the crowd in the palm of her hand, and squeeze tight. Stepping back from the pit and into the crowd, seeing the whole stage setup, you can really appreciate her animated movements as an art form,working with the lights around the stage and making every flicker and flash visual poetry. I’ve seen lead singers step off stage and into a circle pit before, but never someone of her size welcoming the pit around her while she tears through the remainder of the song. The poetic and emotional “Last December” cme with a story and inserted itself into the very core of all present. Written in 2019 at a low point, unaware of the chaos the next year would bring, Heidi wrote this vulnerable ballad about overcoming the darkest of times. A fun and emotionally driven set is always welcomed, but I never thought I would experience fun from a heavy metal set. They’re definitely on my list to see again, and again…and again.
Side note: as a wrestling fan, I love seeing bands that have provided songs for wrestlers entrance themes. I saw Plush a couple years ago, and they played “Athena” (theme song for the wrestler Athena), and I wished they had performed “Choke” (theme for AEW’s Skye Blue). Nit picking, I know. But keeping the fingers crossed for next time around.
Setlist: Backstreets of Tennessee, Red Thunder, Monsters Ball, Sincerity, Beaver Cage, It’s Killing Time Baby, Lost in Your Touch, Black Dove, Spittin Teef, Blame it on the Wind, Last December, Magnolia Blvd.
Chad Gray
Finally, the reason for the season took to the stage in a simple, humble stride. Wearing half a face of paint to represent his time in Mudvayne, the other half representing HELLYEAH, Chad Gray came to the center stage. the first three songs came and went like a blur. Only through the photos do I even have memory of that period of time, and I needed more and more. He’s come a long way and grown since I saw him in 2002, sporting a disgustingly (in a good way) bloody bunny suit in Denver. The trauma of hearing his voice scream triggered me to put in some ear protection (I should do that more…oh well). Historically, each time I have seen him perform, my ears felt on the edge of bursting, so better safe than sorry. That may be why it felt like the first three songs went by so fast. It wasn’t until I stepped out of the pit that I was able to truly appreciate the madness of the last 30 years with Chad Gray and the Voodoo Lounge.
With HELLYEAH on hiatus, and Mudvayne taking the year off, Gray stated he “didn’t want to just sit at home with his dick in his hand”, and we are grateful for it, This tour fills that void of time off and allows Gray to hand-pick a selection of both bands and honor the catalogs of each, dispersing hits throughout the night. The first four songs came from HELLYEAH (X, Moth, Demons, and Hush) before digging into the Mudvayne side of things (Death Blooms, Nothing to Gein, Dull Boy). The unbridled onslaught that is “Nothing to Gein” never felt more intense as it did that night. Pulling from both bands catalogs through the rest of the set just showcased the depth of Gray’s music stylings, something that has evolved, not unlike the evolution of Mudvayne over the years (333, World So Cold, Out to Pasture, Sangre Por Sangre, Silenced). The final portion of the show leaned heavily on Mudvayne’s biggest hits and one final hit from HELLYEAH, naturally (Silenced, Not Falling, Love Falls, Happy, and the one that started it all, Dig).
Live music has always been a form of therapy for myself, and I can imagine for not just the audience, but the bands and musicians that perform on these stages each and every night. One should never turn down a chance to see those artists that they love and appreciate for whatever reason. The music is not just theirs, but the memories and emotions that connect us to them, belong to us, the fans. I love doing this. I love hearing my favorite artists, whether it’s there as a fan, or working with my camera. If their music gives me some release, some therapeutic adrenaline, the least I can do is capture the memory of that night to live on forever. To answer Chad’s question: Yes, this does make me Happy.
Until next time…
