Sometimes a band sweeps you off your feet in a way you wouldn’t expect. This happened to me recently with a band called Vestiges. I was anticipating seeing Los Angeles black metal band Lake Of Blood play live, and figured I should check out the music of their touring partners. Vestiges have made their first and only album, The Descent Of Man, readily available for download. I listened to it and was blown away. I connected with them on an auditory and emotional level in a way that I hadn’t experienced in a long time. More words and live photos after the jump.
I saw Vestiges play live in Oakland at Your Haus and San Francisco at Sub Mission. Their live show was everything I hoped it would be; intense, visceral and honest. At the San Francisco show the band set up all their equipment on the floor, bringing them to audience level which broke down the barrier between performer and observer. A few effects and volume pedals helped recreate some of the more subtle and atmospheric guitar sounds from the album, but for the most part the Vestiges sound is stripped down. The band played a couple songs from The Descent Of Man as well as one new song from a forthcoming album. The set was full of moments of nearly suffocating intensity, as well as moments of beauty and serenity.
The quality of songwriting and the emotional content within The Descent Of Man made it easy to absorb in the week before I saw Vestiges play. The band is incredibly humble and realistic about their current tour; they are touring exhaustively behind only one, self-released album. They don’t expect to pack venues, and are not concerned about that. At this point in their musical career, they are just trying to get their music out to as many people as possible, as well as meet and make connections with people who have already found their album. The Descent Of Man is highly conceptual without an ounce of pretension. It is beautiful and emotional without losing any aggression or brutality. I am very excited to follow Vestiges on their musical journey, and I hope we won’t have to wait too long for new music.
Live photos provided by SF Sludge:
Go see Vestiges on tour:
Remaining live dates:
6/28 NYC @ Stolen Sleeves Collective w/Pharaoh
6/29 Boston, MA @ PT-109
6/30 Holyoke, MA @ The Rowhouse
7/1 Montreal, QC @ TBA
7/2 Quebec, QC @ TBA
7/3 Ottawa, ON @ Cafe Dekcuf w/ALASKAN, Loviatar
7/4 Toronto, ON @ Hard Luck
7/5 Kitchener, ON @ The Hive
7/6 Windsor, ON @ Holden House
7/7 Cleveland, OH @ Tower 2012 w/Homewrecker
7/8 Columbus, OH @ TBA w/ Bastards, Vit
7/9 Pittsburgh, PA @ Helter Shelter
7/10 Milton, PA @ The Tin Can
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