All Photos and Text by Alan Hunter
Last Thursday Portland dosed Seattle with an epic evening of the heavy stuff. On the second day of their “Faustian Spirits” summer tour, bringing along support from fellow Portlanders Taurus and Eight Bells, Agalloch destroyed Seattle’s Crocodile. Eight Bells kicked the evening off with their crushing, psychedelic rock. Featuring members of now disbanded SubArachnoid Space, Eight Bells honors its spacey tradition with beautiful, dissonant soundscapes. Although they stumbled over a few quirks in the beginning, EB’s intricate percussion, looping guitars, and pulverizing bass were a righteous start to the night. Coming out in almost complete darkness and a think fog, Taurus (Stevie Floyd/Dark Castle and Ashley Spungin/Purple Rhinestone Eagle) introduced the crowd to their meditative, psychedelic dooooooom. As always Stevie’s guitar tone was perfect…and perfectly ominous alongside Ashley’s hammering, shamanic drums and dizzying samples to create a truly trance-inducing atmosphere. In my honest opinion, they OWNED the night. I was totally stoked to see them – having wanted to for awhile now – and could not have asked for a better performance. I’m glad those east-coasters are calling the Northwest home now. The ALMIGHTY Agalloch rounded out the evening with a lengthy, 90+ minute set of old (The Mantle!) and new (Faustian Echoes). It has been a couple years since I last saw Agalloch and was excited to be shooting the show, but after failing to find a decent vantage point for my camera I said “fuck it”, and decided to JUST ENJOY one of my favorite bands (i know i know, what a concept!). I should’ve figured the room would fill up quickly as it was an all-ages show and Agalloch have an incredible ability to fringe on many genres – progressive, black/grey metal, folk, etc – and keep it fluid and original. And as much as I appreciate their multi-genre sound I have to say I was excited to see/hear Faustian Echoes because it sounds to me more distinctly black metal than I have heard from them in awhile. Adding ex-Ludicra and Worm Ouroboros drummer Aesop Dekker to the formula was – for lack of a better thought – a fucking great decision. Whether playing new or old Agalloch’s brilliantly dark and brooding sound never disappoints. This is one summer tour your mustn’t miss. Taurus will be with them for the long haul; they’ll be joined by progressive neofolkers Musk Ox and heavyweights Pallbearer later on.
New Comments