Orange Goblin, Scissorfight, Throttlerod, Beaten Back to Pure
Live at Alley Katz in Richmond, VA 5-20-06
by Travis Becker

The Rock and Roll frontman is back. At least it looks that way after Orange Goblin, Scissorfight, Throttlerod, and Beaten Back to Pure tore apart Alley Katz in Richmond, VA on May 20th. While each band turned in a righteous set of Rock and Metal, it was the singers who stood out from the crowd and shot the audience up with a dose of personality. Touring to celebrate "ten years of drunken horror", Orange Goblin made a rare appearance in the U.S. along with their backwoods, brawling, boozing, buddies, Scissorfight. The Richmond fans were treated to an extra helping of punky Metal, as Richmond's Throttlerod and Norfolk's Beaten Back to Pure also joined the lineup. A plane full of livers and ear drums is now bound for the Bolivian jungle and exile from their oppressors.

Beaten Back to Pure started things off with singer, Ben Hogg, stalking the stage, PBR in hand, and vocally assaulting the crowd with his low rumbling growl. Hogg can sing as well, and the band mixed melodic interludes in with crushing riffs and angry barks. The band made up for the brevity of it's time on stage with sheer brutality and when it was over, people were changed. You just can't mess with a band whose singer drinks beer his entire time on stage.

Up next was South Carolina transplant, and now Richmond home-towners, Throttlerod. Led by Matt Whitehead on vocals and guitar, the band's performance might have been the night's most straight-forward, but it was also probably its most impressive. Rolling out a tight set of three-piece rock, Throttlerod got right to the point and stayed on it. Songs from their new album, Nail, dominated the set and Whitehead and co proved that they don't need two guitars to tear up a stage.

Clad in an orange t-shirt, red Converse All-Stars, a biker head band, sunglasses, and his trademark mountain man beard, Scissorfight's vocalist, Ironlung, took command of the stage next. The man has a presence that just screams, "Let me punch you right in the face!" While not as memorable as the first time I saw them in 2003 (you never forget your first time), the band still knows how to destroy an audience. Ripping through songs from their new record like, "Backwoods" and classics like "Acid for Blood", Scissorfight blends Metal with Deliverance better than any band out there. And they're from New Hampshire.

The final exam in the how to be a Metal singer clinic put on that night consisted of the mighty Orange Goblin and their massive lead singer, Ben Ward. Pulled straight out of an English legend, the man is a giant, literally. Ward towered over the crowd as the band, named for the amplifiers they favor, tore through hit after hit, including a cover of the Damned's "New Rose." Leaning more towards their amped up, Motorheadesque persona which they began cultivating on Coup de Grace, speedy riffs and volume, volume, volume, dominated the performance. The spacier elements are still there, they're just buried deeper in the overall sound. Although they ended with the ambiguous, "Some You Win, Some You Lose," it was immediately clear into which category the band's performance fell that night.

This was a dream bill, a veritable Woodstock (although much compressed) for Stoner Rock and Metal fans. Each band brought a unique style, but they each brought it with energy and sheer rock brutality. Bands that charge thirty, forty, and fifty dollars a ticket would have been blown off the stage by all four of these bands, and they were only taking in ten bucks a head. There's something very unfair in that. So, take advantage of shows like this while you can. Someday the bizarre world of Rock and Roll will be turned right again.

Preview and Purchase Orange Goblin CDs Online
Visit the official Orange Goblin Homepage
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Preview and Purchase Scissorfight CDs Online
Visit the official Scissorfight Homepage
More articles for Scissorfight

Preview and Purchase Throttlerod CDs Online
Visit the official Throttlerod Homepage
More articles for Throttlerod
 
 

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