The decibel level at Ace of Spades was raised to an ear-splitting high as prog-metal band Mastodon took the stage Wednesday, along with guests The Dillinger Escape Plan and Red Fang. A sea of shaggy-haired metal heads packed the small venue to the brim, and the smell of spilled beer and old leather permeated the crowd. Portland-based band Red Fang took the stage first, to an astonishing large following despite only recently debuting in the music scene two years ago. The band delivered an impressive set, with a heavy sludge metal sound reminiscent of The Melvins mixed with the bluesy riffs of Kyuss. The band got the crowd energized immediately upon opening, headbanging between growled vo

In the late 1800s, a guy by the name of Nikola Tesla was busy inventing a new kind of transformer, not realizing the level of energy his name would carry into the future. I’m not going to go into a lot of history since Tesla is a Sacramento band and most readers know who the hell these guys are. They started in the ’80s and, for the most part, were labeled a hair, metal, or glam band. As history has proven, those labels didn’t come close to describing their mix of soulful blues and metal. While many “hair” bands of the ’80s are balding, gray and pretty much forgotten, Tesla remains one of the few ’80s bands still producing great music, both collectively and as solo artists. Yes, they’ve

The City of Sacramento Department of Utilities will launch the 2011 Recycling Incentive Awards, sponsored by AT&T Real Yellow Pages and the Sacramento Recycling and Transfer Station on May 2, 2011. Each week through June 27, the City will randomly select recycling containers in a selected Council District and check it for proper recycling. If the container holds only clean recyclables, the City will award owners of clean recycling bins with $100 and the chance to win an iPad2. “Recycling right is the right thing to do. Clean, dry and usable recyclables limits waste going to the landfills and is a win for the environment,” said Marty Hanneman, Director of the Department of Utilities. "So m

Music venue Ace of Spades hosted another sold-out show on Friday, the "Welcome to Hell Tour" featuring performances by metal/hardcore bands Whitechapel, Chelsea Grin, I Declare War, The Acacia Strain and Veil of Maya. I Declare War and Chelsea Grin started things off with lots of growling, screaming and calls for the crowd to get violent. The circle pits were large and constant the entire night, with sweaty, aggressive men running around in the open space formed in the middle of the crowd, using their flailing body parts to punch and kick whatever happened to be in front of them as hard as they could. It's the norm at these types of shows, but if you're there to enjoy the music it's an

For those wanting to release some stress after a rough day of voting on Tuesday, Arco Arena was apparently the place to do it. Four-time Grammy-nominated band Godsmack was in town, delivering the hard rock and splitting the eardrums of a crowd that struggled to fill the lower level of the arena. After energetic warmup sets by bands Drowning Pool and Five Finger Death Punch, the marketing machine was in full swing as the anxious crowd was shown a promotional video touting Godsmack frontman Sully Erna’s solo album, “Avalon,” which we were reminded was available at the merchandise booth. Next, we were treated to a dated documentary clip connecting hard rock/metal music with devil worshippi

On Tuesday night, the Tool concert was nothing short of amazing. With the band’s unique and eye-catching lasers and visual arts in the background, the awesome display of musical talent with the long instrumental break downs and the hair-raising vocals of Maynard James Keenan, the concert was a spectacle. Drummer Danny Carey was first on stage, followed by guitarist Adam Jones and bassist Justin Chancellor. Maynard walked onto the stage shortly after, sporting a postal worker’s uniform with big bold letters across the front reading, “POSTAL,” and drinking one of his signature bottles of wine from Caduceus Cellars. They proceeded to put on a phenomenal performance that put me in a state

 Heart and Sammy Hagar. Between them they have sold nearly 100 million albums, not one of which was sold to me.    I knew Heart was from Seattle, and was famous for such hits as "Barracuda," and "that one song" and "you know that other song, the one, with the singer."   Hagar, "The Red Rocker," I knew from Van Halen, of course, but I have always been more of a Metallica guy. I can honestly say that I liked the Hagar incarnation of VH more than the David Lee Roth incarnation, but that isn't really saying much.    Sammy seems like he'd be a lot of fun to hang out with. Diamond Dave seems like he'd do all your drugs then leave with your girlfriend.    Heart and Sammy "co-headlined" a

 Second Saturday has come and gone yet again leaving many people wondering what to do with their chilly April weekend. How about having a drink for charity? Concerts for Charity and Bastard Rat Brothers Productions are presenting a show on Saturday, April 17 at Clubhouse 24 with the proceeds from beer and wine sales going to sponsor music lessons for young students. Concerts for Charity, a non-profit organization, in partnership with Musical Charis sponsors young musicians who would otherwise be unable to afford expensive musical training. C4C also produces concerts to raise awareness and funds for other community non-profit organizations. With a promising line-up of melodic rock bands,

 As a longtime fan of Scary Kids Scaring Kids, I jumped at the chance to cover their Sacramento show Wednesday. The Gilbert, Ariz.-based “scene metal” band made The Boardwalk in Orangevale a stop on its farewell tour. Being a transplant to Sacramento from Arizona, I have had the opportunity to watch these musicians grow from playing local shows in their hometown to seeing them tour with music festivals and eventually pick up a record deal with Immortal/RCA in 2005 and go on to headline their own tours. Scary Kids is a very talented and very diverse-sounding band with an eclectic style and a set list ranging from high energy to soft and melodic. I think that this is why it has such a bro

As if imitating one of the mighty beasts that haunt his band’s album covers, High on Fire's Matt Pike stands before his audience, arms outstretched, as a devilish grin peeks through his drapes of sweaty, matted hair. Pike proceeds to tear into another crushing riff on his custom nine-string guitar and the crowd responds accordingly; fists pumping to the beat, hair cutting gleaming swaths through the air thick with beer and the unique blend of bodily aromas that only a metal show can provide. Such was the scene at Harlow’s Saturday night. Before Pike and his band took the stage, the opening acts built up the necessary fervor. Red Tape kicked the night off with an energetic set filled with

On Monday, May 4, metal band Anvil stopped by and played a short three-song set after a screening of Anvil! The Story of Anvil at the Crest Theatre. The following is a photojournal of the special film and music event:   The colorful Crest Theatre marquis announced the event to passersby on K Street. Drummer Robb Reiner took photos with fans. Almost all of the fans wore black to the screening, as those pictured show. Singer and guitarist Steve "Lips" Kudlow (second from left) posed with a number of fans.  Crest Theatre Manager Sid Heberger annouced the film Anvil! The Story of Anvil, and mentioned that the band would be performing after the screening. During Anvil's first ever vi

This Second Saturdays Art Walk will be the first time that Lori Wylie and Terrie Bennett will open their new art gallery to show art lovers what their new generation of metal art looks like. The path that has brought them together through tough and trying times, could be a good example of one of lifes "intersections" where people cross each others paths and find themselves in a whole new direction. Their art seems to be getting better with time and they are transforming their ideas in metal art with each new technique.  Lori Wylie and her previous husband, world reknowned artist Doug Wylie, had created their niche in bronze sculpture once they discovered they could take their ceramic tech

Thanks to my 14 year old son Patrick's pleading & my passion to partake in live music, he my wife & I headed down to San Francisco last Saturday (2/28) to take in a show featuring Hank III (The grandson of the late great Hank Williams), along with openers "Those Poor Bastards".  What a great evening of fun, family & live music!  The show was held at a new venue to me;  the Regency Grand Ballroom, which is a wonderful spot near the Civic Center area, on Van Ness Avenue.  The hall is one of those old school S.F treasures, a beautiful room, wood floors, high onamental ceilings & walls,  chandeliers & a warm feeling that is hard to explain, but immediatly understood.  There is a perimeter bal