AEGES at Vacation Vinyl, Friday, March 30th 2012 Reviewed
The guitars were loud and heavy, the vocals alternated between a raucous and a more pop-rock tone, the drumming was hitting hard at each low-tuned metal riff and the four members of AEGES were ravaging Vacation Vinyl on a Friday night, to celebrate the release of their new LP, ‘The Bridge’.
Decibel magazine just described the new LP as ‘a burly, churning collection that drenches the classic 90s post-hardcore of Hum, Handsome and Quicksand in a Deftonesque sheen’… the multi-references can be explained by the fact that the members also belong to different bands such as Pelican, Tusk, The Rise, San Angelus, Undertow, Shift, Cutthroats 9, 16, Juliette and the Licks…but their sound is truly hybrid.
It is an impressive list of bands to reinvent a heavy sound, borrowing to a lot of genres, certainly to metal and post hardcore, but hiding at the same time a certain pop sensibility with hooks buried deep inside all this gloomy and sludgy business.
The aggressiveness of their music and roaring discordant guitars was that of bands playing large venues, and the small store could hardly contain their sound,… me? I was lucky to have my earplugs one more time. Between the songs, frontman Kemble Walters, on vocals and guitar, was quite talkative and friendly, like a clearing between the tempestuous and deafening numbers.
According to their setlist on the floor, they actually played their whole new album in a different order, alternating songs with a more or less poppy side, but all sharing a ravaging rhythm and violent riffs.
Kemble Walters mentioned a DIY video they had recently made for one of their song ‘Wrong’, and dedicated ‘Fade Out’ to the ladies,… and the dudes, thanking us several times to be there. It is true that the small store was packed and people were captivated by their dark sound of pop-metal built up by Walters and especially Mark Holcomb’s screaming and meandering guitars, Tony Baumeister’s bass distortion and driven by Larry Herweg’s heavy drumbeats.
It was an early release party, since their album is only due April 17 on Mylene Sheath (awesome name by the way knowing how music can run along our own myelin sheath!) but Brooklyn Vegan already posted a download of their song ‘Wrong’ a month ago, so it is never too early to celebrate!
Setlist:
Words We Say
Doesn't Feel The Same
Wrong, Fade Out
The Bridge
Roaches
My Medicine
Sent From Heaven (Rest In Dirt)
I Believe In Ghosts
Southern Comfort
