Despised Icon
W/ Job For A Cowboy, Arise And Ruin
Mar. 5, 2007
El Mocambo

Holy hell, It is 40 below outside. Who goes out in this kind of weather?
Apparently, an entire club full of metalheads. And judging by their reactions, they’re all pretty glad they did.

It looks like someone forgot to tell Arise And Ruin about the weather. Despite that, or the fact that it was Monday night, AAR came out swinging. Like a charging rhino, these guys clearly meant business. Hailing from Guelph, this is a band that has grown stylistically in leap-and-bounds over the last year due to constant touring. As technically tight as any of the bands on this tour, AAR is still loose and passionate enough to sound raw and unrestrained. AAR’s special blend of metal (which bleeds into Hardcore, death and thrash) won over the crowd quickly, with no small contribution from front man Ryan Bachman. Energetic as always, he bounded back-and-forth across the stage, barely staying still for a few moments at a time. All-in-all, a very tough act to follow.

Up next was Job For A Cowboy. And these Glendale, AZ grind merchants were clearly the buzz band that everyone was here to see. Not to be one-upped they came out of the gate fast. Fusing death metal and grindcore, JFAC just seemed to hit all the right notes. With frantic guitar playing, screamed/barked vocals and a non-stop rumble of the drums and bass, JFAC were completely relentless in their set. Playing their entire EP and a goodly portion of their new material, this band is definitely out to prove something. Word on the street is that their new label Metalblade is looking to put a big push behind the bands new disc, after seeing them live I can see why.

At this point, if just to prove they truly were up for the challenge, Despised Icon took the stage in the now half empty club, without flinching. Despite missing a singer, Despised Icon fought bravely. Their technical proficiency unfazed, almost if every note was meticulously placed into the air, DI chugged out their rhythmic death/blast metal. If line up problems were not enough, the clubs PA managed to shut itself off not one, but three of more times during their set. So what did they do? They started back up at the very note they ended on. This truly is a band whose internal synergy boarders on telepathy. Live is where these guys shine. Those who did stay to see DI got a helluva show. Those who didn’t, well, didn’t.

- Spencer Lavigne 


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