Each security team member received a briefing prior to the event, which ended up being completely accurate. It read: People expected: 14,000, mostly male and a very active crowd.

As I approached the Mayhem Metal Festival I immediately began hearing people say, “Fuck yes!” and “Fuck that!” The swearing was an unintelligible indication of what was lying behind the entry gate: Metal fans that will stop at nothing to hear their anthem of thrashing guitars, loud vocal abuse and thundering drums. The second stage presents up-and-coming bands along with old fan favorites. Legends such as The Metal Melitia and Hatebreed brought the crowd to their highest hope and prepared them for the chaos that was scheduled to follow. The main stage headlined such acts as Machine Head, Megadeth, Godsmack, and Disturbed.

The crowd starts cheering, “Machine fucking Head!” and  it feels as though the crowd is an army going into battle, with Machine Head giving them the best pre-battle speech they’ve ever heard. The pit starts and the fists start pumping.  Machine Head was a perfect band to open the main stage. They prepped the crowd with energy that I didn’t know even existed. Once they finished their set, people were prepared to take on anything and everything.

Megadeth approaches the stage and the older crowd gets excited as the younger crowd tremendously calms down. The crowd had nothing but respect for them, but as a whole, the crowd didn’t have as much energy as they had for Machine Head. Megadeth takes the stage with a veteran’s approach. They’ve been around for years and have continued to wow generations of metal fans. They know their routine and they know how to put a killer show that has gotten them to where they are today.

Megadeth plays a very safe performance.  They play older songs like “Rust in Peace” and close it out with “Peace Sells.” They also play newer songs to promote their new album coming out in November. Once Megadeth leaves, Godsmack approaches with a no-holds-barred attitude.  Sully Erma is quite possibly one of the best front-man performers I have ever seen.  Erma brings an unsettling excitement for his music and enthusiasm.  He sounds just like he does on the album and you can tell that he loves his craft.  He was one of the only performers who moved around the entire stage and engaged the whole crowd. Godsmack performed songs from their entire collection bring a presence that will satisfy any concertgoer.

The band was a great breath of fresh air that main stage needed. Godsmack revived all fans of metal music, and closed with “I Stand Alone.” The stage was set, the crowd was ready, but no prayers could be spoken for the Atom bomb that exploded when Distubed struck their first chord. I’ve seen many concerts explode in an arena, but none were as insane as Disturbed. They open their show with “Stupified” and I wish I brought a crash helmet. Everyone is glad to see their boys back home and give them the best homecoming a band could ask for. The crowd sings every line to every song as they welcome their hometown boys. This year’s Mayhem Festival delivered a satisfying tour-de-force with crowd-pleasing bands that delivered an outstanding show.

*Photos by Carl Burke

The night is still young and the fun is about to begin.  The energy of the Cubby Bear is bouncing off the walls, and fans are excited.  Lords of Acid take the stage, lead by Praga Khan, and the enthusiasm is higher than an ADHD child without medication.  The announcement of a new lead singer makes the crowd even happier.  DJ Mea comes to the stage with a confidence of a performer that has definitely been on a stage for more than a few performances.  She is like the hot girl that every guy wants, but can never take home.  She interacts with the crowd as though they are her friend, but they will never be good enough to walk down the aisle.

DJ Mea is able to talk with the crowd and share in their enthusiasm.  She enjoys singing all of the greatest hits just as much as the fans love hearing them.  They played everything from their Lust album, including the song “Pussy.”  The band plays as fully charged as they want their crowd to be.  Khan keeps the crowd going better then any hip-hop hype man, and DJ Mea keeps the crowd intrigued.  The people in the crowd are able to enjoy the hits that cover an entire lifetime of an average of five bands.  They’ve been around for a long time and consistently show us why; their drive for always being fresh and new in unmatched.  Don’t miss this band on tour—you would miss one great show!

The lights go out and I wish I'd gone to church this morning. Cradle of Filth bassist Dave Pybus takes stage with guitarists Paul Allender and James McIlroy. The three of them strike a chord and I can feel that my trip to hell has officially begun. People in the audience are raising their fists and their heads start bobbing like popcorn popping. Lead singer Dani Filth takes the stage and stands on a riser that seems as short as he is, but he can still deliver a powerful punch. With a fury of words machine-gunning out of his mouth, Dani Filth performs lyrics that cover everything from rape to Greek mythology and, of course, demons from hell. The problem with Filth’s lyrics isn't necessarily the content, but trying to figure out what he's actually trying to say.

Filth has mastered the art of deep growling vocal abuse while spouting a tale of England’s medieval history. As a matter of fact, Filth has become so good at his graveling vocals, that perhaps only Cookie Monster could understand what he's trying to say. Cradle of Filth's performance stays true to their recordings; they sound exactly how they do on their album. And, Dani Filth sounds just as intense on CD as he does live. For black metal fans, this was one hell of an amazing show. However, if you've never understood black metal, you might feel lost. But, you can't deny a strong performance when you see one, and Cradle of Filth leaves fans knowing why they've set the bar for English black metal.

A young woman walks on stage, looking like a cross between Janis Joplin and Sid Viscous with the theatrics of Jimi Hendrix.  She stands looking at her amp as though she is truly in love.  She stares into the eye that is the power light, cranks it to 11 and the eruption starts. Playing fast-speed notes flying by like an Indy racecar, the Fabulous Miss Wendy now has everyone’s attention.  The crowd is thrown a left hook when they are preparing for a right-handed upper-cut.  People didn’t know what to say about the sight of a young woman playing a guitar like a true guitar hero. She sings of being a “fucked-up bitch,” to pay tribute to Led Zeppelin’s “Heartbreaker.”

The Fabulous Miss Wendy packs a youthful, innovative punch to an appreciation that is rooted from 60s and 70s rock stars. She flails her axe as though it’s a part of her body. She can shred as well as any metal enthusiast and she can strum a bar chord with as much keenness as Green Day’s Billy Joe Armstrong.   The Fabulous Miss Wendy is the type of guitar player that will make female guitarists happy and male guitarists horny—she puts on a show that should never be missed and will always be appreciated by any fan of rock ’n’ roll.

Looking like a combination of the 1980s Musclemen mini action figures, Rob Zombie comic books and Fangoria magazine, Gwar takes the stage with a no-holds-barred attitude. Having been around since before Rob Zombie,they’re everything one would expect. Playing metal music in their natural clothing and letting people wonder if any of them are the original members.




The time is October 26, 2010, and the place is House of Blues.  The lights dim and the green laser lights with fog are on and the zombies spewing blood creep onto the stage with Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” resounding. Aiming for fans and photographers alike, Gwar sprays blood everywhere. The fans who wore white to celebrate the event are now head-to-toe in red. Wanting blood like a vampire in *Blade*, the crowd receives their sustenance to live.



Flattus Maximus strums an opening chord and the crowd becomes rowdier than the at a Justin Bieber concert. The energy is ironically happy and positive. The fans of Gwar take their music seriously and you better not call it a joke. They’re an army of plenty and are willing to cast these people to outer space if they choose to insult their form of entertainment.



Gwar brings the essence of a true experience to the stage. They play metal music and bring more props than a sex toy salesperson; and unlike that salesperson, Gwar actually uses their props in person. They include fake genitals, dead pig fetuses and robots with buzz-saw arms that rip apart evil aliens and creatures.



Gwar has continued to set the bar for metal bands from other planets and Earth. They never apologize and they never back down from what they do best: performing a top quality show that could make anyone enjoy the art of Metal.

Beats Antique brings two rhythmic styles of music together. With the combination of electronic house sounds and middle-eastern drum beats, this group is one that will turn you into a belly dancer. David Satori and Tommy Cappel are classically trained musicians who provide a rhythm that is as tight as ?uestlove on his three piece drum set, and producer/arranger Zoe Jakes belly dances to the counts of each pulsating drum. The three of them are able to drum tightly and cleanly. They provide a great show that is more of a celebration of rhythm and dance than a traditional concert.

If you love a fusion of belly dancing with electronic beats, this is the band for you. Beats Antique display music very well, and they are just as engaged with their live performance as they are with their music. Job well done!

This year’s Warped Tour brought variety, fandemonium and all of the teen-age angst that one could shake a stick at.  This year’s festival brought a variety of acts such as Andrew W.K., Reel Big Fish and pop sensation Michael Posner.  All of the acts held meet n’ greets and did whatever it took to get your money, and for good reason: most of the bands don’t get paid much money.  In fact, most of the bands on the Warped Tour literally only make money from selling merchandise and CD’s. The tour started June 25th in California and will end August 15 at the Washington Fairgrounds in Hillsboro Oregon.  With the bands almost practically playing a new show in a new city just about every day, this tour is known for being grueling and rewarding.  Along with playing their shows and holding their meet n’ greets, all of the bands are more than willing to hold interviews with the press to expose who they are and what their music is about.  I was able to get a few minutes with Andrew W.K. and Adam (formerly of Lucky Boy’s Confusion) from AM Taxi to discuss their comfortability and inspirations of creating music.

While I was waiting for my interview with AM Taxi, Andrew W.K. walked into the pressroom read my name off of the sheet of interviews and sat down for a quick interview about the blending of musical styles and his preference of playing the piano over other instruments.



Andrew W.K. walks into the pressroom wearing black Adidas pants, his own tank top that reads “party hard”, a black trucker hat and a pair of black sunglasses.  He is extremely proud of who he is and wants everyone in the
world to feel as good about themselves as he feels about himself.  He talks to everyone with extreme enthusiasm and makes you feel that you are most important person on the Earth.



Buzz:  You’ve been known for blending lots of music styles together.



Andrew W.K.:  Not jazz yet.  I haven’t gone into that realm as much.  There’s a lot of World Music that I haven’t been as familiar with.  There’s certain genres of rock, such as rock-a-billy or psycho-billy that are areas that I haven’t ventured.  But as straightforward rock n’ roll goes, I try to make it as exciting as I can and use whatever I can to get to that place.



Buzz:  What makes you want to use as much music knowledge as possible in each song of yours?



Andrew W.K.:  I never really thought of it that way.  I sit down at a piano and just start playing chords until they sound exciting and then I try to use whatever instrument I can to amplify that excitement on the recording.  I admire people who listen to different songs or different styles and want to make it a combination of those.  I always just thought, “What’s the most exciting guitar sound to me?”  For me, it’s just a very loud and over-distorted guitar.  What’s the most exciting keyboard sound?  Just a very loud piano/organ combination.  What other instrument combinations add the excitement?  For example, if you are watching a movie and you hear that orchestra kick, there’s power in those sounds.  That’s why I want to use them, because they work.  Whatever sound works is what I am interested in.




Buzz:  What is it about the sound of a piano that specifically interests you and why does the piano seem to calm you down the most out of any instrument?



Andrew W.K.:  It’s simply because that was the first instrument I ever learned.  So similar to your mom and being the first woman you ever see and you have that special bond with her.  Your dad is most likely the first man you see and the first man you ever likely got to be friends with, so you have this feeling for him.  Piano was the first instrument I ever learned.  Four and a half years old, I started taking lessons with my parents’ help and support.  It’s similar to that first book you remember hearing, like *Good Night Moon.  * You’ll always have a soft spot for the first thing that turned you onto that new venture.



Buzz: When do you hit that new venture with a song and say to yourself: “I want to place this song on my next album?”



Andre W.K.:  I am not sure I look at it that way, I think the song more or less tells you that it’s ready to heard by other people.  Most of my recording experience has been relatively solitary.  Of course you try to trust their judgment, as well as your own as to whether or not other people around the world should have the chance to listen to it or not.  At some point, I think the song tells you and it’s just a no-brainer.  It’s really not up to you.  It’s really clear that the song is meant to be heard.



The interview with Andrew W.K. closes as we are politely interrupted about time being finished from his touring manager.  Andrew W.K. is in high demand and is more than willing to take the time to talk to anybody and everybody. As Andrew W.K. starts another interview, I am aimed towards a quiet gentleman who is standing in the corner texting on his phone.  One can tell that Adam from AM Taxi is tired and exhausted.  He is a musician who has great passion and allows his music to do the talking for him.  He can easily be missed if you don’t know who he is or what he looks like.  I was able to interview Adam with five minutes left of AM Taxi’s interviewing time.



Buzz:  How has the tour been for you guys?



Adam:  It’s been great man.  We’re about two thirds of the way done with this thing.  About three quarters actually.  It’s been long and well worth it, a lot of fun.



Buzz:  What’s it like coming to your home city?

Adam:  It’s a little overwhelming to do the hometown stop.  It’s a lot of fun and always good to run into familiar faces.



Buzz:  On your band’s website, you say: “if it’s not broken, break it.”  What made you guys want to break your style of songwriting for the album “*We Don’t Stand a Choice”?*



Adam:  The method behind that is there are a lot of different ways of doing something.  Sometimes the first initial way of doing it isn’t always the best. I think it’s good for people to be open-minded and try things from different angles before making a decision. We could do it one way and that would be the obvious choice. We try different methods to find the smartest way of doing things.



Buzz:  So then do you guys always write collaboratively?



Adam:  Well, I write all of the lyrics, melodies and chords.  When it’s time to arrange them, the whole band comes in and puts in their two cents.



Buzz: Who were your influences behind this record and how did the writing process for this record differ than that of writing a song with Lucky Boys of Confusion?



Adam:  Not much has changed from the influence side.  I have always loved The Clash and The Replacements.  I wasn’t collaboratively working with anybody else, so it was 100% of what I was bringing.  We specifically try not to latch to any trends.  The influences are older, everything from Little Richard, to The Ramones or Weezer; bands that we would consider to be classics.



Buzz:  What was your main decision to make classic record rather than a current record or a record that uses trends?



Adam:  We look at it as though we are trying to do this for a while.  Anytime you try to jump on something that happens immediately, seems to go away.   What you are doing seems to be irrelevant.  Doing something like this, seems to be that people can pick it up five years from now and still get into and not sound like a record that came out in 2010.



Buzz:  That’s a smart and interesting way of looking at it.  What makes you decide that a record should be classic?

*photos from top (by Carl Burke)

The crowd at Warped Chicago

Andrew W.K.

Adam of AM Taxi