Maquinaria Fest 2009 - Duff Mckagan’s Loaded, Dir En Grey & Evanescence
Paulo, 8th of November, 2009

DUFF MCKAGAN’S LOADED:

Getting on stage in the afternoon at summertime (Brazilian clocks are set one hour behind, so it gets light until a bit later), the great opening of the day came with the ex-bassist of the original line-up of Guns and Roses, and, nowadays, Velvet Revolver: Mr. Michael Andrew “Duff” Mckagan.

I had to research a bit on the internet to find out that this band has been around for quite a long time, since 1999. A curious fact, perhaps funny, is that their first album was recorded alive because of some legal and commercial issues with the recording company at that time, and as soon it was released, the band broke up, coming back, though, in 2000, recording a studio album released in 2001. After a new and long hiatus until they released an EP in 2008 and a full length in 2009.

Getting on stage in the afternoon at summertime (Brazilian clocks are set one hour behind, so it gets light until a bit later), the great opening of the day came with the ex-bassist of the original line-up of Guns and Roses, and, nowadays, Velvet Revolver: Mr. Michael Andrew “Duff” Mckagan. I had to research a bit on the internet to find out that this band has been around for quite a long time, since 1999. A curious fact, perhaps funny, is that their first album was recorded alive because of some legal and commercial issues with the recording company at that time, and as soon it was released, the band broke up, coming back, though, in 2000, recording a studio album released in 2001. After a new and long hiatus until they released an EP in 2008 and a full length in 2009.

Their music is surely not different of what you would expect coming from Duff: hard rock with some punk and sleaze rock punch. And it shouldn’t be different, this is what he knows to do well. Duff’s vocals are not “the best” but make us really excited. It’s good, you can identify him on his music immediately and this is great to create an identity to the band: we all know that front men such as Ozzy Osbourne, Vile Vallo, Dave Mustaine are not “great singers” but it’s a fact that their bands would never be the same without them.

Great part of the set list was based in his most recent album: “Sick”, besides some popping out of songs from the 2 first CDS and the “Wasted Heart”. The audience wasn’t actually a hard rocker one, not really, there were more teenagers waiting to see Evanescence and, another part, waiting for Dir en Grey, those applauses were more to be polite than really for enthusiasm. However, in the second half of the show, Duff and his band played two classic G’n’R songs: “So Fine”, originally sang by him, and “It’s so Easy”, song in which he doubles the vocals with Axl Rose in the original version almost entirely. After that yes, the audience tried to show reaction. Important to mention that until that moment Duff, who was playing the guitar and doing the lead vocals, changed places with the until then bass player, Jeff Rouse, allowing him to sing some of the songs, very well done and actually, I dare to ask: Why isn’t he the leading vocalist? The concert was short but efficient.

As soon as the Loaded guys got out of the stage, people started to scream for the Japanese band all over the VIP area and the front of the regular tickets area. It made me really enthusiastic since I was there on that second day more because of them than the other bands.

Close to the evening, the 5 citizens from Osaka started the sound massacre with A LOT of emphasis in the more new metal/death songs. The singer Kyo is a devil, an “akuma” in good Japanese: he sings clean, high, guttural, roughly, scratched, he does whatever he feels like with his voice. Whoever knows Dir em Grey at least a little, knows also that he didn’t use to handle the vocals alive for a long time, but it has definitely changed, he is so much better...

The band, even for the visual rules and the kei visual movement, where they came from, doesn't like very much to talk to the audience. But this “blasé”, and a little antisocial attitude is part of it and didn’t make people stop singing, and yes, in Japanese (not perfect, of course ^^), jump, opening pogo rows and fell themselves hypnotized by those 5 guys.

Bass player Toshiya was clearly having fun with that, wearing black clothes, some kind of mini skirt, playing his instrument holding the arm of it almost on vertical position, a typical new metal, groove, “jump-jump” pose. Actually, the guy jumped a lot on stage. Among the guitarists the nicest one was Die, who smiled a lot to the audience, Kaoru, though, was more introspective. And Shinya, there, behind the drums, hitting it showing no mercy.

For those who like the most recent version of the band, the last 3 albums, the concert was a big catch. For those who were expecting more radiophonic songs, ballads and so on, maybe it was a little disappointing, but the profit for the big coming of the first really famous Japanese band to Brazilian territory was extremely positive, showing that a possible come back, alone next time, would be a great idea. This concert was just a sample of only one-hour duration. 

I hope they come back again.

EVANESCENCE

And there they were, the most really expected band of the evening: the industrial metal goth lead by the singer Amy Lee. I confess that when they showed up to the world, around 2003, I liked their music because that was a good prove that, yes, the USA listen to metal, and for sure, the typically European version with the full presence of female vocalists. During that year, however, the band grew up, pushed Nightwish’s fame together and, suddenly, became some kind of common place to have a bunch of little chicks enjoying this kind of more “pop” metal, kind of  “teenage-friendly”, and, well, I wasn't patient for that anymore XD.

My first experience with the band alive was in April of 2007 and I got a confirmation of what I had previously expected: they wouldn’t make me excited alive, the music is kind of out of date, labeled.

But it was a GREAT thing that this is not what happened on the 8th of November. I don’t know what happened to Miss Lee, but she was really OK on stage – people say that she has some kind of aversion to live performances, which is a contradiction in the rock universe where a band makes itself alive.

First of all, I noticed that the “stone worker” Rocky Gray wasn’t there on the drums, the guy who made me think the 2007 concert wasn’t that boring. The new drummer has some king of “pop” look but, by the other hand, many steps ahead from his antecedent. Will Hunt, on the second song, pushed away any possible problem I could find in him. Besides really heavy hands, he is precise and has a great stage presence. He is excited, comfortable, throws the arms high, turns the sticks with both hands, a real show up as any rock drummer should be XD. I think Gray’s “overweight” was, actually, a limit to him XD.

Still in the band as Amy Lee’s music making partner the guitarist Terry Balsamo, in the band since their come out to the world, in 2003. The line-up is completed by the bass player Tim Mccord, since 2006, and the session musician James Black  on the other guitar. With only 2 official studio releases by a big major, their set list is not the biggest one, having less than 1 and a half hour duration. But it wasn’t tiring and it was effective. The hits were all there: “Bring me to Life”, “Going Under”, “Call me When You’re Sober” and my favorite: “Lithium”, that has some kind of doom atmosphere, and when the low Bm comes out after the intro with vocals and keys, the floor, together with our internal organs shake (just like men’s bands should be XD). Important to say that the female audience was all there, all ages and not only the young girls who have just started listening to rock. It really confirms my theory that Sao Paulo is miles away from Rio when talking about gender balance attendance to heavy bands concerts.

Amy Lee, of course, was the star of the evening, of the stage, singing very well, playing the grand piano sometimes. She´s not much for speaking and her speech seems to be memorized – and it is probably – and maybe the fact that she´s not very fond of live performances comes from this. But her singing is good and is not behind any of her main influences as Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation), Cristina Scabbia (Lacuna Coil ), and a little of Sarah Brightman here and there. With a new album to be released in 2010 , let´s see if the band will keep this feeling or if it will take them some more years to perform  half dozen of concerts.... and please, keep this drummer!