Warchild - Sistered - Nunchucks -- Rock'n'Roll Hotel - Aug 26 2011

Nunchucks - I enjoyed their set when they opened for the Slickee Boys farewell show recently, so I was anxious to see what they could do in a smaller setting. They showed less nerves tonight as this four-piece ripped through their strong garage-rock set. The twin guitar attack really does showcase two guitars as I mentioned in the last review. Lots of creative playing off of each other as opposed of hitting the same chords (which I complained about in the acoustic set I saw the previous night). The songs were good and there was loads of fuzz drenched volume throughout. They sound a bit like the Mono Men, but lack the crisp attack. I think as they keep playing out more, they will sharpen the sound further. But they already have a bit more confidence, so things are looking up for this decent local band.

Sistered - Two guitarists share the vocal duties with a thunderous rhythm section as they shred off their shards of metallic fury. Or something like that. The pace was allegro, although it moved to presto toward the end of the set as they built intensity. Thrash metal, a bit of death metal, as they remind me of Corrosion of Conformity. I confess I have not listened to COC in 25 years or so, but I do recall meeting their drummer (Reed Mullin) who was quite friendly. The last cut was called "Graverobbers" and was really strong with a lot of creative melody lines. The vocals were a bit too throw-away early on, but that was due in part to being a bit too low in the mix--in part. This Pittsburgh band did a good job and energized the crowd which was building nicely and did not appear to be a lock-step exclusive metal crowd.

Warchild - Not to be confused with a Jethro Tull tribute band (that really does exist), this one-guitar four-piece was here to continue the shredding. And that they did. I am not sure they provided me much to add beyond their biography from their website... "DC Thrash Metal.  Fueled by Beer.  Inspired by drinking at local bars." They were legit and had a good hardcore vocal style foreshadowed by the circle-A on their banner. I was pondering who the first band was to use this. My 6o seconds of research showed that my guess of Cr@ss was correct, although the symbol was first used in the 19th Century in Spain. And although my mind was wandering a bit, the musical backdrop was a good one as this band displays all the power and fury the crowd was asking for this Friday night before the hurricane. If you like thrash metal, this band will work for you.

Quote of the Night: I missed some punchlines, so I'll go with Warchild's vocalist... "This song is a cover song. It's not by us. It's by the Cro-Mags and it's called World Peace."