Tresspass America Festival - Metal Hammer UK

Tresspass America Festival - Metal Hammer UK Sponsored Tour: The British Are Coming...





By Mark Gromen



OK, the acts involved are not particular to the Union Jack, but the
metal publication (which is available Stateside as a pricey import) is
attempting to make a splash in the American concert market, with a
package that most prominently includes FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, TRIVIUM,
KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and GOD FORBID on the top half of a seven band, all
day bill. Not exactly indicative of their core readership, but then
the mag does cover more "mainstream" music than their moniker infers. On
an overcast Sunday (Aug 19th) at Philly's Festival Pier, a
former shipping terminal jutting into the Delaware River, practically
underneath the span of the decaying Ben Franklin Bridge, the onstage
rumble threatened the old surrounding structure.






Having previously seen God Forbid, Trivium and Killswitch, some more
than once, tried to keep an open mind about all the acts, only knowing
what I'd read in metal mags. Michigan based BATTLECROSS were onstage at
5pm, for all of twenty minutes. During that time, they did their best to
win converts, including a cover of PANTERA's 'Fucking Hostile'. Of the
original material, 'Man Of Stone' and 'Breaking You' (introduced by Kyle
“Gumby” Gunther saying, 'This one's about punching people in the
cocksucker. That's the mouth.”) stood out. As he was leaving the stage,
the wild haired, bearded cross between Charles Manson and Monty Python's
“It's” guy, Gunther said, “We'll be at the merch booth after God
Forbid, to sign you tits!” If nothing else, people will remember him.





GOD FORBID frontman Byron Davis utilized much of the set to canvas
the still growing crowd for marijuana. Opening with 'Don't Tell Me What
To Dream', then the thrashing 'Better Days' and melodic 'Equilibrium'.
Hailing from nearby New Jersey, the band has played Philly a multitude
of times, throughout their career, as if to drive home the point Davis'
called out all the old venues, although many in the crowd were not old
enough to remember places like Stalag 13. Following the appropriate 'The
End Of The World', the Forbids were off, but not before the
dread-locked frontman yelled, “At 6:45, come to the (autograph signing)
tent and smoke me out.”


EMMURE, rhymes with manure... After the first song, the frontman
asked, “What the fuck is good?” Not you! Then added, “You can't fuck
with us.” Maybe not, but don't have to review your hardcore meets rap
bullshit either. The bouncy, jump-in-place outfit is closer to the likes
of LIMP BIZKIT or KORN than a barked lyric hardcore-lite version of
LIFE OF AGONY. The audience was disinterested (and that's being nice),
as there was certainly less fan interaction than the previous acts.
Next!





The first four bands all played through the same backline, just
swapping in individual drum kits during the short turnarounds. POP EVIL
were all denim and tattooed, with lots of jet black hair dye. Sonically,
they're sons of the Sunset Strip. The grill of a car was attached to
the front of the drum riser (should hook up working headlights!) and
singer Leigh Kakaty's mic stand was the gear shift linkage, welded
solid. While not pop (despite the moniker), they were the most melodic
act on the bill. Wasn't thrilled about the second song in turning into a
short drum solo, but certainly won points for their shoutout to the
military (brandishing an American flag painted acoustic guitar) and
parting words, “Buy American products,” as a chant of “USA, USA” erupted
spontaneously.


TRIVIUM were flanked by a pair of eight foot tall stainless steel T
logos, as they launched into 'In Waves'. A trio of mics across the front
of the stage allowed guitarist/founder Matt Heafy to sing from
anywhere, wagging his tongue, as he worked both sides of the stage. As
the sun began to set, the red/green stage lighting finally made an
impact. 'Caustic Are The Ties That Bind' was a keeper. Bonus points for
the Homer reference in 'Torn Between Scylla And Charybdis', off Shogun,
before wrapping up with 'Throes Of Perdition'.


Most of the crowd was only there to see KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and/or the
headliners. So when KSE came on, all hell broke loose. At make room for
television crews that never showed up, photographers were relegated to
shooting songs 3 through 6 (rather than the customary first three),
which meant the stage divers were in full swing WHILE the cameras
were in the pit. Although the barrier to the stage was excessively
wide, the incompetent security crew couldn't handle the few gate
crashers coming over the wall and dismissed the photogs after just one
song (under the guise of increased security). Geez! The lighting was
pretty poor and from half way, couldn't really make out who was onstage.
Returning vocalist Jesse Leach worked the stage, while mad cap
guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz, in cut-off denim shorts, didn't let his right
knee brace hamper his usual bouncing and running around onstage. Leach
claimed he was, “sick as a dog, until I drank a bunch of Dayquil and
whiskey.” 'This Is Absolution' got the audience moving, so much so that
the singer had to announce, “We're singing about bleeding pussies and
stuff and you guys are fighting!” They ended with a rendition of DIO's
'Holy Diver'. After all those bands pretending to be metal, was nice to
hear a semblance of the real thing.





In the battle of ornate mic stands, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH win, not
for Ivan Moody (appropriate surname!) brass knuckles embedded mic, but
the chrome monstrosity from which he sings, an amalgam of skulls,
pistol, military grade munitions and human spine. Despite all the
military posed promotional photos (my only previous exposure to the
group), onstage they lack a definitive style, with guitarist Jason Hook
in moto-cross get-up and bassist Chris Kael looking like he stepped off
one of the Deadliest Catch boats, while the Mohawk sporting Moody comes
across as one bad mutha. Surprised to hear them cover BAD COMPANY
(signature track) and there was a brief drum solo too. 'Burn It Down'
went down a storm, as did the pointed lyrical slant of the title track
from their recently released 'American Capitalist'.


Hopefully this initial foray will prove successful enough for future
endeavors, with a little more "diverse" line-up. Cheers mate!