Converge In Buffalo Worth Crossing The Border

Showplace Theatre

Buffalo, NY

on Apr 2 2008

Shehzaad Jiwani (CHARTattack)

04/04/2008 11:30am

We all hate crossing the border, but no one hates it more than touring bands. The hassle from border guards is sometimes not worth the trouble of coming to Canada, so most of us have to suck it up and wait for them to visit the great white north another time. However, when a band like Baroness are playing with Converge and the only Canadian date they have scheduled is with Coheed And Cambria, you have to make an executive decision and haul ass to Buffalo.

Genghis Tron opened with their neo-Big Black brand of noisy hardcore. The drummerless band aren't particularly engaging live and their uber-technical stylings tend to get somewhat monotonous, even if you're a fan of their recorded output.

Savannah, Ga's Baroness took the stage shortly thereafter and, without a word, launched into a six-song set that melted a few hundred faces. If you want to talk about guitar heroism in bands today, Baroness should be the first one you mention, as John Baizley and Brian Blickle positively shredded their Les Pauls.

The quartet are often compared to fellow Georgians Mastodon, and with good reason. Both are forging a new path in modern metal by marrying metal wankery with stoner rock riffs. Baroness, however, have more of the latter, and this translates far better on stage than Mastodon's prog-oriented noodling.

They come off far more organic than Mastodon largely due to drummer Allen Blickle being more Dave Grohl than Dave Lombardo. The guy hit the drums so hard you could hear his skin-bashing over the PA. It's refreshing to see someone exit the stage physically exhausted, as opposed to the dull, overly studious presence other metal drummers give off. We're here to see you rock, not do your rudiments.

The opposite was true for The Red Chord. Each member of the band was technically a master of his instrument, but their technical metalcore was so monotonous and overdone that they paled in comparison to the mighty Baroness. They got the kids moving, but the rest of us were left yawning, anxious for the headliners to arrive.

Converge finally hit the stage with guitarist Kurt Ballou playing the chugging opening riff for "Plagues" before the rest of the band joined him. From here, it was a seamless run of around 20 songs spanning the hardcore giants' entire career, with a number of surprises that made the set memorable.

With some lighthearted back-and-forth between the crowd and frontman Jake Bannon throughout the night, Converge showed why they've outlasted so many of their contemporaries. Despite being one of the most crushing bands on the planet, they maintain a very human core. Unlike the overtly aggressive acts they've influenced, it's easy to feel like you relate to Converge, which is why they've long since transcended the hardcore genre.

After a set of fan favourites like "My Great Devastator" and "Thaw," the quartet ended the night with a huge surprise in the form of the 11-minute dirge, "Jane Doe." No encore was needed after that and myself and fellow Canadians returned home more than satisfied. If you're thinking of crossing the border for this tour, you can be certain it's entirely worth the trip.