Audio By Carbonatix
The Sword, Garuda, Eagle Claw
Granada Theater
February 12, 2011
Better than: dealing with the ramifications of a water-pipe burst at my house. Thanks, Snowpocalypse!
The Granada Theater in Dallas hasn’t exactly been a haven for metalheads in recent years.
No, despite piling up accolades as a top-notch venue for just about any other type of act that might swing through town, heavy metal has somehow fallen through this venue’s cracks for the most part.
Saturday night, however, found the Granada as metal-central for Dallas, thanks to the groove-heavy headlining set by Austin metal titans, The Sword. And the few hundred black T-shirt-wearing folks that made it out seemed to fully grasp that The Sword is more than a “Texas band.” Indeed, this is a serious act with a global following.
Prior to The Sword’s start at around 10 p.m., intrigue was high, thanks to the
fact that this show would be one of band’s the first with the band’s new
drummer, Kevin Fender, who replaced original drummer Trivett Wingo a few
weeks ago. After Fender’s display during the slightly over an hour-long
set, though, it’s safe to say that he has managed to fit in quite snugly. His
honed-in ferocity during extended instrumental jams made that much
quite evident.
In fact, snug is an apt term: The entire foursome — Fender, lead singer John “J.D.” Cronise, guitarist Kyle Shutt and bass master Brian Richie — seemed to find
their way from groove to groove and simply hold on for dear life until the time
was right for them to jump inside of said groove and hang out for a bit.
But there was nothing lazy or meandering about these hang-outs. Really, this set was anything but.
The band, which has toured the world with various kings of metal,
including Metallica, simply got to work and seemed to place all eight of its members’ feet squarely on the pedal. Perhaps providing a knowing nod to the folks that helped make the band’s
latest release, the sci-fi-riffic Warp Riders, a Billboard chart
success, Cronise and company wasted little time in thrashing towards
what is perhaps that album’s signature song, “Tres Brujas.”
After that introduction of more recent material, the crowd’s
devil-horned fist-pumps and roars only intensified with the offering of
older, and clearly beloved, songs such as “Gods of the Earth” and
“Freya.”
Closing the set with an urgent and precise “(The Night the Sky Cried)
Tears of Fire,” it was hard not to feel as though the frenetic set was
merely getting started, instead of coming to its practical close. And during
the couple of tunes which served as the obligatory encore, another
instrumental showcased Fender’s prowess and his ability to
be a positively contributing member of the crew, even at this early
stage.
There isn’t any disputing that this is an act that draws its primary
inspiration from metal titans such as Black Sabbath, who blazed metal
trails decades ago, and not from the modern-day wearers of guy-liner
that seem to occupy the metal shelf-space of the modern day.
Here’s
the trick: The interpreting of inspiration is only deemed derivative
when it’s done lazily. And, on this night, The Sword’s soulful interpretation of
sounds form the past, mixed with an energy that is firmly generated from
the here and now, is not only fresh, but vital.
Critic’s Notebook
Personal Bias: Not much of one, really. But these guys did blow me away at last
year’s Austin City Limits Music Festival and made me give a crap about metal again.
Random Note: With a set of only a bit over an hour, including encore, I
felt as though it was too short. Perhaps that’s a sign of a new drummer
still learning the ropes?
By the Way: Those in the know aren’t just whistlin’ Dixie when they say good things about The Libertine, the Lower Greenville pub. In fact, that might
just be the perfect pre-concert spot for those attending a show at the
Granada.
