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Concert Mon Sep 13 2010
Review: Sleep @ Logan Square Auditorium, 9/9
When more than 50% of a crowd is wearing earplugs, and building walls vibrate even before you enter an venue, you know you're in for an impressive show. Such was the case when Sleep took the stage at Logan Square Auditorium last Thursday as part of the Adventures in Modern Music and Sonar Festival.
Sleep made some of the most prolific stoner metal albums, the 1992 Holy Mountain being one of the defining examples of genre, as a trio in the early 90s. The band parted ways, mainly after problems with their label regarding their album Dopesmoker, which is one continuous song that last over an hour. The band members worked on similar endeavors (High on Fire and Om) before deciding to reunite for various dates starting last year with the ATP festival in England.
For anyone that loves a dark and murky tone, music that you can smoke out and nod your head along to in time, then Sleep is your band. Traces of 70s Black Sabbath style metal shine through at times, when guitarist Matt Pike isn't building up a massive wall of sound with a few chords for 10 minutes straight before exploding in abrasive visceral noise. If dragging a heavy object through thick wet mud had a sound, it would be this band.
There was no witty banter between songs, just three men playing some of the loudest music I've ever heard, so loud I could feel the vibrations in my teeth. Pike, shirtless with long strings of hair hanging down in front of his face, would teeter on the edge of the stage, as metal fists and devil horns raised high towards him from the audience. The crowd was mostly outfitted in black, a large amount of men sporting longer locks banged their heads in time. Pike and bassist Al Cisneros were completely entrancing as they slowly cultivated a build and vibrating crescendo of sound, especially on standout tracks like "Dragonaut." The music was heavy and abrasive, but the crowd polite and enthusiastic, the mostly male crowd even moving a bit to allow me a to move forward for a better view, showing that metal guys are some of the nicest dudes around. The show was dark and angry, yet still the artistry of each musician, whether building a dissonant tone or providing a driving back beat, was evident from the start. From the crowd to the ringing in my ear (despite wearing industrial strength earplugs) that lasted a few hours after, it was exactly what I expected (and hoped) this show would be.
Check back for more reviews of acts this past weekend at Adventures in Modern Music and Sonar Festival here in Gapers Block.
