Concert: Taake/Young And In The Way/Vattnet Viskar (2/27, Triple Rock, Mpls, MN)

A while back, A and I went to see Taake play for the first time ever in Minnesota! The show was at the Triple Rock, and I was a bit nervous going in as I expected it to be super crowded and the Triple Rock is… well, it’s not the worst venue to be packed into, but it isn’t the best either. There were a lot of people there, but it wasn’t so insanely packed that you couldn’t move around comfortably.

Vattnet Viskar was the opening band- no local bands opening for this one. VV hails from Plaistow, NH. From what I can tell, their music is kind of blackish-psychedelicish metal in the vein of The Atlas Moth but a little more spacey. Their guitarist was a very excitable young man, and spit a lot (nothing against him. Everyone was spitting a lot. There was spit everywhere. Seriously. So much bodily fluids. Wth). This style of USBM is really cool and interesting, and I will have to keep an eye on Vattnet Viskar in upcoming years. I feel like if they keep promoting themselves and can definitively set themselves apart from other psychedelic-sounding post-black bands they will do really well.

Vattnet Viskar

 It’s not Vattnet Viskar’s fault that I wasn’t in the mood for that kind of black metal, though. Young And In The Way more hit the spot, considering that my mood was and has not been the best in the past month, and I really wanted to smash something about then. Of course, I didn’t, but the crowd sure did- and here is where I was glad that there was plenty of room to maneuver in the venue, because the crowd on the floor was moshing pretty hard. Being a bit of a purist, I am usually really bitchy about people moshing at black metal shows, but if you are going to mosh at a black metal set, YAITW is pretty much where you should do that. The band was great, the crowd was great, the energy between the two was intense, and I came off YAITW’s set much happier than when I’d gone in.

Young And In The Way

At last, Taake took the stage! It was unreal, really, getting to see them, as they are one band I had pretty much resigned myself to never getting to see (what with them picking the wrong year to attend Deathfest and then cancelling the Chicago show last summer). A and I were practically quivering with anticipation when we saw the banjo sitting on the side of the stage, which meant that they were going to, and did, play Mir. They also played Fra Vatested til Vaandesmed, my personal favorite, which kind of made the night for me. They also did a cover of G.G. Alin’s “Die When You Die,” with a guest vocalist (I am not sure who it was. If any of you reading this can help me out, please do!). Also, we got to watch Hoest kill a whole bottle and a half of what I’m pretty sure was wine right onstage. Overall, it was incredible; I’m still a little shocked that it actually happened. Mgła and Taake in the same year? I’m both grateful and amazed that this caliber of black metal is touring the States right now.

Black Metal Banjo

Pretty much, like, the only good pic I got of Taake

Black Metal Banjo in action.

A special shout-out to the security dude who was standing next to me during Taake’s set, as he wiped up spit and spilled wine and kept Hoest from falling to his untimely death over the dismembered mic stands all night. Triple Rock, that guy deserves a raise. Seriously.

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I’m going to try to keep this thing updated a bit better now that the record store is closed and I can’t bitch about metal there (I need SOME venue to bitch about it in). I’m thinking Thursdays may be the lucky day, but I need a bit to see if it’s going to be every week or bi-weekly. I’m also going to switch over to just uploading images instead of linking out to videos, so as not to bog down people’s computers (mine included). In the interest of this, please ignore their shoddy quality.

-H