- Published on
By Josh Burke
This was my third time in Austin for Ripplefest Texas, a celebration of desert rock and stoner metal. It bills itself as a “family reunion” and of all the festivals I’ve been to, it really does feel the most like home in a lot of ways. I have made many friends at this festival and it’s great to see a lot of the same faces year after year. It’s also a small festival - while the capacity for the main venue is 2,000 people, I would guess the actual attendance is closer to 500. I don’t know how the financials work with this size of a crowd, but I love the intimacy. You can pretty much guarantee that you’ll be standing next to the bands playing the festival and I love getting the chance to meet and have real conversations with some of my favorite artists.
This was my third time in Austin for Ripplefest Texas, a celebration of desert rock and stoner metal. It bills itself as a “family reunion” and of all the festivals I’ve been to, it really does feel the most like home in a lot of ways. I have made many friends at this festival and it’s great to see a lot of the same faces year after year. It’s also a small festival - while the capacity for the main venue is 2,000 people, I would guess the actual attendance is closer to 500. I don’t know how the financials work with this size of a crowd, but I love the intimacy. You can pretty much guarantee that you’ll be standing next to the bands playing the festival and I love getting the chance to meet and have real conversations with some of my favorite artists.
- Published on
I've seen exactly two concerts with my older brother, both of which were in the last year. Along with my youngest brother, we saw the BEAT Tour last November (who dropped an excellent live album last Friday!), and last night the three us saw Bruce Dickinson together. My youngest brother and I have seen a bunch of shows together, but our tastes never really aligned with our older brother's taste until he started discovering some hard rock/heavy metal that spoke to him in the last few years. We had a great time together at BEAT last fall, so I couldn't really say no when he suggested that we go see the Iron Maiden singer's solo tour.
Sometimes, when you buy a concert ticket months in advance, your excitement for the show builds and builds. Other times, as it creeps closer, it starts to feel more like a looming obligation rather than an exciting event. And, full disclosure, this is how I was feeling about the Bruce Dickinson show as it approached.
Sometimes, when you buy a concert ticket months in advance, your excitement for the show builds and builds. Other times, as it creeps closer, it starts to feel more like a looming obligation rather than an exciting event. And, full disclosure, this is how I was feeling about the Bruce Dickinson show as it approached.
- Published on
Last night I put on my $10 Mares of Thrace hoodie and joined some friends at Minneapolis venue Zhora Darling for a show I've been looking forward to for months, Conan and Mares of Thrace. But, let's be honest: I was there for Mares of Thrace. As I wrote in the linked post, I checked out the Canadian sludge duo earlier this year for the first time and was immediately hooked. But does their live experience live up to their recorded works? Read on to find out!
- Published on
I am very excited to share the very first guest post on Both Kinds of Heavy! My friend Josh Burke (pictured above) recently experienced the ArcTanGent Festival for the first time, and was kind enough to share some in-depth thoughts on the experience. All words after the break were written by Josh, and he captured all photos in this post. Thanks for letting us host this festival recap, Josh!
- Published on
Twelve years ago, I saw Nine Inch Nails for the first time when their Tension tour came to Minnesota. I wound up seated next to a guy who worked in the touring concert industry, and before the set he told my brother and me that the lighting design we were about to see would set the standard for stadium shows for years to come. The big hook of the show was a lighting rig that projected in the front, back, and middle of the stage, creating the appearance that the band was playing inside a cube of lasers. It was a pretty spectacular effect and used in a wide variety of ways over the course of that show.
Twelve years later, NIN returned to St. Paul for the first time since that tour with the Peel It Back tour. Trent Reznor and company had set a pretty high bar, and I would have been pretty happy if they had just repeated the setup of the Tension tour. But Trent had a much more elaborate plan in mind.
Twelve years later, NIN returned to St. Paul for the first time since that tour with the Peel It Back tour. Trent Reznor and company had set a pretty high bar, and I would have been pretty happy if they had just repeated the setup of the Tension tour. But Trent had a much more elaborate plan in mind.