I'm just going to preface this post by saying that catching pneumonia in the summer fucking sucks – especially when you come down with it on the day of a show you've been looking forward to seeing for literally months.
(Buried Inside photo via Evan Hunter)
Dragging myself down to the 7th St. Entry in Minneapolis, MN (against the stern device of my trusty doctor) wasn't easy; but while laying in bed, pondering the fact that BATTLEFIELDS would soon be plugging in their equipment in to prepare for their first appearance in the metro since the release of this year's stellar The Thresholds of Imbalance opus (on Translation Loss Records) AND that BURIED INSIDE would be headlining, I let my excitement get the better of me. Needless to say, I pulled my weary ass together and was there at the 7th St. Entry, assuming my position stage left as the curtain was pulled back to reveal one of the most exciting doom metal shows in recent memory.
Slowly, BATTLEFIELDS descended into an expansive journey through their new album, and all the symptoms of my illness seemed to melt away as their calculated, proggressive dirge carried my mind off into psychedelic abandon. After months already spent on the road, honing these new songs, the band was locked into an incredibly strong groove during this performance in front of their friends and the hometown crowd, and it showed.
By the time the raging crush of BURIED INSIDE took center stage, I was at the front banging my head with the rest of the beardos and had totally forgotten about my formerly miserable state of mind. The band's new album Spoils of Failure (released on Relapse Records) is an amazing, mind-numbing, torrential package when you're listening to the massively heavy Kurt Ballou-produced recordings, but HOLY SHIT, these are songs that need to be heard live. Twisting and turning seamlessly through every nuanced sound – both the beautifully serene and the disturbingly cataclysmic – the quintet's incredible (and long-awaited) performance commanded the strict attention of the audience for all the best, most satisfying reasons.
And the best part? I had the sense to capture some videos from the show, and I'm posting them here for your viewing pleasure. Continue browsing below to watch live videos of "II" and "III" from BURIED INSIDE and "Disacknowledge" from BATTLEFIELDS. Lucifer only knows how many times I've already replayed these videos from my sickbed while I try to relive the night and ignore my persistent phlegmy cough…
VIDEO: Buried Inside, "II" (live at 7th St. Entry in Minneapolis, MN on 7/16/2009)
VIDEO: Battlefields, "Disacknowledge" (live at 7th St. Entry in Minneapolis, MN on 7/16/2009)
[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/5647523[/vimeo]
VIDEO: Buried Inside, "III (excerpt)" (live at 7th St. Entry in Minneapolis, MN on 7/16/2009)
Videos recorded and writeup done by Metal Injection's MN correspondent Ryan Buege
