Rustbelt Rock Review

By: Z.M. Delgado

Rustbeltrockreview.com

Volume #146: After The Apocalypse “Factions” Release Party feat. Brothers at Arms, Druparia & Saints of Lorain

July 19th, 2024

The Foundry Concert Club, 11729 Detroit Ave, Lakewood, OH 44107

Good evening my friends and welcome back. This week I have once again returned from the underground with a fresh tale to tell. And what a tale it is indeed. You see this week I got to take part in one of my favorite parts of the Rock and Roll ritual: The album release party. I love a release show. I delight in the entire spectacle of it. The palpable anticipation of the fans; hungry in their desire for new music. The cathartic release by the bands. After months (or sometimes years) of work they finally are able to unveil their vision to the world. I love the pure energy of them; they are always all madness and joy. They are unique, after all, an album can only drop once. That’s why these release parties often become the stuff of legends. These are the events that years from now people will wish they could say “I was there.” Yes, there are few observances for the Rock N’ Roll practitioner more potent than an album release party and that’s why I never miss one if I can help it.

It was around 6:30 friday night when I departed the home base and traveled west toward Lakewood. My destination: The Foundry. Undoubtedly one of the finest places to see a show in Northeast Ohio. I arrived on the Scene shortly after doors opened and almost immediately bumped into the boys from After the Apocalypse. We caught up and spoke in eager voices about the night ahead of us. Before long we were joined by my friend, colleague and accomplice, Mr Jimmy “The Dook” Fedor of Roxxxstarradio. The Dook, who is a constant Scene supporter, was acting as host and MC for the evening. We gathered together and shot the proverbial bullshit for some time as we watched friends and fans creep through the door. I checked out After the Apocalypse's new merch spread and was stoked to see how well there new t-shirts turned out. The gifted me an A.T.A. wrist band, which was mightily cool of them, and informed me that due to a production SNAFU, the physical copies of the new album were delayed. That was a major bummer to old school fans like myself, but not the end of the world. In the era of the digital download, the “Factions” record is readily available in a number of places. So, with my trusty vape in hand, I navigated the crowd until the appointed time was upon us. Then I found myself before the stage; ready and willing to Rock.

Kicking of the show was the Saints of Lorain. This is a five piece band built up from a Vocalist, two Guitars, Bass and Drums/Backing Vox. They played a fast energetic Punk style that called my heart back to the days when I tried, and failed, to learn to skateboard. Their songs were short and sweet, hitting you hard and blasting past you like a mad moped straight from hell. The Vocals were delivered cleanly, over very danceable rhythms. Right from the get go they received a very positive response from the crowd. It was easy to see why with the songs “Be Here Alone” and “Running Out of Time” to start out the set. I was impressed with the intensity of the high speed track “West Blvd.” While on “Good People” I noted that it had “a lot of heart.” “Midlife Crisis” was packed with some great energy and with crushing chords. “Last Goodbye,” a song about a friend who passed away, was hard hitting and quite emotional. On the fast paced “Gabardine,” the singer left the stage and walked the club serenading fans all the while. I noted the entire band had great stage presence while the performed “Brace.” Closing out with “IO” Saints of Lorain threw down and earned a healthy round of applause from the fans. It had been a very solid set; the exact type that you need to open up your show. Fast and exciting, Saints of Lorain blew the doors off of the Foundry and set the night rolling. If I remember correctly, it was at this point that “The Dook” took to the stage and began his duties as the evenings MC. He did his thing and then we spun around and headed toward the door where we ran into a different sort of Saint all together: Corey of the Bessemer Saints. He was far from alone, in fact before the night was over three of the four Bessemer Saints would be on the Scene, with both Terry and Shaggy turning up as well. With them was their constant companions Tree and Rico. Together with The Dook, we headed outside where we smoked a fat joint in preparation for the next act: Druparia.

Druparia is a band I know I have seen before, perhaps at the Sly Fox. I’m not exactly sure and I’m not going to spend a lot of time looking it up. Let just agree that this is at least the second time I’ve seen this band. For those of you, like me, who don’t clearly recall the details of that last set, Druparia is a five piece that I would categorize as Melodic Death Metal. They are constructed from Vocals, two Guitars, Bass and Drums. They opened up extremely heavy with Drums that absolutely pummeled, intricate Guitar work and vicious Vocals. Their second song, “Under the Shade of Sand,” is described in my notes as “devastating heaviness.” That heaviness was not at the expense of melody however. No, quite the opposite actually, as my notes make numerous references to Druparia’s ability to incorporate melody into their tapestry of terror. Prior to their fourth song they paused to give recognition to their drummer, who was on loan from Terranoct. He had apparently learned the entire set on short notice and from where I was standing, he sounded excellent. The song that followed was a monster of Metal. Power and fury ran throughout the chorus and the solo was masterful. They closed out with a song called “When Cranes Return.” This track is the embodiment of beauty and brutality. I made notes about the Guitar, Bass and Vocals on this one, so suffice to say it is an impressive composition across the board. With all these qualities combined, Druparia had the crowd moving with people jumping, headbanging and dancing all around me. When the closing number finally expired the room erupted in cheers. It had been an amazing set. Druparia had wowed us with both their savage power as well as their intricate melodies. They battered our senses completely and left us stupefied in the aftermath. In short, they utterly rocked.

Eric Stevenson: The Official Tattoo Artist of Rustbelt Rock Review

Following Druparia we went back out to the street to burn down another round of doobies. With my mind twisted like a rag doll in the mouth of a rottweiler, I was ready for the next act of the night: Brothers at Arms. This five piece Metal band is made up of Vocals, two Guitars, Bass and Drums. On the evening in question, it was announced that this would be Brothers at Arms final performance. Opening with a song called “From The Ashes” they came out slow and melodic, but quickly became very heavy as the drums began to pound and the chords swelled. The vocals emerged as a growling roar; the singer performing with pad locks dangling from his earlobes. The opening was very intense and the crowd was into it from note one. On “Know your Worth” they were very aggressive and brought some interesting guitar work to the table. Intensity in the room continued to build as the music took hold of the night. All around me people were rocking out and rapidly you could feel the energy rising. On “Whiskey Ghosts” the emotions finally boiled over and a wild moshpit broke out. It raged on as did the song, until something went awry. There was a commotion behind the pit and before I could process what was happening the lights had come up and the singer was calling for the band to stop playing. In short, someone had been laid out in the pit. Or rather, an innocent by stander had been clipped by a rogue mosher, which sent them head first into the floor of the Foundry. I stayed out of the way, but from what I could ascertain it appeared as if the Foundry staff acted impressively in caring for the individual until EMS could arrive. Which of course they did eventually. Once they were there, the injured party was taken away and the show did in fact go on. When it did, Brothers at Arms picked up more or less right were they left off, restarting their third song and playing on as if nothing has happened. They followed that with “Mirrors,” which was very intense. Despite this, the crowd seemed subdued after the injury. People didn’t seem to want to get down with the vigor that they had prior to the accident. “Book of Lies” was next and my notes praise this one as “killer.” It had enough fury to breathe a little life back into the crowd, generating a small amount of tentative moshing. “Trial by Fire” delivered some hammering drumwork and summoned dancing and headbanging across the floor. As an introduction to the song “Icarus” the singer brought up his eleven year old son and talked about fatherhood. This song was fucking intense. It reanimated the pit and set the room alight with headbanging. “Oathkeeper” had an intense cadence, and had some nice back and forth between the lead and backing vox. On this one the singer descended from the stage and joined the fans on the floor. This caused a pit to rise once again. They closed out with “Slow Motion Death Scene” and I have to say it was a brute. Another pit exploded as Brothers at Arms fans threw down one last time. And just like that it was over. The final notes of the final show rang out. Brothers at Arms officially hung it up. With the exception of the injured fan, it had been a great set. Brothers at Arms played their final show and they played it with an abundance of balls and heart. They rocked the Foundry and as they did they impressed the hell out of me. While we have to respect their decision, to me it seems like a shame. From where I was standing Brothers at Arms sounded like a damn good band in their prime. I suppose we can always hope for a reunion show. Until then we’ll just have to rest easy knowing that Brothers at Arms went out on an extremely high note.

Speaking of high notes, The Dook and I, together with Rico and Tree once again went outside to blaze. We got royally stupid and without a doubt were properly prepared for what was coming: After the Apocalypse was coming to the stage. For those of you who don’t know After the Apocalypse is a four piece band made up of Vocals, Guitar/Backing Vox, Bass/Backing Vox and Drums. After the Apocalypse is also the defending champions of Cleveland Metal. What I mean by that is that they were last years recipient of the “Best Metal Band” title at the Cleveland Music Awards. With that being said, you can understand how the Cleveland Scene was stoked for the release of their new album, “Factions.” Anyway… as he had for all the prior bands, The Dook took to the stage and began to hype the crowd. A chant of “A.T.A.! A.T.A.!” began to rise throughout the club. As this unfolded “Purge” audio began to play over the PA as an intro. Then, with the force of a lightening strike, After the Apocalypse exploded to life with “Enemy Mine.” Immediately I was noting the bands incredible stage presence. Each member rocked out in their own right, most notably the frontman who appears to be a concentrated ball of energy. His vocals were vicious as he led the fans through the opening number with unbridled enthusiasm. Next came “Rapture,” which had the crowd chanting “Rise!” with their horns in the air. On “Broken” the band was intense and passionate. I witnessed as the crowd sang along word for word, while pumping their fists. “False God” brought with it powerful heaviness and some nasty Guitar work. Next they dropped some songs off of the new record, beginning with “Post Traumatic.” This one had a filthy riff that cut like a saw… Chewing through the wood that is my ears. The Guitar was nothing short of bad ass as the ax man’s fingers moved in a blur. Speaking of bad ass, the next song, “Wounded Animals” certainly falls into that category. This one had the fans stomping, dancing and moshing their way across the floor of the Foundry. “Meddler” had a very stomping rhythm and a plucky Bass sound. This one also generated a lot of movement on the floor as the new material continued to be well received. The moshing continued for “Gag Order” as two guest vocalists, members of Hams, joined After the Apocalypse on the mic. Meanwhile After the Apocalypse’s frontman abandoned the stage and jumped into the Pit himself. Personally churning up the floor. The crowd again began to chant “A.T.A.! A.T.A.!” as the band transitioned into their next crushing track: “Kingdom Come.” This song was pure unadulterated badassery. It was a monster that cannot be denied. From it’s hard charging cadence, to it’s soulful “Whoas!” it was a beast. Following that came “Shadows” with it’s smoothly flowed rhymes. The clean vocals rapped in the verses, stood in strong contrast to the screams delivered in the chorus, setting up an excellent pairing of vibes. Following “Shadows” they did a brief T-shirt toss, rewarding a few lucky fans with some complimentary merch. Getting back to the music they closed out the set with “Pet.” With an aggressive vocal cadence and a plucky Bass sound, “Pet” shook the room. Of course, ATA wasn’t done yet. Pulling one last rabbit out of their hat After the Apocalypse produced “2020.” This one summoned up a brutal Pit that set the room spinning. They finished up and the crowd erupted. Cheers and applause filled the air as the fans screamed for more. After the Apocalypse was phenomenal. They are all energy and they excel at performance. They play with pure passion and they seem to be having one hell of a time while they are doing it. Without a doubt they were having fun Friday night, and rightly so. With a new album officially out there, it is no doubt that After the Apocalypse has plenty of reason to celebrate.

With After the Apocalypse now finished, I made my rounds and said my farewells. Then it was out into the dark of night to find my way home. What a great evening it had been. I got to see four bands from four different genres. It was a nice variety of styles, which is exactly how I like my shows. Saints of Lorain really kicked things off right with a lot of energy and plenty of heart. Druparia was brutal in their sound and technically very impressive. Brothers at Arms put on a show that was intense to say the least. They shared their final set with us and I can say they went out on top. Finally, After the Apocalypse was a four headed beast the likes of which you have never seen. They played with fire and skill and the end result was the sort of set that is worthy of remembrance. I drove home quite satisfied. It had been a killer evening of Rock N’ Roll. I hit my pillow hard and passed out. I knew the AM hours would be upon me sooner than I would like. But that’s the price we all have to pay sometimes. Speaking of which, I believe it is getting late. The time has come to bring this edition to a close. Thanks for reading.

Until next time, Rock on, Rustbelt,

-Z.M. Delgado

Rustbelt Rock Review

Rustbeltrockreview.com

7/22-7/24/2024

Links:

After The Apocalypse

https://linktr.ee/aftertheapocalypse

Brothers at Arms

https://www.brothersatarmsband.com/

Druparia

https://druparia.bandcamp.com/album/alfheim