Newest articles on The Sacramento Press tagged as "screamo"

Escape the Fate tops Dead Masquerade bill at Ace of Spades

2011-03-08T02:03:07Z

"Escape the Fate! Escape the Fate!"

With appetites violently whetted by the three-guitar screamo attack of the final opening band Alesana, the loud chanting of hundreds of eager fans filled Ace of Spades Sunday night, beckoning Escape the Fate, the headliners of the Dead Masquerade tour.

The sensory onslaught began with appropriately named opener "Massacre," as the Vegas post-hardcore band pounced on the young crowd like a rabid pack of hyenas on defenseless baby gazelles.

The response to ETF's latest Facebook wall posting before the show ("Sacramento Ace of Spades tonight it's on! You guys ready?" – 1,429 Likes and 539 comments at the time of this writing) indicated a large and dedicated fan base, and it was reflected in the enthusiastic packed house.

The young audience was kept rapt throughout the show, obeying readily when vocalist Craig Mabbitt split the crowd like the Red Sea and instructed the opposite sides to run toward each other at the beginning of the next song and collide in what's known in as a "Wall of Death."

When they weren't running into each other, those in the crowd were enthusiastically shouting out lyrics and crowd-surfing, clearly enjoying the ride.

Escape the Fate members are good at what they do – putting on an energetic show with music that combines melody and pop sensibilities with their hardcore/metal foundation, with a little screamo mixed in to round things out. (They worked on their latest LP with Linkin Park producer Don Gilmore, to give you an idea).

The setlist drew almost exclusively on ETF's last two albums, 2008's "This War Is Ours" ("Something," "The Flood" and "10 Miles Wide) and 2010's eponymous release ("Issues," "Zombie Dance," "Gorgeous Nightmare" and "Day of Wreckoning"), with "Situations" being the lone song played from 2006's debut album "Dying Is Your Latest Fashion."

Guitarist TJ Bell from supporting act Motionless In White did double duty on the bass for ETF, filling in for regular bassist Max Green, who is at home recovering (he entered rehab for drug and alcohol addiction late last year), Mabbitt said.

Mabbitt made it a point to connect to the audience not only on a visceral level as a hyperactive frontman, but on a personal one as well, at one point encouraging those in the crowd to ignore the naysayers and follow their dreams – "How many people in here are artists? You write, you sing, you draw? You work at Subway, you're a sandwich artist?" – before leading everyone in a middle finger salute directed at those who might have issues with artistic expression, in the food industry or otherwise.

And later: "We want to dedicate this next one to the brave men and women who serve this country," declared Mabbitt, before launching into the first song of the encore, "This War Is Ours (The Guillotine II)." "And also to the greatest video game in the world in my opinion, and that's Halo!"

Papa Roach: Two-night stand at Ace of Spades this weekend

2011-02-25T01:01:56Z

No discussion on alternative rock circa 2000 would be complete without mention of Papa Roach and their radio-ready hit single “Last Resort,” especially if you were in high school or college during that time.

The Vacaville band (also known for singles “Scars,” “Forever” and “Lifeline”) broke out of Sacramento and went on to sell more than 10 million albums worldwide. They return this weekend for a two-night stand at the recently opened venue Ace of Spades, touring behind their seventh album, "Time for Annihilation."

More alternative rock than nu-metal now, the band can probably still be counted on to deliver a high-energy rock show filled with heavy guitars, sharp hooks and “guy liner.”

Papa Roach performs at Ace of Spades this Friday (with special guests Will Haven and Track Fighter) and Saturday (with special guests Middle Class Rut and Lonely Kings). General admission tickets are $29.95, all fees included. 7 p.m. doors and 7:30 p.m. start. All ages.

Note: Saturday's show appears to be sold out, but tickets are available for Friday.

Interview with Above The City guitarist Simon Pesely

2011-02-19T01:49:16Z

On the heels of an inaugural show last week featuring Rob Zombie, the first "all locals" show at new music venue Ace of Spades goes down Saturday. SacShows Presents: Soundcheck will feature performances by local bands Ten After Two, Carcerys Vale, Batten Down Your Heart, Above The City, The Winter Formal, City of Kings, and Oneira.

Above The City is a relatively young, currently unsigned band made up of members Davey Sparks (vocals), Simon Pesely (guitar), Taylor Whitehurst (guitar), Zack Lee (drums) and Toby Hart (bass).

The Sacramento Press recently spoke with Pesely, 21, about being in an up-and-coming band in Sacramento.

How did Above The City get started?

We started about nine months ago. I believe it was March of 2010. Taylor and I initially got together and started jamming, and then Davey came into the picture, and and we played with Zach, and then we had another guy on the bass. Things got more serious, so we brought our friend Toby in, and he's been with us virtually from the start as well.

Where does the name Above The City come from?

The name was Taylor's idea. It doesn't have any real particular meaning aside from the fact that it was just a name we really dug, and it was rare and unique and we liked it for that fact, and it just caught on. And it's a simple nickname, and the abbreviation is ATC.

ATC flows well.

Yeah, exactly. It's easy to remember.

How long have you been playing guitar?

I've been playing guitar for about two years now. I initially started out playing the drums and then switched over, and Taylor and I got together and started playing and it just really worked out.

What kind of gear do you use?

Peavey 5150 heads, Schecter guitars, a few different Boss effect pedals. For the most part it's pretty straightforward.

I'm pretty new to the "screamo" genre. How would you describe ATC's sound for someone who wasn't familiar with it?

It's an alternative, poppy sound with the higher vocals and more in-depth melodies, and really heavy, crunching breakdowns. Hardcore, screamo, a little bit of everything in there.

What sets apart a good screamo song from the rest?

I think it's really just being unique and being able to combine all styles — a lot of smooth transitions and just showing your talent and that you can all work as one. Being prolific, you know?

What do you think about the current music scene in Sacramento?

I'd say the scene right now is really strong. There's a good driving force of young teens to mid-20s and older. Everyone's being really supportive. There's so much family for all the bands out there. The scene is this connected web of musical allegiance, I guess is a good way of putting it.

It's great to see the Sac music scene coming about. Eric Rushing is a guy who's doing a great thing by opening this venue, and everyone is working really hard to make the Sacramento music scene better. I couldn't even say it lacks really. There's a lot of great shows coming through here. Ace of Spades is going to open up huge doors.

I'm looking forward to checking out Ace of Spades. It looks like it's going to be pretty cool.

It's definitely going to be, I think, one of the biggest assets to Sacramento's music scene in the history of the music scene, hands down. Large capacity, better sound, better quality, everything.

What local bands are you into?

Ten After Two. They're great guys. They're really young and they got a lot of talent, a lot of good stuff going for them. Carcerys Vale is another really good one. They're great friends of ours, good musicians. They're coming up really big in the world.

What's your favorite venue to perform at?

It's always fun to play at the Boardwalk. There are always a lot of great shows out there. Now, everyone is really, truly looking forward to Ace of Spades. This one coming up is the big shebang for us. We're all really excited and really proud to be playing it.

What can people expect when they go to see ATC perform?

We're really into the music. We have a great light show. A guy named Aaron Muir does lights for us, and he does a really good job at it. We're really solid playing live, and energetic. We're out here doing what we love: trying to spread the word and be as unique as possible, bring the fans out and play good music.

Any plans for a tour in the near future?

We're hoping to by the middle of this year. We're planning on going out and hitting a few dates in Southern California and hopefully a lot more than that. In the next month or so we should have a lot more things set in stone.

What's your ultimate goal as you continue to pursue music?

Our ultimate goal is to hopefully get signed to a record label, and to get out there and tour and spread the word, enjoy the scene and meet new people, and to travel and see the world.

What's next for ATC?

We actually just went and recorded some stuff, and we have some really good news we'll be dropping here in the next month or so. We're really excited we're with Outerloop Management. They're doing a lot of good stuff for us. As of right now, we're just marketing and trying to get ourselves out there more and more. We just released a brand new studio update, our first one ever today, actually — our very first video blog.

As a fairly young band, you guys have made a lot of progress.

Yeah, we work really hard. We dedicated our lives to it. We spend every day practicing, nonstop. Davey lives in Yuba City and Taylor lives in Stockton, so we have long commutes. We put in a lot of miles to come and play every day and make sure we're solid.

This takes 100 percent dedication.You're going to have your ups and downs regardless, and it's about being able to prosper through that, and keep the right mindset and stay on the right track.

Support local live music and see Above The City perform Saturday at Ace of Spades. General admission tickets are $13.95 and include service fees. All ages. 5 p.m. doors, 6 p.m. show.