Although 210 Kapone's bills itself as a social club with freestyle, EDM, and dance music, you can't forget about the live music portion. The warehouse style building sports a pretty nice deck out front and a cavernous room that fits with most of your live music thrills. I did get an unofficial tour and was told that a second side is coming. That will be the primary spot for live music and the current portion in use is going to remain the lounge/club side.
As you walk in, the main bar is immediately in front of you on the left wall. There is plenty of seating scattered in the back area where you enter, with another small bar to the right of the entrance. On both the left and right side of the venue appear to be some comfortable seating areas which look like VIP sections. Right in the middle is a medium sized, wooden dance floor complete with a railing all the way around. As you stand in the doorway surveying, the stage is all the way against the far wall, opposite the entrance.
Making the show tonight were 3 bands. One local, a touring opener, and the main performance.
To Every Enemy (https://www.facebook.com/toeveryenemy) was the local. I personally hate it when the opener(s) get reduced sound or power. FUCK IT! Let them have the full sound like the headliner. If they are gonna blow them away, let it happen. NOW UNFORTUNATELY, this did not happen tonight and their are very few touring bands today that could have topped the headliners performance this evening anyway.
To Every Enemy had some serious sound issues when they hit the stage. The lead guitar had no sound at all. What the audience heard before the issues got fixed was full vocals and some bass. The drums we were hearing were strictly from the kit, not the sound system. But handling it like professionals, the band continued to play, pushing through, and finally getting the issues fixed. The performance was in front of a home town crowd, and To Every Enemy provided solid energy to keep the crowd from lynching somebody due to the issues. The lead singers voice was a perfect blend of singing and gutturals and once the set kicked in, the mosh pit started and the crowd was forgiving. The salvaged performance ended up being solid and crowd pleasing. That is what you do at a live show, play for the crowd!
The Family Ruins (https://www.facebook.com/TheFamilyRuin) was the touring opener. I missed the first portion of their set as I was doing an interview in the back of the venue. What I can tell you is HOLY SHIT! The sound was crazy powerful and that is a statement from sitting BEHIND the stage. The Family Ruins sound was so intense, we had to move the interview to the empty, under construction side, of the venue (the unofficial tour).
When I did step out to enjoy the last 20 minutes of The Family Ruins set I saw a crowd going nuts. It was just as intense to watch the crowd moshing and jumping in rhythm with the music as it was to hear it. The band had that rumbling electronic bass line running through their music that just seemed to wind every one up. When it was over and they stepped off stage, it couldn't have been any better of a warm up for what was about to drop.
Mushroomhead (http://www.mushroomhead.com/main/).
I said it online as I live tweeted and posted about the show. It was a visual and visceral performance. From their sound, to the lighting, lyrical content, the theatrics, this was an 'OH MY GOD!' performance. Mushroomhead has been doing their thing for 20+ years and it shows in every bit of their live performance. The stage set up was thrilling. With the neon, electric colors under the black light and some 3D glasses on, it was a performance I have never experienced before.
Even though a mosh pit erupted to some extent, this was a crowd that was completely mesmerized by the performance. I can't call Mushroomhead underground, nor can I explain their lack of mainstream success, but I don't give a shit. Mushroomhead has tapped into the visceral section of our psyche, and extracted the formula that keeps the going for 20 years solid, there is no stopping point or end in sight!
If you are reading this, all hope is not lost for you. The current Mushroomhead tour has ended. But I was lucky enough to sit with one of the founding members, Skinny, and get the short future of the band. Once the interview is done being edited I will drop it hear () and on Soundcloud. You can also find my interview with J Mann on Soundcloud as well.
What I got from Skinny, beside some cool ass conversation, is that Mushroomheads touring looks like it will continue in the late spring. The band is also working to solidify some summer fun as well. Don't be stupid, drive the hour and a half, or two, to check out Mushroomhead. It is unquestionably something your brain and ears will enjoy and thank you for.
Laters
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