Words and Photos by Andrew Parks
“1349!”
“Kenny G!”
Say hello to the childish hecklers who wouldn’t shut up during Yakuza‘s Gramercy Theatre set last night, as the Midwest metal vets warmed the stage with such expansive, sax-spiked epics as “Farewell to the Flesh” and “Be That As It May.” While we dug every last note, it’s gonna be a rough run for these guys, as they’re bound to face more impatient/idiotic black-metal purists as their tour with 1349 and Triptykon winds its way through North America this month. That, and some closet converts who can’t help but get pulled in by the underground’s most underrated band.
As for Tom Warrior’s post-Celtic Frost project, they showed 1349 that you don’t have to resort to sheer rock opera tactics to make heavy music entertaining. It helped that you could actually hear Warrior’s crisp, guitar lines cut through Triptykon’s massive mix, a room-engulfing spin on experimental metal that’s unique to Warrior, right down to his sucker-punch “ooh!”‘s.
If you haven’t heard the band’s Eparistera Daimones album yet, buy it. Now. And listen to it while looking at the rest of our photos. (We also have an alternate black and white set here.)
