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Donnybrook, Shattered Realm, Hoods, Black My Heart
Swayze's, Marietta, GA
11/29/2005
Reviewer: Drew Walton
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This was the Atlanta stop of the Street Brutality tour, which featured several great bands. Opening the show were locals in Straight Shot and The Crime Scene. This was the first time I've seen or heard of Straight Shot and they did pretty well. The singer was a little sick and the guitarist and bassist could have had a little more energy. The music was pretty good, though, and I can definitely see them developing into something better. Next were local favorites, The Crime Scene. I've seen them a few times, and they always have tons of energy. They have three singers, which makes for a great stage show. They had a few technical difficulties, but got through their set and everybody sang along.
Up first for the touring bands was Black My Heart. Their newest disc, Before The Devil has not left my stereo since I first heard it several weeks ago. I was pretty stoked to see them live, and they didn't disappoint. They opened up with album opener "We Weren't Brought Up Right." The band was full of energy and the massive amounts of breakdowns and dance parts in every song made for a fun set. The singer had a great stage presence, shouting out the much-overlooked merch guys, talking to the audience, and setting up some sweet sing-alongs. He even fell off the stage at one point (I believe during their closing song, "Thick As Blood").
Next up was Sacramento's Hoods. This is my second time seeing Hoods, and they've been amazing both times. Mike Hood has one of the best stage presences I've seen. He always speaks his mind, tells several jokes, shouts out the local bands, and most importantly, plays very well. Hoods released a new album, called The King is Dead, a few weeks ago. Not surprisingly, they played several songs off the new album, as well as a few off of Pray For Death and the closing, crowd-favorite, "I Own You." During "I Own You," I was on top off what could possibly be the biggest pile-on I've seen; it was amazing. Much like the last time the band was in Atlanta, Mike Hood talked plenty of shit on Tony Victory (owner of Victory Records, Hoods' former record label).
Shattered Realm took the stage next. I was pretty unfamiliar with Shattered Realm's material prior to the show, but seeing them live was a great way of being introduced to it. Joe Hardcore shouted out some of the locals that he's known through touring with his bands, and he was a genuinely sincere guy with everything he said while on stage. Unfortunately for Shattered Realm, some random fruitcake wearing a Norma Jean shirt kept getting on stage and doing some death metal vocals during their set. It was quite funny for everyone, but it seemed to become annoying to Joe and his band mates. Overall, it was a great set of brutal music, and I will be further checking out their recorded material.
Local band Depression had a surprise short set after Shattered Realm. This was their third show and second time I'd seen them. The band features former Love Is Red vocalist Hunter and two former Instilled members. They had a great set, even though they could only squeeze three songs into their allotted time. They've been received very well since their inception and they put on a good show.
Finally, the almighty Donnybrook set up and began their set. They played all the favorites off of Lions In This Game and a few off of their previous EP, No Love For The Insincere. The band had a few new members who didn't know all the material and, as such, they didn't play the one song the crowd kept shouting for, "Down For The Core." Donnybrook had an energetic set, but not the biggest crowd since they didn't start until around 11:30 p.m. on a Tuesday night. They were amazing nonetheless, and I was front and center for their whole set.
I got the LP version of Lions In This Game, the one shirt Donnybrook had, a Black My Heart shirt, and the same Hoods shirt I bought last time I saw them but lost the day after. All in all, an amazing show with great bands and a great representation of local music from Straight Shot, The Crime Scene, and Depression.
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