MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/28/23 - KMSU SPRING PLEDGE DRIVE

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/28/23
KMSU SPRING PLEDGE DRIVE

HOUR 1
PLUSH – “left behind” // left behind – single
THROW THE FIGHT – “obey” // strangeworld
AS EVERYTHING UNFOLDS – “slow down” // ultraviolet
STORMBREAKER – “to the grave” // to the grave – single
SCOWL – “psychic dance routine” // psychic dance routine
CONCRETE CASTLES – “so addicted” // so addicted – single
LARKIN POE – “bolt cutters and the family name” // blood harmony

SHINEDOWN – “dead don’t die” // planet zero
HOUSTON – “cover” // overhead
REDOVERLUNAR – “zero” // fighting fire with gasoline
TURNSTILE – “T.L.C. (turnstile love connection)” // glow on
AGAINST THE CURRENT – “good guy” // “good guy” – single
YOURS TRULY – “walk over my grave” // is this what I look like?

HOUR 2 – SPRING PLEDGE DRIVE RADIO ROULETTE
AUGUST BURNS RED – “backfire” // death below
MESHUGGAH – “combustion” (2023 remastered) // obzen (15th anniversary remastered)
DYING WISH – “drowning in the silent black” // fragments of a bitter memory
JOHNNY BOOTH – “collapse in the key of fireworks” // collapse in the key of fireworks – single
MAMMOTH WVH – “another celebration at the end of the world” // mammoth II

UNEARTH – “into the abyss” // the wretched; the ruinous
MOTOR SISTER – “lion’s den” // get off
THE WARNING – “money” // error
JESUS PIECE – “tunnel vision” // …so unknown
THRICE feat SAM CARTER – “under a killing moon” // the artist in the ambulance – revisited
TRAGEDY – “I’m so excited” // I am woman

**SPECIAL THANKS to all the KMSU RADIO HEROES out there for helping out with the Spring Pledge Drive! The KMSU Spring Pledge Drive rolls on until Friday (May 5) at 6pm. You too can be a RADIO HERO by pledging your support to keep KMSU on the air and commercial free by pledging now safely and securely at http://www.kmsu.org

Nothing More raises Spirits in Minneapolis

CONCERT REVIEW :: NOTHING MORE with CROWN THE EMPIRE and THOUSAND BELOW
THE FILLMORE in MINNEAPOLIS, MN
April 15, 2023
Photos and Review by Brett Zisler

The lines were long and the excitement was palpable on a Saturday evening as the Nothing More SPIRITS Tour 2023 rolled its way into town. The band is far from strangers of Minneapolis and the turnout early at the Fillmore showed how ready they were for their return.

This marked the first time since 2019 that Nothing More headlined their own tour in Minnesota. Nothing More hit the stage opening with the title track off their new album SPIRITS. Front man Jonny Hawkins’ unique and distinct voice cut through the venue as the crowd bellowed back the chorus. It’s amazing to see the energy this bad gives off while performing live and how the concert goers feed off of it. Guitarist Mark Vollelunga accompanied by his sleek Aristides guitar paved the way into “Do You Really Want it?” Bassist Daniel Oliver moved with ease across the stage as he also provided backing vocals. Ben Anderson flawlessly provided the backbone all night as he pounded away on his drumkit.

Nothing More blended the new songs off the SPIRITS album along with some of the classics in their catalog. Seeing the crowds’ reaction to “You Don’t Know What Love Means” and moving into “Best Times” proved that these are now two permanent fan favorites that they will look forward to seeing at future shows.

Winding down the night they moved into their incredibly deep and moving “Fadein/Fadeout.” You could tell when the crowd hears that song live, it reaches them. They feel it. That’s the feeling they are looking for when they walk through the venue doors. Closing their set out, with a warning from Hawkins “We don’t do encores. So give us your all.” I’ve been lucky to be a part of many of shows at the Fillmore, I can honestly say when “Ballast” kicked in, I haven’t seen the floor move the way it did. The energy level maintained through their set never diminished. From the band or the crowd.

That’s the beauty of Nothing More. Their live shpw brings an energy level that many siply just can’t touch. Add in rock solid musicianship and it’s a show unlike anything else. Walking out of the venue at the end, I heard so many leaving say “I hope they come back soon.” And so do I.

CROWN THE EMPIRE

SEE MORE OF BRETT'S PICTURES from NOTHING MORE, CROWN THE EMPIRE and THOUSAND BELOW HERE!

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/21/23 - WIDOW7

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/21/23
GUESTS :: WIDOW7

HOUR 1
BETTER LOVERS – “30 under 13” // 30 under 13 – single
SEVENDUST – “fence” // truth killer
OTTTO – “my pain” // life is a game
AS EVERYTHING UNFOLDS – “ultraviolet” // ultraviolet
RANCID - "tomorrow never comes" // tomorrow never comes
LOST ISLAND SOCIETY - "villian" // villian - single
FLOGGING MOLLY - "these times have got me drinkin'/tripping up the stairs" // anthem

MCHNZ - "gravity" // gravity - single
WIDOW7 - "therapy" // our new doomsday
WIDOW7 - "lowlife" // our new doomsday
WIDOW7 - "hopeless" // our new doomsday

HOUR 2
FOO FIGHTERS - "rescued" // but here we are
ROYAL THUNDER – “fade" // rebuilding the mountain
TRIVIUM – “what the dead men say" // what the dead men say
METALLICA – “too far gone" // 72 seasons
SPIRITBOX – “the void” // the void – single
AFTER THE BURIAL - "nothing gold" // embrace the infinity
VENDED - "overall" // overall - single

BEARTOOTH - "sunshine" // sunshine - single
AUGUST BURNS RED – “backfire" // death below
SOULFLY - "eye for an eye" // soulfly
JESUS PIECE – “fear of failing" // ...so unknown
DYING WISH – “torn from your silhouette” // torn from your silhouette - single
KNOCKED LOOSE - "belleville" // a different shade of blue
SCOWL - "shot down" // psychic dance routine
JOHNNY BOOTH – “collapse in the key of fireworks" // moments elsewhere

**SPECIAL THANKS to SETH from WIDOW7 for zooming in to the Midwest Beatdown tonight to talk about their new EP "Our New Doomsday" out now and their upcoming EP release party next Saturday (4/29) at xBk in Des Moines, IA with MCHNZ, BACKHAND BLUE and ELISON!

Midwest Beatdown · Widow7 interview

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/14/23

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/14/23

HOUR 1
SEVENDUST – “fence” // truth killer
NONPOINT – “heartless” // heartless – single
DREAMS ASIDE – “fracture" // lotus
WEEKEND PICNIC – “savages" // weekend picnic
SLEEP SIGNALS – “fearless” // fearless – single
SLEEP TOKEN – “the summoning" // take me back to eden
THE FAILSAFE – “burn it to the ground” // burn it to the ground - single

THROW THE FIGHT – “hourglass” // strangeworld
EVA UNDER FIRE – “war pigs” // war pigs – single
COLD KINGDOM - "broken world" // life//love
SHINEDOWN – “dead don’t die” // planet zero
MAMMOTH WVH – “another celebration at the end of the world” // mammoth II
REVILWEN - "those who control" // follow the money
THE SIERRA DAY - "closed out" // shanaska
TURNSTILE - "blackout" // glow on

HOUR 2
BABYMETAL – “monochrome" // the other one
DETHKLOK – “deththeme / thunderhorse" // the dethalbum
NOTHING MORE - "tired of winning" // spirits
NUISANCE – “ashes of empires" // 10 or 10,000
BANEHINGE – “if i can" // spirits
DEFTONES – “around the fur" // around the fur
BODY COUNT - "raining blood/postmortem" // bloodlust
BLACK SABBATH - "the mob rules" (live) // live evil (40th anniversary remastered)

AVATAR – “on the beach" // dance devil dance
VEIL OF MAYA – “godhead" // (m)other
ORBIT CULTURE – “vultures of north" // descent
BY THE THOUSANDS - "cold spots" // dead matter
IN SEARCH OF SOLACE - "no turning back" // the endless ache
DEVILDRIVER - "if blood is life" // dealing with demons vol 2
JESUS PIECE – “an offering to the night" // ...so unknown
TORCHE - "what was" // admission

RISE OF THE MACHINES TOUR 2023

CONCERT REVIEW :: STATIC-X, FEAR FACTORY, DOPE, TWIZTID
The Fillmore in Minneapolis, MN
April 8, 2023
Photos by Brett
Review by Nick

The time has finally arrived! STATIC-X and FEAR FACTORY brought their “Rise of the Machine” Tour to The Fillmore in Minneapolis, MN for a very sold out crowd that was excited to see every band on the bill!

STATIC-X came out with a new look for XERO that complimented the “Rise of the Machine” tour name. XERO’s new mask looks even more incredible in person. You could see guitarist Koichi Fukuda, bassist Tony Campos and drummer Ken Jay smiling and having a blast up there on stage. The energy was infectious from the crowd to the stage for each band for their entire set. You had 5 bands that were all excited to be playing in front of a crowd that was just excited to see them and hear all these songs come to life again.

STATIC-X filled their 19 song set with hit after hit and still leaving crowd favorites out of the set and the crowd wanted more after the last song rang out. STATIC-X coming out of the gate swinging with 4 from Machine to start the show off with “Permanence”, “This is Not”, “Structural Defect” and “Black and White” before even stepping to classic tracks from Wisconsin Death Trip. This tour definitely reminded you how solid Machine is as an album in full. Tony Campos stated from the stage later in the night that since the tour was delayed so many times, it gave them more time to bring a bigger production. This was a production made for arenas but in a club setting. If their goal was to make everything bigger and better than the previous tour, they definitely did that and then some even bringing a big podium for Xero to use on “Permanence” and “I’m With Stupid” that made sure everyone even in the back got a good glimpse of Xero Version 2.0.

Plenty of tracks from Wisconsin Death Trip made it in to the set (you gotta play the track “Wisconsin Death Trip” when you are so close to Wisconsin!) along with a good taste of the rest of their catalog played in rapid succession with not much downtime in between many songs. Newer songs “Terminator Oscillator” and their recently released cover of Nine Inch Nails’ “Terrible Lie” fit in perfectly amongst the Static-X classics like “Destroy All”, “Dirthouse” and “Cannibal” from later albums.

I don’t know what song the crowd sang along louder for “Cold”, “I’m With Stupid” or “Push It” which all came during the encore. Usually the crowd is spent by this point, not the case here. The crowd was louder than ever and the smiles on the band’s faces were bigger. The 3 year wait for this tour was definitely well worth it.

FEAR FACTORY came out blazing with new vocalist Milo Silverstro with two epic opening tracks both from Obsolete “Shock” and “Edgecrusher” setting the tone for their 50 min set. Milo filling the big shoes of Burton with ease in most parts as Fear Factory made their way thru the entire catalog playing songs from all over the map some of which might not have been played in a long time. “Distruptor” sounded fantastic along with “Powershifter” and “What Will Become”.

Guitarist Dino Cazares looked like he was having a blast up there with Milo, bassist Tony Campos and drummer Pete Webber. There’s no question that this lineup absolutely crushes these songs as they closed with 3 classics from Demanfacture, the title track, “Zero Signal” and “Replica”. These songs and this 10 song set isn’t for a beginner musician. FEAR FACTORY is back with a vengeance and I can’t wait to see them live again.

DOPE had a very short 6 song, 30 minute set which opened with the newest song in the set “Blood Money” because as Edsel Dope said from the stage “You didn’t come here to hear the new shit, you came hear to hear the old shit”. While there was only one song from the 1999 album Felons and Revolutionaries which was a shame, DOPE did a great job of picking out songs from all their albums to make sure to please any fan of the band. Closing with a super energetic version of their version of “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)” that definitely was a crowd pleaser.

Overall, this was a fun show front to back. This was a celebration of these songs from STATIC-X and FEAR FACTORY coming back to life again. Both bands were firing on all cylinders and hopefully this will keep them on tour for years to come to celebrate the music and the legacy that all these bands have created and importantly, the life of Wayne Static.

SEE MORE OF BRETT'S PHOTOS FROM STATIC-X, FEAR FACTORY, DOPE and TWIZTID HERE!

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/07/23

MIDWEST BEATDOWN PLAYLIST :: 04/07/23

HOUR 1
SLEEP SIGNALS – “fearless” // fearless – single
WEEKEND PICNIC - "before your time" // weekend picnic
AS EVERYTHING UNFOLDS - "felt like home" // ultraviolet
ANGRY WATERS - "dead flowers" // the tequila incidents
AMERICAN SCARECROWS - "broken bones and mountains" // drawing little pictures
NOTHING MORE feat LACEY STURM - "best times" // best times - single
HOLDING ABSENCE - "a crooked melody" // a crooked melody - single

STORMBREAKER - "left for dead" // left for dead - single
THROW THE FIGHT - "hourglass" // strangeworld
CROBOT – “dizzy” // feel this
TRAGEDY - "I'm so excited" // I am woman
WIDOW7 - "lowlife" // our new doomsday
DESTROPHY - "army of me" // army of me - single
THRICE feat SAM CARTER – “under a killing moon" // the artist in the ambulance revisited
BAD OMENS – “the death of peace of mind" // the death of peace of mind

HOUR 2
UNEARTH - "into the abyss" // the wretched; the ruinous
METALLICA – “lux aeterna" // 72 seasons
STATIC-X – “otsego placebo" // project regeneration vol 1
FEAR FACTORY – “shock" // obsolete
AFTER THE BURIAL - "nothing gold" // embrace the infinity ep
TRIVIUM - "catastrophist" // what the dead men say
UNDEROATH - "let go" // let go - single

DYING WISH – “torn from your silhouette” // torn from your silhouette - single
KNOCKED LOOSE - "deadringer" // laugh tracks
CODE ORANGE - "real" // forever
DISEMBODIED - "anvil chandelier" // diablere
EMPIRE STATE BASTARD - "harvest" // harvest - single
HARVEST - "epicure" // transitions
HARM'S WAY - "human carrying capacity" // posthuman
VEIN.FM – “the killing womb" // this world is going to ruin you
JESUS PIECE – “tunnel vision" // ...so unknown
OLD TOWNE GHOSTS - "knight boat" // the old ones are and forever shall be

Steel Panther Prowls Through Minneapolis

CONCERT REVIEW: STEEL PANTHER / CROBOT / TRAGEDY
The Fillmore - Minneapolis, MN
April 29, 2023
Review and Photos by Brett Zisler

On a Wednesday night, 80’s wigs in the crowd and spandex pants at the Fillmore can only mean the party bus known as STEEL PANTHER roared their way back through Minneapolis. Fresh off their release of their new album ON THE PROWL, Steel Panther returned to the throne of displaying sheer talent, humor and all out sexiness like no other band can.

Steel Panther clawed their way into their set opening with their classic hit “Eyes of a Panther” from their debut album, “Feel the Steel.” With the crowd whipped into a frenzy and a blizzard bras being tossed at the stage, it was easy to see Steel Panther would have their way once again with Minneapolis. Pounding their way through their set with heartfelt songs like “All I Wanna Do is F*ck” “The Burden of Being Wonderful” and “Friends with Benefits” it’s easy to see Steel Panther are still at the top of the mountain. Maybe one of the musical highlights of the night was hearing the oh so beautiful homage “1987” and the acoustic performance of their new song “Ain’t Dead Yet.” How many times do you get to hear shakers AND a wind chime solo in the same song in 2023?

Michael Starr lead the charge for the evening hitting his iconic high notes along with his all too famous rockstar poses. Lead guitarist, Satchel, still shows he is on his “A” game by shredding through song after song and also firing off some of the best and most vile one liners that I don’t even think I can type in this review. With now permanent member, Spyder, on bass and Stix Zadinia still showing why he’s the best drummer in Steel Panther…………..it’s a perfect recipe for 80’s metal glory and we still can’t get enough of it.

It's hard to believe that Steel Panther has now being touring through Minneapolis for the past decade. The crowds have only gotten bigger and the band is only better. When you are able to conjure up that much crowd interaction, fun, partying, thrown bras at the stage, it is not hard to figure out why the fans keep coming back. It’s a beautiful 80’s metal chaos, you never know what you are going to see. Like how and why there was a large dog on stage with all the ladies during “Party All Day.” When you leave a Steel Panther show, you are leaving an experience like none other that you have had. And whether you should talk about those experiences the next day at work……………we’ll leave that up to you.

CROBOT and TRAGEDY were perfect openers for STEEL PANTHER. CROBOT put on an energetic 40 min set that focused on their latest excellent album Feel This! Firing right in to high gear with "Electrified" and "Dizzy". Brandon Yeagley is cementing his place as one of the most energetic frontmen out there right now. Guitarist Chris Bishop was throwing his guitar all over while never missing a note. Keep your eye on CROBOT, they are on fire!

TRAGEDY had a hilarious opening set, turning 70's era disco hits into metal bangers getting the crowd set off right for the night. Blending "Raining Blood" with "It's Raining Men" was brilliant! (Editor note: This is the first time I've ever enjoyed "You're The One That I Want" from Grease.) Check out their latest album I Am Woman for a fun listen!

SEE MORE OF BRETT'S PHOTOS FROM STEEL PANTHER, CROBOT and TRAGEDY HERE!