live

There were so many bands to see at Rock on the Range 2014, it's taken me a few weeks to get through all of the videos I recorded at the shows...and all bands are so good, it's still fun to watch them!  Check out Killswitch Engage from the first day of ROTR, kicking ass with the return of original singer Jesse Leach! The song is "Always", from their newest album, Disarm the Descent, the f

Heaven's Basement is a great English band, and you've heard the songs "Fire, Fire" and "Nothing Left to Lose" here on GRD.  You might have even seen them at Rock on the Range this year! If you did, then you got to see a really cool crowd surfing thing the singer Aaron does, where he jumps into the crowd, does a handstand, and then leads the clapping during the song!

I've never had the chance to see Suicidal Tendencies live before Rock on the Range 2014, and I was stoked to finally get my chance!  They're one of those classic bands, that even if you're not the biggest fan in the world, you have to check out.  Mike Muir is an absolute maniac on the stage, and I don't know where he gets the energy or the stamina to move around the stage as much as he does! Maybe

I wasn't too sure about seeing Avatar before Rock on the Range began this year, since I hadn't really been super excited about some of the things I'd seen online from the band.  I can happily claim to have been wrong about this band.  The Jagermeister stage area was freaking PACKED with people for Avatar, and when they took the stage, I learned why. They're a really good live band, and they brough

Another band I was really excited to see at Rock on the Range this year was Exodus!  I've seen them a few times, and they always kick serious ass live!  The dual shredding guitars of Gary Holt and Lee Altus (of the fantastic Heathen, too) really make Exodus a force to be reckoned with. I first saw them before Lee joined the band, and since he's come on board, the band has gotten even better!  And

One of the bands I go the chance to learn about at Rock on the Range 2014 is Crobot.  Don't ask about where the name comes from...it's a story about Crowbars and Robots, and I think a robot girlfriend in the garage...weird story.  Probably best left unanswered. These guys hit the Jagermeister stage on the second day of Rock on the Range and not only surprised all the people in the crowd with how g

When Metallica's ...And Justice for All album came out, I was blown away by the music.  The long, crazy songs, the time signature changes, the pure epicness of the entire album was (and still is) freaking amazing! There are a couple songs on the album that I don't feel have gotten the love they deserve, and "The Frayed Ends of Sanity" is one of them.  This is one (if not the only) song i

Lacuna Coil is a great Italian band I've been listening to since their Unleashed Memories album, and was totally blown away by songs like "Senzafine", "Heir of a Dying Day", and "When a Dead Man Walks", back in 2001.  I've gotten the chance to see them a few times, and they've always delivered a great set, with tons of energy.

So many bands, so many videos, from the three days of awesome that was Rock on the Range 2014!  One band I always love to see live is Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society!  Not just for the awesome shred of Zakk, but also to check out who his co-shredder is on second guitar (Dario Lorina)! Zakk also writes a lot of really amazing songs, with a lot of artificial harmonics, or "pings" in them.

Slayer is one of those bands that inspires ridiculous extreme loyalty in it's fans.  Slayer fans don't say, "Slayer".  They scream it!  They've always been one of my favorite bands to see live, and they just bring a simple performance experience to their fans.  It's just a brutal assault on you, without any frills or silliness. Tom Araya has a really laid-back, happy demeanor when he's t

One of the big-name bands around that I've never seen before...Guns N Roses.  Weird, huh?  But I had my chance at Rock on the Range!  Guns headlined Day 1 this year, and took the stage on time.  Hell, I didn't check the exact time, but they might have even gone on a couple minutes early! No hassle, no delay, just hit the stage hard, and cranked it out for a few hours!

Rock on the Range has rapidly become the biggest sort of European-style festival in the U.S., and there are more that are building quickly as well, which is great!  The chance to go to one place and be able to experience so many bands in a short amount of time, covering all different kinds of rock and metal is something the U.S. has been way behind Europe. Theory of a Deadman hit the main stage at