5-16 Eyehategod, Sheer Terror, Negative Approach, Phobia, Killer of Sheep, Pittsburgh @Cattivo

Even after Fuck You Pay Me dropped off the bill the show was still stacked. I was a bit surprised though, because I thought the place would be jam packed. I'd say somewhere around 120 people were there. Must be the price that kept some people away.

Killer of Sheep - Hardcore punk mainstays from Pittsburgh. If you've been to a show, you've seen them. Good set.

Phobia - They've been around for a long time and I've never seen them before. Grind hardcore punk. Fast parts, bang your head parts, they killed it. I'd like to see them in more of a Skull Fest type setting, with all the crustys instead of the metalheads.

Sheer Terror - I thought hardcore would come out for this band, I guess not. They were very good, playing all the songs you wanted to hear. I like the lead singers banter, even if the joke about a dog was a dud. Angry depressed hardcore legends from NY. Sidenote, I really thought they'd be on the This is Hardcore lineup this year.

Negative Approach - I thought this might have been the best I'd seen Negative Approach. I like the way the lead singer says 'man'. He got some kind of accent going on. Played Ready to Fight and Lead Song and all the other bangers. Not a whole lot of crowd response, but a great set anyways.

Eyehategod - Not a band I'm super into, but they're worth seeing. It was very odd how the room emptied out about half way into their set. Weird crowd tonight. I don't know any of their songs off by heart. The energy from the band was good, I'd like to see them again.

Highs - All the bands
Lows - Turnout and FYPM not being there.

5-10 Iron Reagan, Sacred Reich, Leeway, Enforced, Pittsburgh @Cattivo

This show was killer. A lot of people there too. Close to sold out I think. I don't love the venue, but it's good enough for most things.

Enforced - Heavy hardcore metal thrash mixture. They were really good actually. Didn't listen to them beforehand, but they brought it. Good energy, good headbang parts.

Leeway - Eddie Leeway is such a strange dude. Super skinny too. Some of their songs are really good. A lot of them are pretty boring. Good set all in all. He's fun to watch because he's weird. Always cool to see the old time NYHC people play for the first time.

Sacred Reich - I hadn't given this band much listen beforehand. They were ok. My first thought was this sounds like Metallica. But it sounds like this band has been playing for decades so they deserve more than to be called a Metallica knockoff. Good band, good songs. I enjoyed it. I think a lot of people were there more to see them than Iron Reagan.

Iron Reagan - They killed it like they always do. Such a fun metal sound and energetic set. They didn't come out for an encore, in which they may have played Eyeball Gore or Close to Toast or another great song I'm overlooking. The set was awesome. My favorite live metal band.

Highs - All the heavy songs.
Lows - It was a little chilly out, and the parking situation was balls.