Thanksgiving No Turkey in Da’Clem

We know Thanksgiving is in everyone's rearview mirror by now but having returned from the north lands and finally caught up with our Christmas decorating, we have to fill you in on how the DR2 crew spent their Thanksgiving holiday, where only in Detroit can we turn turkey day into a reason for a rock show!  The DR2 crew started the holiday early on Thanksgiving eve by joining the crowd at the Dawghouse in Clinton Twp. The place was packed to see the always mind-blowing Dismantle and the newly reinvented, partymeisters themselves, Panic Trigger.  These two bands got the long weekend started right with a hellacious set by Dismantle, careening through a planned 13 song set that Justin Herbert(Vox) extended by 2 songs because he wasn't ready to give up the stage!(we also feel it was an obvious effort to push Eric, the drummer, into cardiac arrest!). These guys always give you a great show!  The rest of the night was taken by Panic Trigger, who led the party into the early hours of Thanksgiving throwing down two raucous sets.  Keep an eye out for new discs from both these groups coming soon.

 

Well, our Thanksgiving started out with some great music at 12:01 a.m. but it was far from over.  The DR2 crew spent the day with our family for the traditional Turkey dinner, but instead of falling asleep on the couch, we headed down to Da' Clem for what has become a tradition in only its second year, a night of serious, fist-in-the-air, facemelting, can-you-believe-this, rock & roll.  The night started early with a bang as The Christina Chriss band opened the night at 6:30 with a set that got the energy started!  This band has continued to impress as they have built their reputation as a high-energy, party starter.  Revving up the night a notch was Odayin, who have just released a new disc, grabbed the stage and pumped up the party.  Featuring a set that included Undertow, and The Last Flight Of Chaos, the disc's title track, they held nothing back and brought more fans surging to the front of the stage.  The DR2 crew had made its way to the front of the stage by this point and camped out as the crowd on main floor kept on growing.  We were about to give up the front row real estate, knowing the night was just beginning to build.  Band With No Name, or BWNN, was next up.  It is no secret that we have enjoyed the music Jeff Gutt(vox), Gary Pittel(guitar), and the guys  put so much energy into.  But we have to say tonight was special!  Maybe it was the excitement of their upcoming disc release or that they are best on a big stage, but the guys brought it all.  Raging through a set that included all the crowd favorites!  Gutt's vocals are always incredible but on this night he brought the crowd to a fist-pumping, moshing frenzy as they built to their biggest song, Animal like.  Following closely on the heels of the excitement that BWNN built was Richy Nix.  This Canadian guy has recently made the national scene had a great set and continued to bring the energy up playing new songs from his CD Hell City.  It was evident by this time that most in attendance were here for one thing, a Critical Bill Throwdown.  The crowd in front of the stage was at capacity with fans lined up and on their feet all the way back to the mezzanine and the balcony filling for the main event.  These guys never miss a  trick and used this yearly event to build excitement for their new year release by starting their set with the curtain parting to reveal a huge screen where they shared, for the first time publicly, their new video for the song Beam Me Up. You too, can catch the video now at http://www.detroitrockreview.com/.  The crowd was ready and it was time, the screen went up and out came the band as they launched into a set that would last well into the evening and featured both old and new hits, even had an impromptu addition or two to the set list when Powerdise got the guys to throw in the crowd-inciting, Move Bitch, if you have ever been to the insanity that a Critical Bill show can become, you know the DR2 crew was caught in the eye of the storm standing front and center on main floor and loving every minute of it.  This night featured a great light show, even better music and definitely added to what has become a Thanksgiving tradition for DR2.  If you weren't able to make this show, make sure you keep an eye out for what will surely be an event when Critical Bill has their CD release party slated for early in the new year.  As always you can rely on Detroit Rock Review to keep you updated on any events so check out the gig calendar and you know you can always count on us for local news, music, and reviews! Keep Rockin'!