October was a great month for live music:
Cannibal Corpse (Blood Incantation, Gorguts, and Mayhem opened)
The Warfield, San Francisco
Missed Blood incantation, unfortunately. I didn't know a lot about Gorguts, but they ripped my face off. Amazing. Mayhem, founders of Norwegian black metal, are famous for 1) the lead singer committing suicide, 2) one band member stabbed another to death, and 3) burning churches. Yeah, Norwegians aren't fans of Christianity. Anyway, the bass player that murdered his fellow bandmate is back after a long prison sentence - which begs the question: what do you have to do to kicked out of this band? Cannibal Corpse was killer. Amazing, brutal pit, and the pit highlight was a big kid in a giant, full sized Pokemon outfit.
Queens of the Stone Age (Viagra Boys opened)
Bill Graham Civic Center, San Francisco
Viagra Boys are great, if you haven't heard them. Sort of a punk / jam band hybrid. Good stuff. I liked QOTSA before this show, but having seen them live for the first time, I am a huge fan. Live music always separates the great bands from the pretenders, and QOTSA were dope. Killer sound, and the band is super tight.
The Chats (Gym Shorts and Schizophonics opened)
The UC Theater, Berkeley
The Chats are a solid punk band from Australia - really great. The highlight of the show was the Schizophonics. Kind of a 60s groovy punk vibe, the guitarist / singer was so acrobatic, it's one of the greatest live performances I've ever seen. Highly recommended.
Polyphia
The Warfield, San Francisco
Prog rock gets old fast, but these dudes are some of the best musicians in the world. Amazing.