|
:: live reviews :: DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Melody Inn Indianapolis, IN 4/10/05 The setting
was Sunday at the Melody Inn, a cramped, dingy bar on Indianapolis’
northwest side, the perfect place for grimy, distorted and maxed-out
rock ‘n’ roll. But then there was Philadelphia’s instrumental power trio, Dysrhythmia. When they started setting up their gear, you knew something different was on the horizon. A plethora of distortion pedals were on hand. Colin Marston unloaded his bass, a six-string mother of a Paul Bunyon ax. When he plugged in and started strumming it like a guitar, an unholy sound of impasto depth erupted, a strange enunciation coming from Marston’s diminutive figure. Coupled with Jeff Eber’s jazz/death double-time and elaborate fills on drums and Kevin Hufnagel’s fluidly detailed guitar passages, Dysrhythmia played portentous metal that you can headbang to or simply stand and gape at, which is generally what members of the audience were doing. Much of what the three played in their half-hour set are new compositions, limiting material from their previous three records to two songs. Whereas 2003’s “Pretest” (Relapse Records) is a heavy dose of progressive rock, the new tracks favor the faster side of the rock spectrum. They’re using the road to hone this new direction. Judging by their Melody showcase, they’ve arrived. Wade Coggeshall - Journal Review DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Creepy Crawl St. Louis, MO 4/5/05 On first listen to Dysrhythmia’s Relapse Records debut Pretest, you can’t help but wonder, “How did this band, playing this style of music, land on arguably the best metal label in the country?” Although Relapse has devoted a branch of their label to all things experimental, DR’s complicated, angular licks are of the type you’d normally find on a label in the Southern Records umbrella. So as the night opened with three heavy-as-all-get-out openers, I had some concerns about how DR’s set would go over on what was essentially a metal night. Would DR get heckled or would they get a receptive audience? Technically, DR’s setup was mighty impressive—not surprising, considering the scope of rhythms and melodies in their music. Bassist Colin Marston had numerous pedals to go with his six-string bass. Guitarist Kevin Hufnagel’s effects were comprised of one keyboard-sized gizmo with two pedals and nine effect settings. Overall, it didn’t match the 40-plus pedals that Kinski lugs around, but it was nifty nonetheless. The grand hypothetical “Why Relapse?” was answered as soon as DR broke into their first number, played so fast and so hard that I couldn’t even recognize the tune. It was when I discovered that this was a song I was normally very familiar with—“Annihilator I” from Pretest—that I finally understood why Relapse had signed this band. It simply took a live setting to get the message across. Seven more numbers followed that were harder and heavier then anything on Pretest. At some point during the show, Marston somehow sliced his right hand and blood started flowing. It wasn’t long before the stage was covered with bloody bass picks and used tissues. The smell wafted into the crowd and a pack of wolves wearing Slayer shirts descended upon Marston. It was a horrible sight, as they tore him apart limb by limb. Okay, so none of that wolves stuff was true. But Marston did cut his hand and some blood did run—resulting in several of his bass picks—or “collectors’ items,” as he put it—being swapped out during the set. As for the crowd, they were into it. No catcalls from the peanut gallery. Dysrhythmia was mighty tight and together. All was right with the world. David Lichius - Playback DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Nyabinghi Youngstown, OH (as part of Futility Fest) 10/11/03 Rebreather is certainly a tough act to follow, but if anyone could follow such hard hitters, Dysrhythmia could! These Philly three play a high-energy, off-the-wall instrumental punk rock that will beat the living shit out of everything you know about punk. Their live set was energetic as hell. These guys definitely have what it takes to be as influential as any old school hardcore punk band you've ever heard. They're that good. My only regret is that the crowd seemed a little static. I would have loved to see a little movement in the crowd; by all means the music called for a little moshing, or at least a few able bodies running around like idiots. Not that the crowd didn't make their presence known by a hearty cheering after each song, the mandatory head bobbing, and a full floor. - Daredevil Magazine DYSRHYTHMIA
live @ The Knitting Factory (Tap Room) NY, NY 10/1/03 It was the night before midterms and Behold the Arctopus and Dysrhythmia were in town, so what do I, the studious, responsible young college student do? The only thing that is expected, drop the fucking books and take a three hour study break to check out two of the best up and coming prog/tech/ambient/whatever metal groups around. Dysrhythmia came up first, and I’m sure that most of our readership is somewhat familiar with them. The Judgment Committee reviewed their latest album, and I have done several summary judgment reviews of their incredible live set. The crowd was small for this show and it was mostly prog nerds and tech geeks, not surprising considering the bands on display, but still not a crowd that I am all that used to. Needless to say Dysrhythmia kicked ass, they ripped through the set with a fervor that is unmatched by their contemporaries. Going from tech-filled madness to ambient and eerie soundscapes, they certainly have proven once again to be one of the best bands around, not just in the underground of heavy music, but music in general. - Metal Militia Metal Judgement DYSRHYTHMIA
live @ US Cellular Arena (as part of Milwaukee Metalfest 2003)
Milwaukee, WI 7/26/03 Hailing out
of Philadelphia, Dysrhythmia was one of the biggest surprises from Day
Two of Metalfest. An excellent three piece power trio, these guys played
a tremendous set of instrumental progressive metal. While most of the
genre can be pretty tedious, the band's expert musicianship and wild
enthusiasm rendered the set a mind blowing experience. “Where’s the
singer” one hapless guy in the audience shouted to which another member
answered “You’re the singer!” By the end of the set, Dysrhythmia had
won over a good deal of new converts. Imagine the super-hyper Dillinger
Escape Plan mixed with the clean technicality of Spocks Beards sans
the vocals, and your only beginning to tap into the unique visions of
this creative outfit. - Highwire Daze The completely
brilliant geometrical grooves of instrumental math rockers Dysrhythmia-more
out of place than Since by Man-presented classics-to-be "Bastard" and
"My Relationship" with the verve of vintage Black Flag. - Kevin-Stewart
Panko Metal Maniacs Last but not
least, at what seemed like the crack of dawn, was the long, long awaited
Dysrhythmia. Whether or not is was too late to be listening to the technicality
of these guys is debatable, but the technicality is not debatable. These
guys straight up rock! They played an hour plus set start to finish
with amazing precision and great stage presence. These cats rock whatever
venue they come to. As a side note, these guys were at the show all
nite hanging out with everyone, no pretense here at all. - Black Sheep
Metal Judgement Openers Dysrhythmia
had the tough task of setting the pace, which they took an admirable
shot at. Dysrhythmia impressed with their vocal-lessjazz/prog/metal
hybrid, sounding akin to all those progressive interludes from early
technical death metal. But vocal-less metal is a tough sell, and despite
the three piece throwing themselves into their performace, Dysrhythmia
will be known as that weird art metal band with no vocals until they
grab a singer - Chris Gramlich Exclaim! Saturday started
off in fine fashion with Philadelphia’s terse instru-metal-ists Dysrhythmia
on the mainstage. Chatting with guitarist Kevin Hufnagel beforehand
revealed that, thanks in part to producer Steve Albini, the band achieved
a warmer sound on their new album, Pretest (Relapse), than on previous
releases. And how! The adept trio blasted through their half-hour set
as if King Crimson were jamming with a punkier Death or Cynic, though
only the early-bird fans who got out of bed by noon were blessed with
Dysrhythmia’s wicked jazz-metal recital. With exceptional shows by Opeth,
Bongzilla, Mastodon, Dysrhythmia, Nevermore, Strapping Young Lad, and
Suffocation, the 2003 New England Metalfest was decidedly the best concert
of the year. - Crusher Magazine Next I made
my way downstairs to catch what was going on down there. To my disappointment,
all they had was Dysrhythmia. Now I hate ripping bands, but really,
why was this band playing? No vocals, just music. It just did nothing
for me. The bassist must have been talented, because he was playing
a six string (I think it was six), and I won't deny they are talented,
but this is just not what I wanted to see. Oh well, they opened the
main stage, so it's not like people who got their late missed much.
- The Underground Scene Imagine you
were stranded alone on an island. A year of solitude later, an expedition
of drunk and explosively horny porn stars led by a semen-starved Jenna
Jameson comes to your rescue. How that first blowjob feels is how good
this band is. Kicking off
the night are Philly instrumental trio Dysrhythmia, armed with a phat
six-string bass assult and contorted, angular grooves, who veer between
sounding like a heavier Godspeed You Black Emperor and the kind of self-indulgent
meanderings only chin-stroking musos can really appreciate. - Daniel
Lukes Kerrang Dysrhythmia opened the show and set the standard for all acts to follow. Their high energy brand of technical prog rock is at once frantic, energetic, and tight and controlled and it is simply inspiring to witness live. Playing one new song and tracks from their new album Pretest Dysrhythmia are due. Although I had hoped they would play some material from No Interference, the new material sounds great and is definitely on my list of albums to acquire. - Metal Militia Metal Judgement DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Valentine's Albany, NY 5/13/03 Coming in,
I knew even less about these guys than I had Uphill Battle. Basically,
I'd heard of them, but hadn't yet heard any of their material. I certainly
wasn't expecting what I heard: a three-piece, instrumental band that
was very progressive in nature. Heavy in their own right, but certainly
not heavy in the same sense that the other bands on the bill were. So,
they were kinda out of place on the bill stylistically (essentially
being connected with the other bands by sharing the same label, Relapse
Records), but the audience--including myself--remained quite captivated
by their performance throughout their set. Dysrhythmia produces a sound
that is far more textured and intricate than their mere three-piece
configuration would suggest. In order to accomplish this, the bassist
takes a far more prominent and upfront role than would one in a bigger
band. In essence, he does double-duty as both the rhythm guitarist and
the bassist, while the guitarist takes more of a lead role. This works
quite well, and allows for some highly intricate songs. The music is
intricate and varied enough that is doesn't get boring at all. Among
the highlights of the set was "Bastard." This was one of the
more unique and impressive sets I've seen in a while. DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Emo's
Annex (as part of SXSW) Austin, TX 3/14/03 As the sun went down, The
Ober and I had a couple of Lone Star beers and enjoyed some hard Texas
blues at Joe's Generic Bar. We then met Mr. X at Emo's Annex (a temporary
stage affiliated with Austin music institution, Emo's), where we were
astounded by a Philadelphia trio called Dysrhythmia. Undoubtedly classically
trained, their aggressive instrumentals sounded like symphonies, blending
a progressive metal foundation with bold guitarwork that shifted from
staccato chords to beautiful soaring melodies. Six-string bassist Clayton
Ingerson displayed finger wizardry and impeccable tone to drummer Jeff
Eber's pinpoint time changes. Meanwhile, guitarist Kevin Hufnagel decorated
each movement perfectly, his face distorted like a genius in the throes
of madness. If Mozart had been a metal-head, this is what his music
would sound like. - Cotton Mayer We left halfway through
The End's set (we had to get going as it was 1 a.m.) but I have to say,
Dysrhthmia is going to be fucking huge! These guys play technical/jazz/fusion
metal - very tight and dynamic. I loved their set. - Unrestrainded
Magazine Downtime is a cool place
with three floors, the first floor was where the band played and the
second floor was where the merch was sold and where everyone seemed
to be hanging out. As show time approached, the amount of space to move
around dwindled. By the time Dysrhythmia started there was literally
no room to move. Dysrhythmia opened the
show with an incredibly powerful set. These guys KICK ASS!! It is almost
like they are creating their own sub genre of punk prog. Or as Floyd
called it "prunk". They are a very spirited trio, with some lightning
fast tunes. The song that really did it for me was "Annihilate". I would
highly suggest seeing these guys if you get a chance. Floyd mentioned
to me it was his fourth time seeing them. And after their set I can
understand why. - Scott Progressive Ears A big surprise, which
was missed by 80% of the crowd who had filed out by then, was the appearance
of Dysrhythmia, a prog/punk trio who ended the evening and played a
supercharged set of hard-driving instrumental rock that left the few
of us in the audience totally out of breath. I'm sure we will hear more
from this group of youngsters in the near future. - Pete Pardo Sea
of Tranquility Dysrhythmia: Stuck with
the ignoble late-night scapegoat slot, Dys nonetheless put on the show
of their lives!! This was a guitar trio taken to a whole other dimension,
very creative melding of jazz harmony, crunchy metal and surf! All 3
guys were GREAT and played as a unit while simultaneously throwing convention
out the window. And they were hilarious to watch too!! Wound up getting
one of their CD's a bit later. Great stuff! Tool fans would dig these
guys I think. - Prog Owl Progressive Ears Back to back nights at the Safety Sheep & this show got about as good of a turnout. Maybe not as an exceptional show as the one the night before, but still a damned good one. Dysrhythmia from Philly was returning w/friends in Technician (whom I also believe was from PA), & JOV had a second show after reforming. Jesus On Vinyl was first & I think this show was much better than the one they played the night before at Hamilton for them. There were many more people there to see them & they were much tighter & more energetic than before. The newly reformed & renovated JOV rocked the house. Next up was Technician, which was a very rocking indie band, kinda in the vein of bands like Shellac & Unwound. I was very happy to see them as you don't really see many bands like this nowadays (all the ones that did exist either broke up or mellowed out too much). This band rocked me. Also I wanted to note that the drummer of this band was female & I haven't ever really been impressed much by any female drummers other than Sara from Unwound. This girl had rhythm...she was damned good. That also made me happy to see a girl drummer actually kicking some ass for once! This band seemed to play for a really long time though & alot of their shit did seem to sound alike, so by the end of the set I was a bit tired out. Still really fucking good though. Finally was Dysrhythmia, who was playing here for the third time. I saw them the first time they played when the band I'm in played too. Was very glad to see them again & I think they have improved quite a bit, something that when seeing before didn't know was even possible. This is just an amazing band who rocks out instrumental style. They're very prog based & somewhat hardcore, but they are fucking amazing to watch. They're not nearly as interesting on record I don't think...this is just a band you absolutely must see live. Very good show once again. This definetely is a good time for the scene in JC...so many great shows have & are coming our way! Review by JD, taken from Masterdik Webzine DYSRHYTHMIA live @ orion studios Baltimore, MD 5/18/02 Saturday night I went to another excellent show at Baltimore's Orion Studios. I had an awesome night last time that I went there and this night was even better. The six hours of driving time and hundred dollars in tolls are a bit much but it was more than worth it. Dysrhythmia are an awesome young band from Philadelphia that give new meaning to the term "power trio". Their music is very aggressive, often quite heavy and always complex. I caught them last year when they opened up for Spock's Beard in Philly and they totally impressed me then, but this time they really tore it up. I recognized a bunch of stuff they played from their 2 CDs plus they included several new songs. Guitarist Kevin Hufnagel brought 5 guitars to the show including a beautiful Telecaster and played them all with precision. Jeff Eber is an excellent drummer. His intricate rhythm patterns and wild fills were simply amazing. I think the member of the band that everyone watches is Clayton Ingerson. He's just a monster on the 6-string bass. He's a very energetic performer, jumping around a lot, and I think a lot of people were half expecting him to fall on his ass but he always landed perfectly. At one point he was on the floor playing with his effects producing some incredibly mind-blowing sounds. - Ffroyd Progressive Ears DYSRHYTHMIA live @ orion studios Baltimore, MD 5/18/02 I left Powermad 2001 a day early, and ended up missing Dysrhythmia. Subsequently, I was told by more than one person to kick myself hard---repeatedly!---until it hurt. Now, I know why. They're an energetic guitar-bass-drums trio that fuses the intricacies of the progressive genre with the aggressiveness of metal. Where most people I've talked to over the years believe that a lopsided majority of melodic introspection is what ultimately legitimizes an instrumental band in lieu of lyrics, I believe that Dysrhythmia's more rowdy approach doesn't hinder but instead amplifies their ambitious thoughtfulness. I was fairly impressed with the band's overall musicianship, but six-string bassist Clayton Ingerson was a photo op unto himself; not only was he highly proficient from a musical and technical standpoint, but he is apparently an expert at spatial relations because he was able to bounce and prance all around the tiny Orion stage without falling into the crowd or without missing a note. In fact, he may have the highest vertical leap of any bassist I've ever seen since Steel Prophet's Vince Dennis. Dysrhythmia's
style of music, and the energy level at which they present it, comes
across very well live, and I would definitely recommend them to anyone
who enjoys adrenaline with their fusion. - Steve University of Decible
I went to Austin a few months ago and witnessed the band DYSRHYTHMIA and was totally knocked out by these 3 kids (probably all just turned 20 a few years ago) playing some unbelievable music combining fusion, rock, metal, a bit of jazz, and who knows what else they threw in. They were going absolutely nuts onstage and I just loved every minute of it. - Ron Jarzombek Watchtower/Spastic Ink DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Safety Sheep Johnson City, TN 9/30/01 2nd show I've been to thus far at the Sheep & the turnout wasn't quite as hefty as the turnout for the other show I attended...probably not even half the ammount. I was hoping that many kids would continue coming to more shows...but I think the kids that come to shows are starting to lose interest...AGAIN. But there was still around 20, maybe 25 or up to 30 people in the house (literally...the Safety Sheep is a house), so it wasn't horrible or anything. I just know there's more of you fucks out there! First up was Ikkabod, the band I'm playing in. I think I have reviewed almost every show we've ever played, so this is getting old...if Dysrhythmia didn't play, I wouldn't even review the show. But we...I don't think we did all that great. I mean, I don't thinkg I did all that great. I was sick as fuck for one thing...so that was a big side track all in itself. Then my double-bass pedal fell apart like 4 or 5 times, gradually getting worse & worse as the show went along. That caused alot of stoppage in play & I think people were getting tired of watching me have to hammer my goddamned pedal back together. It was really frustrating for me to go thru & I could probably say it was the worst show we ever played, thanks to myself. People still seemed to enjoy it...I don't think everyone did, but people talked good about us. Well, they either liked us or were just being nice... Then came Dysrhythmia from Philly who is probably the most original band I've heard in a very long time. It's hardcore, but it's very mathrocky. Kinda reminds me a wee bit of SOME Bungle from the Disco Vilante album...maybe a bit like the Dillinger Escape Plan when they breakdown & aren't rocking in brutal fashion. Andy (singer of Ikkabod) said they reminded him somewhat of Dream Theatre...I can see that. But none of these bands are truely all that similar, that's just the closest I can come up with. They aren't brutal by any means, but they are amazing. Also, all their music is instrumental. Really great band...I'd probably have to be in the right mood to listen to their music, but they truely are awesome. I'm glad we played the show, I'm glad I got to check out Dysrhythmia, but the bar piece that connects the 2 pedals in my Pacific double bass pedal can eat me. Not a great show, just because I bummed myself out by sucking on the skins...but Dysrhythmia was rad as hell. Review by JD, taken from Masterdik Webzine DYSRHYTHMIA live @ Tall Cedars Hall (as part of the POWERMAD Fest) Baltimore, MD 8/21/01 Chris-I really
enjoyed this band. They are a three piece instrumental band from Philadelphia
and Anthony-It
would be interesting to hear what these guys would sound like with a
vocalist. Great instrumental band. |