Last Sunday night in Johnson City the ground shook, kids flew, half-naked men danced and screamed. No, there was not a natural disaster in Johnson City last Sunday night and Armageddon has not started, but local metal gods, the Showdown, are back in town.
Before the mayhem ensued, A Healing Season opened the show hopefully to improve upon last week’s show. A Healing Season’s last performance was plagued by bad sound and just an overall bad night.
After a week of practice and a bit of anger provided by yours truly, they took to the stage with a purpose.
As soon as the A Healing Season finished their first song things had already gone better than the previous week. The sound was professionally run this week, courtesy of local sound professionals AVI.
Consequently the stage volume of the guitars was just right and front man Alec Strickland’s voice was in key more times than not this week.
To try and keep up with what was sure to be an energetic performance by the Showdown, A Healing Season hop, skipped, jumped, pogoed and flailed all over the stage while delivering pop punk akin to Fall Out Boy.
This caused the crowd of mostly young high school students dressed in the latest Hot Topic fashions to pogo along with them.
This show definitely proved that practice makes perfect … err, at least better.
Hopefully A Healing Season will continue to bring this energetic disposition to the stage. * * *
After A Healing Season cleared their gear from the stage, Mono vs. Stereo artists and Elizabethton’s own the Showdown took to a Johnson City stage for the first time since Feb. 4.
Immediately, Josh Childers and Travis Bailey’s guitars started squealing, drummer Andrew Hall’s double bass sounded as if thunder was rolling throughout the Sophisticated Otter and then lead screamer David Bunton let out a primal yell.
This sent the crowd into a frenzy.
Throughout the night the crowd did: the “wall of death,” where a group of people push the people in front of them as far as they can; “head stomping,” which is kind of like crowd surfing but you are running on people’s heads; crowd surfing; hardcore dancing; and, yes, at times there were kids flying through the Sophisticated Otter.
All of this happened while the Showdown did what they do best, play intricate, technically proficient music while head banging nonstop.
Fresh off a summer-long tour, the Showdown was tighter than I had ever seen them before.
Not only were they tight but they were also really happy to be home, “You know we have been everywhere touring this summer but we are glad to be back because people around here are the best and the food is killer,” Bunton said. “Whenever you are gone and come back you have to get some Greg’s Pizza, some Pals and Ridgewood (Barbecue).”
Before the Showdown closed with “A Monument Encased In Ash” Bunton requested that, “I want to see you guys turn this place into Otter Skull.”
I do not know if they succeeded into turning the Sophisticated Otter into “Otter Skull,” but they did put on a seemingly flawless performance.
If you get the chance to see the Showdown live do not miss it, because it will definitely be an experience you have never beheld before.
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