I had been waiting to see Junius for over a year now, so I was thrilled to see that they were hitting up Salt Lake City and playing The Shred Shed which is easily one of the best all ages venues in the city and to top it all off the band was nice enough to meet with me before the show for an interview which you can read here.
There were about five acts on the bill that night, but Isaac and I lost track of time at a local watering hole and arrived just in time to catch the last few songs of Night Verses, which is a band lead by former The Sleeping vocalist Douglas Robinson. This band was crazy and seemed like they were going to fly off the tracks any second, which in part was due to their insanely talented drummer Aric Improta. This dude was nuts, on top of playing some really killer beats he also kept jumping on his drum throne and launching himself super high in the air and landing just in time for the song to come back in. These dudes are a must see live and their debut EP is free to download, which you can do so here.
Up next was Silver Snakes. A band I didn’t know a whole lot about, but the little that I had heard had me interested enough to want see them live. The band did not disappoint, these dudes were loud energetic and reminded me of a more aggressive and intense version of Rival Schools. Basically if you play post-hardcore with passion I will love your band and Silver Snakes did just that. Vocalist / Guitarist Alex Estrada was the highlight of the set and performed like it was the last show he was ever going to play. After seeing Silver Snakes live performance I have since become a devote follower, check them out here.
Up last was Junius and to say that I was excited to finally see these guys live, would be an understatement. The band blasted their set off with “Betray the Grave” the opening track from Reports From the Threshold of Death. Now let me tell you, if you think Junius sound big and powerful on record wait til’ you see them live. The wall of sound that exploded from the stage once they began playing nearly tipped me over. These guys are as solid, precise, and heavy as any band I have seen in some time. They also had one of the more interesting and original light set ups, that was powered by foot switch and operated by guitarist Micheal Repasch-Nieves. It’s always refreshing to see a band live that can improve upon their recorded sound. Junius tore through a solid set that included songs from all three of their full lengths and they also played “Elisheva, I love You” off their second full length Martyrdom of a Castastrophis, which if you’ve read any of my previous Junius posts is an all time favorite song of mine. Throughout the set the bass was heavy, the guitars were thick, and the drumming handled by Justin Forrest was ferocious (Dana Filloon is still in the band, but could not make this tour).
All in all it was an amazing night, not to often do you get to interview a band then directly after have them blow your mind on stage. The waiting had paid off and it was great to finally see the band live. Junius’ live show is definitely one worth seeing. If they happen come to a town near you I highly recommend making it a priority to attend and make sure you stand front row so they can knock you over with all their dreamy heaviness. http://juniusmusic.com/