Orion Music + More Day 2 Recap (6/24/12)

Orion Music + More Festival (Day  2) - 06/24/12

Bader Field - Atlantic City, NJ

Words/Photos  by Jay Porks

Orion Music + More Festival Day Two Recap 6/24/12

Orion Festival- Day Two: Running later than yesterday because my alarm didn't wake me and I just happen to have drank enough fluids on day one that I had a built in alarm clock as a back up. But wow, do you know how much worse that could've been? I coulda woke up at 4 and missed Ghost! Or The Black Dahlia Murder! Well luckily, in the 72nd edition of the Jay Porks Never Ending Concert Series, I was at Bader Field here in the beautiful Atlantic City, New Jersey, at the Fuel Stage right on time to kick today off with A Place To Bury Strangers.

You see an editors note on yesterday's recap about me writing this review at the show. That's true. With memory card space and battery life on my mind, instead of filming all I can I'm taping one song per set, therefore leaving me more time to take little notes and stuff.  Hence why some of the wording seems as if it's happening live. It was at the time.

A Place To Bury Strangers

Who's the one who told me to check this band out like 3 years ago? Anyway, thank you whoever you are, because they ain't too shabby.  You'd think with a name like A Place To Bury Strangers, they come and rip your heart out with the death grips of metal. I mean, they're loud as fuck, and quite heavy-but the elements of distortion (I don't if that's an effects box on the drum set or what), they're more "alternative-ty". They kicked off at 1pm and a few songs in I'm thinking "wow these dudes are wrecking shit up, what time is it now?" It was only  1:18pm.  I caught maybe 6 or 7 of their songs before I headed cross the field to the Orion Stage to get a good spot(behind the empty VIP area) for Ghost.

Ghost

Yesterday, Lars and Kirk introduced  a few of the bands that they said they were fans of. Well, Ghost got that same treatment today, only from James Hetfield. I was chatting it up with a fellow rail rider and a security guard in front of us. Kid next to me mentioned that they changed from all black to all white for this tour "so they look like Klan members". The security guard happened to be black, so I said to him "so don't run when you see them!" jokingly. It was all fun and games- even when Ghost came on. These guys definitely have a sense of humor. The costumes, the whole thing. When they walk out you can't help but chuckle. I was no longer afraid, but intrigued.  And they don't seem to me to be this "heavy death kill your face" metal as assumed.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzFyVnuZLOs&feature=youtu.be Ghost rocked. We got that cool ass "Here Comes the Sun" cover, and I think that last song was called "Ritual". I noticed their drummer was kicking up something wicked over there. Awesome band- now go take those outfits off boys it's hot at hell out here

Gary Clark Jr

 Fuck yeah! I had and still have no idea who this guy Gary Clark Jr. is, and you know what, that's a bad job on my part. Shame on me.  Apparently I was the only one  who was new to dude, because the crowd really packed in for this one. If you're a fan of awesome  bluesy crazy guitar work- emphasis on awesome-then you need to see check this guy out. The solos were freaking epic- some take you to space type stuff.  Kirk Hammet introduced him as "one of my new favorite guitar players" and praised his interesting sound. Well, as Kirk watched from the side of the stage the riffs from Gary Clark Jr were hitting me in all the right places song by song. I got the name of one cause the lyrics were easy "If You Love Me Like You Say". Seriously, where'd this guy come from? Does Jack White know about this guy? Because I can guarantee once he hears him they'll form some sort of awesome side project for Mr. White.

Best Coast

Yesterday saw the indie acts the likes Modest Mouse and stuff. Today leans more towards the metal side of things- therefore, more drunk metal fans, hence peaking my interest to see Best Coast  get stuff chucked at them. While I walked over I heard Soul Rebels doing a jazzy version of "Enter Sandman" wish I could have caught that. But instead I was catching these wusses. With their soft, boring music. How old is that chick like 14? They're like emo kids who heard a song with a distortion pedal and started a band with their parents money. I'm chatting it up with this female security guard as they play.  Forget these losers. Such uninteresting songs I could write in my sleep.

The Black Dahlia Murder

Ghost and The Black Dahlia Murder are the two acts of Orion that Reverend Justito has been in my ear about. I'm on the rail at 4:46( their set is at 5:15) and as they're setting up at the Damage Inc. Stage one of the guitar players screams to the crowd "Take off the glasses so I can see your eyes!!". These guys have a sense of humor they were joking around with fans the whole time they set up, and between songs.  Once they started, it was the fastest played instruments I've ever seen in my life. THIS band, is the first band at this festival with the exception of Metallica that I'd hear one second of and immediately say "metal". The lead singer has the full growl going, I don't know how that can be done night in night out without killing your voice box. Few songs in dude tells the crowd he wants to see the biggest circle pit of all time. So this, already rawkus crowd with some epic crowd surfers just got a tad more violent. Awesome. Thought I enjoyed the band, not sure if it's something I can do full albums of.  I got out of there 10 minutes to 6, I have to find a spot with some shade.

Eric Church

 Back to the Orion Stage and another act introduced by James Hetfeild, this one being Eric Church. I'm giving it the blind listen for the first 2 songs, I found an shaded spot where I can sit on the floor behind the handicap seating( I need a breather!). I can say this much- I didn't need Hetfeild to tell me this dude is from Nashville,  because from the first lyric he sang his voice conveyed  the sounds of he south. He said "We're from Tennessee, we just wanna drink and party like you guys". Sweet. His voice would fit in well with country music- but his band sounds like they belong at a place like this. Songs I didn't hate, even if it is country music. Church mentions he drinks "94 proof, single barrel Jack Daniels" while holding up a red cup and says "I wrote a song about it, for those who won't remember all this in the morning.. called Jack Daniels". Did I mention there is no liquor on sale here? Just beer and I saw wine. With this crowd, probably a safe idea.

Titus Andronicus

While everyone heads over to the Fuel Stage for Avenged Sevenfold, a band I tried so hard to get into but couldn't, I figured I'd check out Titus Andronicus at the Frantic Stage. Of course now that the sun is setting I'll make my first trip to the tented stage. I know Titus did one of those covers on that Spin magazine Nirvana Nevermind tribute album that I didn't hate. So there's one I'll know if they play it.

Once they started I'm thinking: "Now this is more up my alley". Three guitar players, front man who's looks like his girl friend dumped him and they're here to tell you about it type of band. Slightly whiney, but I can't blame them they're from  Jersey and they get loud enough to make up for it. They're more punky than anything else. Really enjoyed their set, it was fun- made me bounce. Towards the end the lead singer is like "Metallica is up next.. never thought I'd be saying that".

Metallica

Now let me preface this following paragraph by saying I think it's really cool what Metallica did here with this whole “inviting bands outside the genre of Metal” to a festival thing, and I loved it. Orion Music + More was something I'm going to remember. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXpqTUSp9BY&feature=youtu.be   They're set to hit the stage tonight at 8PM tonight as oppose to 9PM, it is a Sunday after all. Once their set started I received three texts from three people who shall remain nameless (thenaturalstoner, Mr. Sparkly, and I made up the third one it was only two) asking me if Fuse is running a repeat of last nights show on the stream. Add an hour more of daylight, and I kind of felt the same way. They went with  "Ecstasy of Gold",  “Hit The Lights” and “Master Of Puppets” to kick it off again. Last night I played the role of “first Metallica show” guy. The guy who'd never seen the band before and I just sat back and really was able to take it all in. . But can you tell me something? What the hell guys?? What the hell? If you exchange "Ride The Lightning"  with "The Black Album" tonight was basically almost a carbon copy set of last night.  Okay, at 8:42 we got "Fuel", I'll give you that-it was freaking awesome. But even the way Hetfeild worded everything exactly the same way as he had did the night before, as if he had all that stuff memorized. He keeps saying stuff like "Orion and Metallica are family" and making us chant it, as if he's taking this Orion Music + More brand and trying to pitch it for next year already.  First of all you're Metallica, if you wanna have a festival I'm sure you can afford to have one every single year. And second off , dude, if you book good bands, we'll come back again-stop forcing it on us.

I was really happy to be able to grab footage of Metallica doing my favorites though, even if they were played last night. This new camera is such a beast. Last night my battery died before I could get pics of any of their pyrotechnics fireworks explosions that started with "Enter Sandman" (on both nights that's where the bombs went off). 'Unforgiven' was epic, thank the sweet lord they didn't play versions II and III.  It wasn't til after 9Pm when we got into the Black Album-backwards. I don't listen to albums in reverse order unless I'm trying to find out if Paul is dead, so what the hell is up with that? They did the same thing last night. And don't call me a noob, because  when I got in the cab after the show and I asked the people I shared it with if they stayed for the entire encore, the answer was a quick "No way they played all the same songs". And don't talk my word and the word of someone I asked for it, as the Concert Confessions peeps who were watching the stream and had their own thoughts: Jakob: -"They could at least switch up the intro! Don't do the Ecstasy of Gold two nights in a row at your festival" -"It's your own festival! Switch it up! Jesus christ" TheNaturalStoner: - "Are you shitting me right now???? apparently Metallica still has some shit to learn about playing multi night stands" -"Seriously... did we get last nights feed? this is weird" -" Jesus christ they got like 15 albums of songs, why they gotta do this?? If Phish did this all hell would break loose" Mr Sparkly : -"Just play a two-hour long Enter Sandman...call it a night." -" Yes, James...you are at Orion and your band is Metallica." -" Alright, playing the Black Album was cool and all, but there was so much more they could have done with the second night." -"A wasted opportunity"

Ooooo look they're encoring with "Seek And Destroy".  Yeah, like a lot of stuff  during this set, I got this last night. During that encore I was heading towards the exit. Tonight Metallica set was kind of a let down all things considered. Last night they seemed like cool guys, like changed men. Tonight all I see on stage is a band looking at a sea of about 22,000 fans while calculating profits in their heads.

At least I saw Metallica two nights in a row-I mean in the general scheme of things having never seen them before this weekend. But I do have one last question. Metallica has a song called "Orion" right? This is Orion Music + More festival right? Why not play that song, do you guys think it sucks? Then why name you're festival after it? But besides a 2nd night headlining let down, the whole weekend was really great and I got to branch out my musical tastes a little bit from stage to stage, set to set. First "festival" I've attended was a success, even catching that 4:30AM bus back to NYC at Ballys.

Notes: The Medical staff gets all the blame when shit goes wrong, well let's slurp them when shit goes well. Their were tents everywhere if you were feeling even the least bit dehydrated or anything. Drunken passed out people on the floors were quickly scoop up brought into the tent and revived in time for Metallica.

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