Dead Sara To Headline at the El Rey Theater in Los Angeles on May 9th, 2013
| May 09 | El Rey Theatre | Los Angeles, CA | Tickets |
Catch Dead Sara on Fuse News 3/30/13.
“Dead Sara should be the next biggest rock band in the world.” When Dave Grohl says that about a band, it’s a prediction more than a wish. Fuse News spends two days with this hard rocking quartet.
Update: for those of you who missed it – click on link below.
Fuse News – 2 Days In The Life Of Dead Sara
Standing safely inside the Amway Center, glancing out the panoramic windows on the terrace level, I watched downtown Orlando get positively soaked from the kind of torrential downpour more typical of the rainy season in June than of February. The skies seemed dark and ominous, almost threatening, as if something far worse than a mere rainstorm was on the way.
Storms like that can set a mood — dark, edgy, and moody.
I had no idea, until I got inside the arena, how perfectly Dead Sara’s performance would match that feeling.
I can admit that I hadn’t heard of Dead Sara, or even shown up for them, when I got to the Amway on Monday. The Los Angeles-based heavy metal band was the opening act for the headliner, Muse, and I was sufficiently impressed by their sound to want to learn more about them.
Opening acts are interesting, in that most people in the crowd don’t show up to see them. They’re more like an added bonus for the concert, like a set of appetizers served before the main course arrives. Chances are, you may not have heard of the opening act, and, like me, it’s your introduction to their sound.
While I was waiting for the show to begin, a middle-aged couple approached me and asked if I had ever seen Muse perform live before. I said I hadn’t.
“Then you’re in for a real treat,” the woman said, adding that she and her husband has just seen the band from England perform live in Tampa.
“They put on quite a show,” she said.
As it turns out, she was right. Muse goes all out, employing a striking number of visual effects to complement their sound — from strobe lights to videos. It’s an extravagant show.
Dead Sara, on the other hand, mostly performed in the dark, allowing their songs to carry the show.
“Dead Sara’s sound is more muddy,” the woman said, and after seeing them perform, I didn’t necessarily disagree — but that’s not a criticism. Dead Sara, as it turns out, has a unique grunge rock sound — think Nirvana, particularly some of that band’s slower but still darkly moody songs. They were not your typical radio-friendly top 40 fare — their sound is far more interesting than that — haunting, challenging, and intense, creating sounds ranging from anger to quiet reflection. They were not what I was expecting.
The band only played for 30 minutes, before exiting the stage to make way for the headlining act. But during that half hour, I found myself caught up in lead singer Emily Armstrong’s stunning vocals. She noted that the band had played in Orlando before, at House of Blues.
Then, looking out at the audience in the arena, Armstrong said, “The last time we played here at House of Blues, was anybody there?”
There was no burst of applause from the audience, no loud cheers or people waving their hands. That prompted Armstrong to laugh and say, “Oh my God, is it quiet in here tonight!”
I knew then that Dead Sara was introducing itself to the audience. In fact, when they had finished their last song, Armstrong said
“We are Dead Sara from Los Angeles, California.” And when the crowd cheered, she added, “We love you, too. You guys ready for Muse?”
I left the Amway that night sufficiently intrigued by the band to check them out on the Internet. What I learned is that Dead Sara consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Armstrong, backed by Sean Friday on drums, Siouxsie Medley on lead guitar, and Chris Null on bass. The band released its debut album, Dead Sara, last year, along with a single, “Weatherman.” Their work did not go unnoticed. Dead Sara received the “Best New Rock Group” award at the Third annual Vegas Rocks! Magazine Awards 2012 on Aug. 26, 2012 and got nominated for a RadioContraband Rock Radio Award as “Indie Artist of the Year” 2012.
Dead Sara opened its show with a shattering guitar blast that created a potent segway for Armstrong’s vocal skills — from a howling guttural wail to a gentle near-whisper for a beautifully melodic ballad. Their sound is a unique mix of blues, grunge, heavy metal and Goth — more of a European sound, in a sense, than an urban American type of rock.
Along the way, Armstrong delivered an electrifying performance, as the heavy metal guitars created the perfect wave for her screams of passion, despair and wonder.
I left the Amway more impressed with Dead Sara than Muse, and I hope the band finds an audience and continues to develop its unique sound. Like many a good opening act, they can startle and impress you by the unexpected quality of their talent.
To learn more about the band, log on to their Web site at Dead Sara. Contact R.T. Robeson at FreelineOrlando@gmail.com.
– See more at: FreeLineMediaOrlando.com
eds of thousands of MUSE fans around the US seeing them for the first time. The band has come through Chicago before on Warped Tour and Riot Fest. We also had the pleasure of covering them at Sunset Strip Music Festival last year where Emily Armstrong sat in with The Doors on vocals for a memorable performance honoring the band at the House of Blues LA. Dead Sara has even toured before with Chicago’s own Chevelle, so there certainly were fans of Dead Sara in the United Center last night. Dead Sara is a band that has planted seeds in the fertile soils of Chicago before however, this was the first arena tour the band hasever been on. Even Armstrong herself pointed out during the bands set that it was cool to stop and talk to the front rows of the audience as if the show was in a small club while actually standing 10 ft from the front row in a packed arena . Musically, Armstrong’s vocals inject into your heart like a shot of adrenaline as she conveys every word and every note from deep within her soul. It is as if she channels the great soulful artists of rock and roll pasts such as Janis Joplin creating memorable performance moments. She even got on top of the bands 8×10 bass cabinet to thank Chicago before jumping off into mid air scissor kicking her legs to each side… Although it was obvious that not many people in the large arena knew the songs, many however could be seen grooving to each of the songs as if they realized one by one they were discovering a great new up and coming band. In a world full of opening bands that might fade from an audiences memory, Dead Sara will be remembered in the minds and hearts of MUSE fans all over America seeing them for the first time.Dead Sara Setlist:
Blue Was the Feeling for You (unreleased)
After about a 30 minute setup period the crew cleared the stage, the house lights once again went dark and MUSE for just under 2 hour period showed a packed house at the United Center how to create and deliver an emotional prog-rock focused audio and visual experience. The show itself is a spectacular designed specifically with the audiences perspective in mind. From beginning to end everyone in attendance is taken on a journey through every kind of emotional moment known to man (or women). Through the use of audio and video resources and production the band and crew created moments of resistance, aggression, passion, sweet solitude, and awe all at the hands of one of the most dynamic rock bands in the world. The survivalist messages that ring throughout almost every MUSE song became anthems amongst loud cheers. Although the band is certainly not the most original in the world, they make up for it through production and delivery. Every square inch of the gigantic stage was utilized as a giant video screen. The performance itself was being filmed and footage from the cameras could be seen on screens interlaced with the band on the stage. There was not much that this show did not have production wise. There was smoke, there were lasers, there was lots of intelligent lighting. There was an extension in front of the stage that allowed for Bellamy and Wolstenholme to go closer to the crowd on some songs. The set design was brilliant with a pyramid of video screens raining down from the rafters after the first song. The band itself did not talk to the audience much during the 2 hours. It was almost as if the show is so planned out with music and production that there just isn’t time to engage in a conversation with the audience. The band did perform well. Matthew Bellamy’s voice sounded as good as it did the last time the band was in Chicago. Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard also performed well each adding their personalities into the mix. There were some amazing moments of music too. At the conclusion of Hysteria right before the band played Animals, Bellamy came down onto the extension of the stage and performed an interpretation of part of the Star Spangled Banner on guitar to an extremely loud roar of cheers from all over the arena, as if to pay tribute to the country (USA) that really has become a second home to the band. Just after Knights of Cydonia, Wolstenholme alone in the light on the stage began Monty Jam with a harmonica solo that got everyone clapping along. Overall, it was a fantastic grandioso, innovative, exciting musical experience from beginning to end showcasing one of the biggest rock bands in the world.
Song wise, some highlights of the 2 hour set included: Panic Station, Resistance, Hysteria, Knights of Cydonia, Follow Me, Madness, Uprising, and an encore featuring Starlight and Survival.
MUSE @ United Center, Chicago, IL on March 5th 2013 Setlist
Supremacy
Supermassive Black Hole
Panic Station
Resistance
Hysteria
(Star-Spangled Banner intro)
Animals
Knights of Cydonia
(Man with a Harmonica intro)
Monty Jam
Explorers
Follow Me
Sunburn
Liquid State
Madness
Undisclosed Desires
Time Is Running Out
Stockholm Syndrome
(Rage Against the Machine’s Freedom outro)
The 2nd Law: Isolated System
Uprising
(Extended outro)
Encore:
Starlight
Survival
See Original Article here: ChicagoMusicMagazine.com