For the Tahoe area, April is considered the start of the shoulder season. Venues pull back on entertainment as they prepare for the big push of summer. But, for fans of heavy metal, April is a time to rejoice as the 7th annual Spring Meltdown comes to town showcasing some of the best local talents from Reno, Sacramento and the Bay Area.
The intensity starts on April 19 at the American Legion Hall with more than 15 bands slated to perform including Arsonists Get All The Girls from Santa Cruz. This band plays the music they love and has never tried to fit into any category proving that heavy, technical music can be successful. The band has created a sound all their own and have become well known for their brand of grind. Borndead Productions, the show’s producer, promises this year the two-day event will be bigger and badder than ever before with a whopping 33 bands scheduled to deliver in-your-face music.
Also on the bill is the Sacramento band Conducting From the Grave. Their musical style has been described as fusing together elements of deathcore with progressive death metal, resulting in a catchy and, yet technical, sound. While most tech metal bands lean more toward dark exotic and minor scales when writing, most of the time this band delivers a fun-filled assault of melodic guitar acrobatics.
Conducting From the Grave doesn’t get too carried away with the melody stuff, remembering to come back and remind you that you are still listening to metal by serving you the occasional breakdown. Interspersed with that are beautiful dreamy interludes that are somewhat jazz-like, but unlike the tacky jazz sections that many grind bands are so fond of. These parts show that the band has a reflective side to them as well.
The first days also features Gary Busey Amber Alert, A Holy Ghost Revival, Life Uh’Duh Party, Drag Me Under, Catalyst, Aethere, Enslave the Creation, Walk Away Alpha, The Delirium Process, Extirpate, Vengeance, Erabyss and Between Realms.
Day 2 of the meltdown moves the action to Whiskey Dick’s Saloon with the Sacramento band Hoods at the Helm. Hoods are a hardcore institution that offers a fiercely independent, uncompromisingly dark world view, while simultaneously setting a remarkable example of the DIY ethics of hard work, loyalty and perseverance. They boast ferocious vocals, blistering metallic guitar and a rhythm section that functions like a Panzer attack.
Another band scheduled is San Francisco’s Early Graves, an unforgiving juggernaut that injects early punk attitude and the dirty crust sound into the world of metal. While there are elements of thrash, crust, hardcore and even a whiff of brimstone and death metal, it is far more productive to think of Early Graves as simply their own interpretation of a heavy metal band. From all the genres they draw techniques from, they have chosen to unite the elements that bring the most ferocious vitality and the most surging energy to the mix.
If metal is your musical dish of preference, the Spring Meltdown is guaranteed to give you a two-day feast of the finest around. Get ready to kick it up, hardcore style.
The day also features Blessed Curse, Otis, Zombie Eating Horse, Murderlicious, Cursed, Armed For Apocalypse, Weapon Status Red, Purification By Fire, Blasphemous Creation, Short Fuse, Kinetik, Deceive, Guttershark, Hang The Kode and Seven Churches.
The 7th annual Spring Meltdown plays the South Lake Tahoe American Legion Hall on April 19 and Whiskey Dick’s Saloon on April 20. For more information, visitborndeadproductions.com.
