Their performance, much like their records, was very up-tempo, only dropping the energy momentarily, letting the crowd brace for the next onslaught.

The Bluebird, St. Louis

The machismo-driven post-metal outfit Russian Circles blew through St. Louis last week, leaving a trail of slightly bruised and sweaty onlookers behind. The Chicago natives' intricate guitar arpeggios and drum fills interlaced beautifully, eventually yielding to an almost apocalyptic cacophony of distorted guitars, boisterous tom-thumping, and a contagious, yet unmistakably menacing, energy. The show was more than simply music; it was seismic event, where everyone cathartically shook in step with the wall of sound which emanated from the stage and filled the Bluebird. By the night's end I was drained and half deaf.

The night started with the quartet Young Widows, whose promising, yet straightforward rhythms and distant vocals leaned decidedly closer towards a harder grind-core genre. Fans of the genre will likely find an ally in the fight against teenaged angst.

The middle child of the night was Daughters, hailing from Rhode Island. Their self-proclaimed brand of mathcore was an unfortunate far cry from what I expected to hear at a Russian Circles show. Their aggravatingly simple guitar hooks were classlessly complimented by demonic howls and the humorous gesticulations of the lead singer, Alexia S. F. Marshall. Displaying a twisted sense of showmanship, the pale-skinned, tattooed Marshall interrupted a song to place his clenched fist in his mouth, and grunt into the mic, he then shoved it down his pants and fiercely shook it, simulating...well you get the picture. His furious grunts and disturbing moans would be perfect in some light hearted, warped version of Tenacious D, but there was no humor in Daughter's eyes. The group and their fans took themselves as seriously as a heart attack, which left me begging the question, does that make it funnier, or sadly pathetic. Either way, I don't get it. In retrospect, maybe I should replace my disgust for Daughters with gratitude, since their bewildering performance made the Russian Circles seem even better.

As an anxious crowd waited for the night's headliner to take the stage, I noticed the rambunctious teens that comprised the majority of the room had disappeared. These fleshy balls of untargeted energy subsided and the room filled with a quiet reverence. Soon, three scruffy men quietly took the stage. The trio started the night with material from their latest recording, Station, and focused mainly on this album as their set progressed; only including sparse selections from previous records. Their performance, much like their records, was very up-tempo, only dropping the energy momentarily, letting the crowd brace for the next onslaught.

They didn't say a word to the crowd during their set, in fact there wasn't even a mic on stage, instrumental rock was their m.o. for the night, and nothing else was needed. This was a band with no frills, no gimmicks and no stage show; they simply stood on stage and let their music do the talking. As if in a confession of their sincerity, a distant gaze covered the face of Bassist Brian Cook, who replaced Colin DeKuiper last year. Cook's booming lines provided the support his counterparts needed. All in all, it wasa very well rounded set and a great performance. If you have a predilection for macho, somewhat somber rock and roll, these titans of pos-metal are hard to beat. | Glen Elkins

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