Apocalyptica @ The Van Buren
Do you have a band that if only they came to your city that you’d be excited and drop everything to see them? Maybe you have that one band you’ve listened to since you were a teen? If you do, the Punk Pack shares that love for that one band you never thought you’d see. We’ve been calling these events, grail shows. Shows that the Pack never thought to cover but have listened to or even obsessed with that one band. You know the one, the grail band. Admittedly the Pack has more than a few grail bands they would love to cover. So, achieving the opportunity to see Apocalyptica’s Plays Metallica Vol. 2 tour with Nita Strauss at the Van Buren was a delightful shock.
Nita Strauss was a new name to the Pack. As the Punk Pack were trying to contain themselves for what was to come, Strauss’ tasty licks on guitar effortlessly grabbed the Pack’s attention. The first half of the set was all rock instrumental with her husband on drums, Josh Villalta. The second half made good on Strauss’ promise that there would be a sing-a-long portion of the set and introduced Kasey Karlsen of Deadlands on vocals which underlined the hard rock/metal presence of the band. Kasey Karlen’s vocal range covers many of Strauss’ collaborations with amazing versatility. A song that is still echoing in the Pack’s mind was “Victorious” which was originally recorded with Dorothy.
Now was the moment. To finally see the cello trio, Apocalyptica as they opened their set with “Ride the Lightning” with thunder booming over the speakers as they warmed up. Listening to the crowd sing the lyrics to each Metallica cover only enriched the evening. These Finnish mad lads have maintained a beautiful chaos of symphonic metal. With the energy they expressed on stage, the Punk Pack don’t see them slowing down any time soon. Covering iconic metal bands along with forging their own fantastical metal melodies, it’s easy to feel they have done the improbable; combined metal and cellos into its own unique experience. Their covers of “Nothing Else Matters” always brings the Punk Pack to tears. Apocalyptica ended their performance with “One” including a haunting voice over of spoken-word lyrics. When you’ve thought they’d perfected all these amazing covers, Apocalyptica continues to one-up themselves.
The afterglow of seeing the Pack’s favorite cello groups has yet to let up. Having listened to Apocalyptica since the turn of the millennium made this show worthy of the Punk Pack’s grail list. Seeing the joy on the faces on each cellist further drove the bands confession that their foundation is built on a love for music and a hair-brained idea of, “what if…” to propel Apocalyptica to the masterful performance seen today. Do you share the Punk Pack’s appreciation of Apocalyptica? What song is your favorite? The Pack would love to hear your thoughts.
