First Reign… Sept. 30

First Reign
with Neo Tokyo
at Classic Rhythms, September 30, 2005
Reviewed by Stephen Jersak

I could have gone to see Raised by Wolves at the Ferguson House, and I might’ve enjoyed it more, but I had waited to see First Reign for a long time, so I went here. Apparently I was one of the few because the place wasn’t nearly as full as it had been when You Say Party had their CD Release show there.

The show started with Neo Tokyo. They were obviously heavily influenced by Jimmy Hendrix (they covered a couple of his songs after all), but did a good job with it. The guitar solos were amazing, and I couldn’t help but love the drumming. It fit the music incredibly well, but still stood out. I liked Neo Tokyo more and more through out their set, and the highlight was definitely their song You Can’t Hug Your Children.

The other band of the night was the entirely opposite heavy metal of First Reign. While I’m not a big fan of their style, these guys are amazing. Russ’s bass playing was absolutely incredible. Sean’s drumming was sheer madness. Ryan’s backup vocals definitely deserve more attention. Overall, these guys were great, if a little stuck in their genre, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Trying to appeal to fans of other genres that you’re not into is far worse than staying in one genre.

Sure this show could have been better, but that is almost completely the audience’s fault. There were 4 people standing up front for most of the show, with everyone either at the back or sitting down. Pretty lame. On another note, I would love to get both these bands’ albums. Unfortunately, I can’t afford them, so if you’re reading this, give me a copy of your cd, or give me a discount, or send me the entire album electronically. I’ll review them. With a pro-First Reign/Neo Tokyo bias.