Machine Head Live In Clifton Park, NY
By
Christopher Bokus,
Pure Rock Patroller
Tuesday, February 12, 2002 @ 11:22 AM
| Machine Head Live At Northern
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Let me start this off by saying I feel the first 2 Machine Head albums are heavy metal classics. The last 2 have been hit & miss & are way too 'polished' sounding. While I am not opposed to “rapcore,” it rarely inspires me the way a song like “'Old” or “Ten Ton Hammer” does. That being said, this show kicked ass. Without the slick production & the white-boy-who-can't-rap nonsense, the newer songs sound really good. “Nothing Left,” “From This Day,” “Bulldozer” and “Crashing Around You” all benefit greatly from the raw energy this band puts out live. Rob Flynn is definitely not acting when performing these songs. You can feel him pouring his heart & soul into his songs when they are performing them live. The studio recordings just don't do them justice.
The sound quality was very good. Everything was crisp and audible, with only two instances of real high-pitched feedback being the only technical difficulties that I can recall. Oh, yeah, did I mention that this show was friggin' loud? It was easily the loudest club show I've been to in years. The band is not much to look at, as Rob is the only one who moves at all. There was no backdrop & only a minimal light show, but that stuff really isn't necessary with Machine Head, because the songs are more than good enough to stand on their own. The show was paced very well, with some chatter in between every other song, but not to the point where you are waiting for the next song to start.
I have to mention that Machine Head genuinely seems to respect and appreciate every one of their fans. The crowd of a few hundred was thanked more than once for coming out on a Wednesday night to see the show. I got a 'Thanks for the support' from the t-shirt booth after purchasing a tee. Most importantly to me, though, was that tickets for this show were only $12.50 in advance. Fuckin' twelve dollars and fifty cents! Sevendust just played at the same venue over the weekend & charged $20. Twelve fifty! That, my friends, is respecting your fan base. I hope these guys can find that right producer who can give them the sound that just puts them over the top, because they deserve to be doing arenas.
Songs played, not in order:
Declaration
Bulldozer
White Knuckle Blackout
Crashing Around You
American High
Trephination
Deafening Silence (dedicated to Paul Bailoff)
Supercharger
Nothing Left
The Blood, The Sweat, The Tears
From This Day
Ten Ton Hammer
Take My Scars
Davidian
Old
I'm Your God Now
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