Quick Recap: The Angelus, The Frenz, Great Tyrant @ Doublewide

After we watched The Great Tyrant shatter eardrums and hurt feelings at Art Prostitute last month, we vowed to make every effort to see them the next time they played a show anywhere in Dallas. And apparently, a lot of other people made themselves similar promises. The band's well attended opening set at Doublewide on Saturday confirmed that they are indeed one of the most brutally powerful and exciting live acts in Dallas, Denton or Ft. Worth at the moment, packing punches of sprawling, theatrical doom noise accompanied by the kind of technical skill and precision that comparable bands usually don't even need in order to get the job done. In front of a simple yet effective set of visuals, the band coated the room with an oozing, angry syrup of noise that took cues from drone metal and early goth infused with a nervous psychedelic abandon that made the entire experience hypnotic and unpredictable. Daron Beck's soaring vocals, seemingly influenced by soul as much as Scott Walker, Nick Cave or Peter Murphy, sat front and center as Tommy Atkins' flawless basslines played off the mind blowing drumming of Jon Teague, creating a menacing rhythmic assault underneath the layers of foggy noise that combine and clash with one another to take the band to the next level in terms of both performance and composition. The overwhelming heaviness of their music is certainly what will draw most listeners at first, but as you step back and start to notice the details and sophisticated structures that the Great Tyrant uses to create what initially comes across as chaos, the possibilities seem endless, and the band's growing local notoriety certainly seems well deserved.

One of the things we laugh about around here is how we're accused of kissing Wanz' ass and showering everything he does with praise when the fact of the matter is that we've honestly been less than impressed with most of the live performances we've seen from him over the past year. Sure, just about every project he has been involved with has had great potential (as well as a fair share of brilliant moments), but repeated technical difficulties and passages of seemingly unnecessary self indulgence have often turned Wanz Dover shows into less than thrilling experiences for us. As his new band The Frenz took the stage at Doublewide on Saturday, the place had filled up pretty close to capacity with what seemed to be Wanz' built in crowd, and happily, those in attendance were treated to what was probably the most completely realized and intriguing music that Wanz has played since we started writing this blog. Kicking off the set with several long, mesmerizing electronic tracks that sounded heavily influenced by German minimalist house and dubstep with overtones of shoegaze and Boards of Canada styled IDM, The Frenz set the bar quite high early on. Wanz' vocals (which reminded us of Danzig quite a bit) were typically understated and well delivered throughout, showcasing a notable strong suit, while the band's highly layered instrumental passages were delivered quite effectively with the excellent drumming of Guyton Sanders keeping focus and standing out as a highlight. The set seemed to falter a bit at the end (after an excellent Can cover) as the live instrument-centered songs didn't carry the same weight and immediacy as the electro tracks, but it was clear that Wanz has put together an excellent new project with the kind of skilled musicians that might help give it the staying power it needs.

Although we didn't get to catch all of what seemed to be a typically enjoyable set from the Angelus, what we witnessed was indeed a truly solid local bill featuring bands that manage to take risks without being reckless, which is a rare treat no matter where you happen to live.