Iress and Royal Thunder

Royal Thunder have gathered some critical acclaim and there's good reason why. Their singular style of honest, heavy rock, fronted by the stellar vocals of Mlny Parsonz, is intoxicating stuff. Live, it was nothing short of glorious.

But first, openers Wild Throne must be mentioned. These guys are clearly up-and-comers, with an album set to release on Roadrunner Records later this year. Sitting somewhere squarely between Mastodon and The Mars Volta, they slammed out their set with passion and intensity, constantly building toward crescendo. I had heard their material only once prior to the show, and the complex nature of it makes it somewhat hard to judge live, but by the end of the set I was blown away. Take note of these guys!

Royal Thunder delivered a strong set that leaned heavily on their new, brilliant Crooked Doors release. In fact, only three songs were NOT from it, and those were all from their self-titled debut EP. Initial full-length CVI was avoided entirely; not sure why, but presumably they're weary of playing those songs. In any event, excellent new tracks such as "Forget You," "Floor," and "Forgive Me, Karma" were offered up, while "Mouth of Fire," "Low," and "Sleeping Witch" made up the older material. The latter, in particular, was utterly amazing, the heaviest track of the set for sure.

Ultimately what made the show so great, however, was Ms. Parsonz. Hair covering her face, she poured her soul into that microphone as she belted out those songs. Her feet often squirmed beneath her, as if the raw emotion could not be contained and was seeking to escape through the floor. She was a rock goddess, and it was nearly impossible to not be transfixed by her the entire time, though the rest of the band all performed admirably.

This Wild Throne/Royal Thunder tour is not to be missed. Both bands deliver gritty, emotional, powerful performances.