Sevendust, Dragpipe & Oddman

I feel sorry for the original punk-rock-studded-belt fashion pioneers. A once potentially hardcore accessory now cinches the waists of sorority girls and mid-life crisis moms, but also still touches on the metal, punk rock and even the indie rocker circuit. The Senator Theatre was absolutely exploding with these belt-wearers, which turned out to be a good thing since Monday night's show had the largest turnout I've seen at a local venue in months.
Local metal heroes Oddman were the first course of the night. The testosterone caldron began a' brewin' as the boys scraped their guitars bare with a few songs off their new album, It All Starts Here. Frontman Scott Wallace grunted and bellowed his deep vocals for the cheering Oddman-shirted crowd. If I didn't know any better, I might have taken the band for a bigger, more well-known, out of town act. My only request is that I would have appreciated a little more song variety and differentiation of riffs, chords and changes.
To be in Dragpipe, the law requires you to have at least one arm completely covered in tattoos. New York City spirit shot from stage to crowd while the mohawked musicians showed Chico what East Coast metal is all about. The vocals, though not understandable, were spit with rhythm and flow and highly accentuated the thrashing music performed by the herd of headbangers. The set was short and sweet, but it thoroughly pumped up the kiddies for the headlining act.
Two bands, a scrap involving Oroville's finest and an iced coffee later, the boys we had all been waiting for frolicked on stage. With the help of their strikingly handsome frontman, Lajon Witherspoon, Sevendust has a natural superstar stage presence. I may even go so far as to say that Mr. Witherspoon is the reason the band has achieved its success. The music is strong and possesses few gaps, but stands apart and above other bands of its kind due to his uniquely melodic forte of the vocals.
Nothing screams "tour!" like a new album, and Sevendust has exactly that. Animosity is the fourth recording by the gang of Southern gents, and they didn't waste much time diving into its tracks and radio hits. And many radio hits they did play, my friend, and I know this because the ghetto blaster is my main connection to the words and sounds of the band-still-known-as Sevendust. "Denial," a past hit, was one of the first songs of the night, and the moshers moshed, and the groupies prepared to group. Guitars began to flicker and the lights caught right up, leading straight into an all-time favorite: "Bitch." By this time, all hands were methodically clapping in the air like a Southern Baptist choir and Sevendust begged and pleaded for more.
The stage was tinted green, red and orange, inducing a saint-like silhouette of Witherspoon and his flapping dreads. The mood was perfect for a lead-in to the well-loved slow jam, "Angel Son."
So all the many belt-sporters went home happy that night, particularly one lad who got great pleasure out of Lajon scraping up the "Califuckingfornia" T-shirt that he threw on stage, and putting it on for all to see. Southern, my ass.
- Rachel Krampfner
- Photos by Jeff Shaner

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