Deep Sleep U.S. 2012 Tour – REVIEW

Deep Sleep came through Chicago on their recent U.S. tour. You should go check out the review after the break in the post.

Seeing shows at Crown is hit or miss attendance-wise.  I’ve seen bands play to a packed room and I’ve seen bands play to 3 people in the audience.  Most Chicago hardcore shows are all ages and bring out a mostly younger energetic crowd who love to mosh.  This made me think that the show being 21+ would make it one of those empty, awkward shows.  Luckily I was wrong and the show ended up getting a lot of people to come out and bands got a good reaction from the crowd.

The first band to play was Divine Right.  They play mid-paced raw hardcore with harsh vocals.  I’ve seen them a few times before and this was definitely the tightest set I’ve seen them play.  One thing I noticed, however, is that the vocalist comes off likes he’s a bit uncomfortable performing.  I feel that his stage presence is slightly restrained and this makes it difficult to enjoy the band.  They’re drummer, on the other hand, is completely confident.  He hits harder than most drummers I’ve seen and I’ve even seen him break a few drum heads live.

Kontaminant played next and changed the pace of the show a bit.  Most members of the band have played in hardcore bands since the 90’s and I could tell by how well they played.  Their brand of fast hardcore was well-executed and came off as sincerely angry.  The bassist’s vocals were pissed off and the vocalist had no qualms about going into the audience and pushing people around.  This excited audience members and caused a few short-lived circle pits.

Manipulation also consists of members from a few legendary Chicago/St. Louis bands and played almost as tight as Kontaminant.  Their set was a bit strange because of how they set up their gear, though.  The drummer, guitarists, and bassist were stationed far away from the audience while the vocalist spent most of his time in the audience trying to get a reaction.  This made watching the band awkward.  One great moment of the set was when a man at the bar, who obviously was not there for the show, came up to the front of the audience and started banging his fists.  The vocalist then went up to him during a song and proceeded to scream his lyrics into the man’s face.

Sickoids played next and stole the show.  The songs they played were fast and to the point.  No time was spent in between songs tuning or getting a drink.  Their approach to punk was a lot different than the Chicago bands that played before them.  They used d-beats and discordant chords in a very unique way.  They played great and caused the audience to grow wilder with each song.  By the end of the set, the moshing had spilled enough beer on the floor to get a fat man drunk.

The last band of the night was Baltimore’s own Deep Sleep.  I had often heard them compared to Descendents, Black Flag, and Minor Threat and now I know why.  They take the style of 80’s hardcore punk and add a new energy to it.  I can always tell a touring band apart from a local band in that they are tighter and usually more excited to play to a new crowd and Deep Sleep was no different.  The frontman was great and knew how to keep the audience’s attention.  He kept the set fun and encouraged sing-a-longs from those who knew the words.  I’d definitely recommend seeing them to any who is a fan of 80’s hardcore.

Information about the review…
Tour: Deep Sleep US 2012 Tour
Bands: Deep Sleep, Sickoids, Manipulation, Kontaminant and Divine Right
Reviewer: Jimmy Farabi
Date: April 26th, 2012
Venue: Crown Tap Liquors in Chicago, IL