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How about a show review of a great local band? Rizir live in concert at Jugheads October 24th!

November 5th, 2008 Posted by: Dust Devil

Hey guys,

I have been absolutely swamped at the office, so I apologize for being out of commission for a couple of weeks. This review is a couple of weeks old, but since this was my first opportunity to see Rizir live in concert, I feel compelled to get this out.

First off, let’s get the negatives out of the way, none of them band related. This was my first trip to Jugheads. Located on 52nd Street and McDowell, this club boasts a pretty big rep in regards to hosting metal, hardcore and punk shows. Now, I am dating myself here, but when I think of classic clubs in Phoenix hosting that type of music, Madison Square Gardens, the Sun Club and the Mason Jar immediately come to mind. All three were holes in the wall, dirty, grungy … and possessed a ton of character. Sorry, Jugheads does not even come close to that. Oh well …

It is a little easier to overlook a bad environment when a powerful band takes over the stage, and that is precisely what Rizir did! The vocals and rhythm guitar duties are handled by Zack “The Dragon” Vinyard, Ben “The Threat” Blessington moved over from bass some time ago and is now where he should be, shredding on the guitar, and on the drums is Jesse “The Animal” Taylor. Yes folks, no bass player currently, and it is scary to imagine what this band will be able to do once they secure that critical piece of the puzzle.

Rizir could be classified as metal, but this band is WAY too diverse to be pigeonholed in such a manner. The metal influence is at the forefront, but I detected elements of classic grunge, rock and roll and industrial in the music as well. It is important to realize I like quite a bit of what came out of the early part of the grunge movement, before the media ruined that genre of music and every new band in the world tried to instantly become a part of that movement. Rizir is reminiscient of what is good about grunge: heavy, yet melodic guitars; passioniate vocals; intense music loaded with hooks.

Zack does not like the reference from what I understand, but he has a delivery reminiscient of Cobain himself. Folks, I thoroughly enjoy that style of singing - when done properly. Zack absolutely screams into his mike while singing, but the delivery is not painful to listen to. Instead, it simply adds to the power already on display, and the actual vocals are very discernible. What is the point of screaming if the audience has no opportunity to understand what you are singing? Personally, that characteristic destroys what a lot of “nu-metal” bands are doing today. Zack does not have that problem and his vocals fit this band extremely well. I was really impressed, both with the vocals and his stage presence as a front-man.

Jesse Taylor is a monster on drums. This guy bangs the skins with such power and vigor, it was absolutely impressive to watch. His timing is very, very good. A good drummer keeps the song moving along a steady pace, regardless of the speed of the tune, and Jesse pushes this band extremely well. What an impressive musician!

Ben Blessington is the one member of this band I have seen play before, during his days in a band by the name of Echo 57. I always felt that band stifled his skills a bit, since the music was more of a funk-metal combination. With Rizir, Ben has an opportunity to really display his talent. You are not going to get a guitarist that is heavy into activity onstage. Instead, Ben utilizes his energy to pummel his guitar into submission. Some of the licks he played that night were so fast, it was impossible to keep up as a spectator. A metal band should have a stud like this on guitar. How Metallica gets away with not having one is beyond me, but that’s another story …

Put these three elements together and you have one heck of a powerful unit. Rizir absolutely tore it up on this evening, and the crowd seemed to be pretty appreciative of a great set of music. Metal is not the primary genre I listen to, but when done well I enjoy seeing it played live.

Support this band! I look forward to seeing them again, hopefully with a full line-up. Their MySpace page lists two upcoming shows. They will be performing at Club Red on December 12 and a week later they are back at Jugheads. I guarantee you a great time!

Cheers!

The Dust DevilÂ

Filed under: Event Reviews