A Dozen Furious Mid American Kids In Tight Pants Get Down
A Dozen Furies, Upside, Mid America, DownLo October 23rd, The Curtain Club in Dallas

Upon entering the Curtain Club, my girlfriend and I were swarmed by those irritating hardcore pricks in their tight t-shirts, tight chick pants, and hair that you might see Pink sporting, so I was genuinely afraid for my life, my sanity, and the valid appliance of the 22 dollars I had spent on our under-21 admission.

Needless to say, I was totally out of my element.

The first to take the stage was a 3-piece pop/emo band from Tulsa, OK called Mid America. First of all, as I’m sure you’re now aware, I hate this shit. Pop punk, emo, core music, I hate the music, the fashion, and most of the fans. However, I was very pleased with the performance. They did what they did well, regardless of my opinion, and I even found myself bobbing my head, impressed with their rhythms and melodies. The simple guitar leads were very well executed, as well as those on bass, which were quite plentiful. The show was better than most, very consistent, and filled with little perks like mid-song interruptions for small dialogue giving props to the other bands, followed by jumping back into the song in perfect sync. A talented band caught in an unfortunate genre, but making the best of it.

Second on the bill was Upside, a band that I had heard quite a bit about. Once again, not my kind of music, but still a great band. Very radio-friendly alternative rock, but I guess I have to let other people have their own taste sometimes, and these guys weren’t bad at all, especially for their ilk. My favorite aspect of the performance was the head-on vocals harmonies between all the members, as well as the smoothness of every song. I can see these guys definitely going somewhere, assuming they’re not somewhere already…
My only complaint is the singer’s ruffled shirt and tie. C’mon dude, quit beating a dead horse.

Next up was the highlight of my night, a band that I had never seen live before, but was already a fan of. Currently competing in MTV’s “Battle For Ozzfest”, and more than sufficiently representing both the metal and hardcore scene of Dallas/Ft. Worth, A Dozen Furies is one of those groups that transcends genre, who flies back and forth between several with ease, and seemingly adopts to any environment. As much shit as I talk about hardcore, I can never use it against these guys, and they can eat the faces off of almost any DFW metal band. On record, ADF are a pretty sweet core-band, but live, the metal shines full-out, like the flames of Hell, burning down the stage. Every note, every beat was like part of a well-oiled machine, with the intent to rock my brain to mush. Even the choreography was incredible, reminiscent of 80’s hair metal, including synchronized machinegunning, uniform headbanging, and all-out chaos. Even if the awesome light show hadn’t been arranged, seeing these guys in an empty bar would have been a treat. I doubt that would be a possible circumstance though; the guys had riled up the packed crowd so much that I was immediately sent to the floor, resulting in a bloody face and swollen lip. And I wasn’t even in the pit. ADF was equally enjoyable nevertheless, from the back of the mosh, where every member was respectively visible giving a top-notch performance, of which I haven’t yet recovered.
My advice: See this band, buy their album, and vote for them on a reality TV show which they make worth watching.

The headliner of the night, DownLo, was a somber note to end on.
I’ll get this out of the way: it was a good performance, and well-played.
But it doesn’t matter how long she’s been doing it, or how good a whore can suck you off, she’s still a whore, and she still blows. I relate this to DownLo, because they are most definitely a bunch of whores, who’s music screams “PLEASE SIGN ME!”, so bland and ultra conscious of the ears of mainstream radio. If Sevendust’s singer had shaved his head, stared wearing ice dog tags, and singing R&B, they would be DownLo. Not to mention, the their singer simply would not get off the whole “I’m black, check out my bling and look at my crotch” shtick. Plus, I don’t think he forgot to end a single song with reminder about how “If y’all didn’t come to drink and get fucked up, get the fuck out”. If I wanted that crap, I’d go to an event sponsored by 97.9 The Beat, or turn on MTV or something.

Thesis: If you like bland, mediocre, Sevendust ripoff radio rock, and a confused R-Kelly ripoff fronting it, DownLo. If you like emo, pop punk, or alternative rock, take a look at Mid America or Upside. If not, catch A Dozen Furies, it’s well worth a night of music that you wouldn’t get caught listening to at home or in the car.

This article was originally published at mindsetmagazine.com by Collin The Guy