First band of the night was 3. Yep, that’s right; 3. Coincidence or not, but this band exists of 5 people. One vocalist/guitarist, a guitarist, a bassist, a drummer and a percussionist. I know, the name itself will probably scare you off in every way. The thing is, this band kicks ass!

I believe this is one of the first bands that I didn’t know anything about (I didn’t even know they existed in the first place) that could impress me so much live.

These guys play some really good music. I’m saying music ‘cause it’s pretty damn hard to put them in a particular genre. These guys play guitar like they’re a metal band, drum like their lives depend on it (the drummer and percussionist gave away an awesome drum solo as well) and the vocalist gives us his best. It’s not only metal we hear, ‘cause 3 takes more paths at the same time; metal, country, rock, jazz…you name it! To prove it really is difficult to describe the style of this band, I quote a part of their official bio:

 

“3 is a band apart: Dark yet uplifting, spiritual without any connection to religion – theirs is a sound that transcends the genre conformity of modern pop culture. Rapid-fire acoustic guitar infused with dynamic percussion, animated drumming and thunderous bass culminate in a listening experience that is at once accessible and unique. Poly-rhythms pulse within a symphony of driving metal guitars and melodic vocal acrobatics. 3 offers musicality without pretension. We double dare any music writer to describe the sound.”

 

Convinced? This band is – without a doubt – a recommendation to everyone who’s able to catch ‘em live.

 

What shall I say, what shall I say? Oh I get it: CRAP! What a big, fat bummer this is after a great band like 3. Chiodos plays the type of emo that is so hyped nowadays. And if you’ve read all my previous reviews you know I won’t hate emo on the forehand (I mean the Silverstein review here). But this seriously wasn’t what the biggest part of the crowd came for this eve. This simply sucks. Big time!
 

Of course, every band has something live…’heavy’ guitars and some nice drum work, just the thing everyone goes to a concert for in the first place. But the vocalist of this band messed up everything that I liked a little bit. He couldn’t even reach the high notes (which, as far as I’m concerned are quite a lot present in this type of music) and the only thing he was able to do pretty well was screaming. Nope, unfortunately these guys didn’t prove themselves to be a worthy opener for the band(s) yet to come.

 

The band I came for. The fourth time I was going to see them (due to circumstances I had to miss their last gig in Holland although I already bought my ticket). An ill drummer or not, this band kicks major ass and I think they’ll always do. The band seemed to enjoy being back in Holland and the most amazing thing was that the biggest part of the crowd came to see 36 Crazyfists. Unlike the previous time the band played together with Atreyu. Songs that were played are: ‘The Heart And The Shape’, ‘I’ll Go Until My Heart Stops’, ‘At The End Of August’, ‘Bloodwork’ and of course they closed their set with ‘Slit Wrist Theory’. All in all an awesome show! And it feels so good that these friendly guys seem to gain more and more fans (friends, as they say themselves).

 

Have you ever seen a man with 3 legs? No? Well I did, three times to be exact. Seriously…why on earth does someone need three (yes: again 3!!!) bass drums? I just don’t get it and I know I’m not the only one. Ok, an extremely awesome and fast drummer might fit behind such a drum kit but if there’s one drummer that doesn’t…it’s the drummer from Atreyu.