MARTY FRIEDMAN
AND IMMORTAL GUARDIAN
AT BRICK BY BRICK
Concert Review By Corey “Craw Daddy” Crawford
On Wednesday, January 23rd, legendary guitarist Marty Friedman kicked off his tour, One Bad M.F., right here in San Diego at Brick By Brick. It was a night of complete shred with Texas metal band Immortal Guardian joining Friedman on the tour, and local San Diegans Night Shadow hopping on the bill here at Brick By Brick.
I pulled up to the venue around 8:15, and having been to Brick By Brick many times I had no problem finding a parking spot(Otherside of Morena Blvd). Originally, Night Shadow was supposed to start at 8:30 it said, but there was still a huge line to get in. That surprised me since it was a Wednesday night, but all the die hard metal fans know who is worth not sleeping over. And I know so many people always include the setlists on here, but I don’t believe in doing that. I always find it so much more exciting to find out when the band actually goes into the song. It builds on the experience when you are surprised.
Without much of a delay Night Shadow came out of the gates roaring. It was easy to see why they won one of the Wacken Battles in San Diego last year. I’ve seen them once before, but the singer was sick at the time. So, it was great to see them fully intact, sounding great as ever. The ended their set serenading the crowd and one girl in particular with Mistress of the Pit. She may have not been to into getting sung to directly, but I was ready to throw my panties on stage.
Night Shadow performing (Photo: Craw Daddy Crawford)
With Immortal Guardian next to play I knew I had to get a little closer to see what they regard as “Super Metal”. Let me just say, they did not disappoint. I found a great spot right in front the bass player, Thad Stevens. Right from the get go they blew me away. Every single one of them is an incredible musician, and they sounded exactly like their debut album “Age Of Revolution” that was just released a few months ago. And then as soon as guitarist Gabriel Guardiola started playing keyboards while simultaneously playing guitar too you can see so many jaws drop and phones come out to capture the sheer insane talent that takes. Singer Carlos Zema sounded amazing while he moved around the stage and pumped up the crowd. I was able to make my way over to get a closer look at Gabriel shredding both his guitar and keyboard. It’s a sight you need to see to believe, the guy is incredible. The band played ripped through some of my favorite songs like “Trail of Tears” and “Never to Return”.
Immortal Guardian (Photos: Craw Daddy Crawford)
Immortal Guardian opened the tour beautifully and it shouldn’t take long until they are headlining their own tour. With the singing chops of Zema, the shredding of Guardiola, and the pounding rhythm of Stevens and drummer Cody Gilliland they are definitely a band to keep an eye on, the talent is their by far, and now it’s up to the rest of metal world to take notice.
Marty Friedman performing (Photo: Craw Daddy Crawford)
Marty Friedman came out to a strange begining with it looking like something out of Spinal Tap. Based on the look on his face and the other band members, I’m guessing something happened with intro, but being in the business for decades Friedman and his band didn’t let it affect their performance at all. Again I started the set in front of the bass player, and Marty’s bass player Kiyoshi was absolutely amazing. I’ve never really seen someone attack the bass with such ferocity like she did. Marty moved the crowd with a beautiful speech and a touching song to his great friend Jason Becker who he shared the stage with back in his Cacophony days. I did happen to make my way to the otherside of the stage again just in time to see guitarist Jordan Ziff start off a solo and go into a great cover of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”. He only sang the part of the song but the band did play the whole song and it was sounded amazing. The whole crowd sang along with Ziff as well. Right after Kiyoshi did her own solo that ended in her going into an “Ashes Tornado” medley. And I know so many drummers always want to be like “The Animal” from The Muppets, and after seeing Chargeeee drum with Friedman, he is the only one that should stake that claim. The guy was one of the most entertaining drummers I have seen and not only that, he was killing it all night. Not everyone has the much energy.
All in all, it was a great bill of unbelievable musicians. Night Shadow fit perfectly with Immortal Guardian and Marty Friedman. Every band was on the A game that night. The San Diego Metal scene showed up to see the legend, proving once again how underrated we are down here. If you have a chance to catch this tour of Immortal Guardian and Marty Friedman, I highly suggest you get your ass there.
Remaing Tour Dates:
Jan. 26 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ The Rebel Lounge
Jan. 27 – Tucson, Ariz. @ 191 Toole
Jan. 30 – San Antonio, Texas @ The Rock Box
Jan. 31 – Houston, Texas @ Scout Bar
Feb. 01 – Austin, Texas @ Come And Take It Live
Feb. 02 – Dallas, Texas @ Trees
Feb. 04 – Oklahoma City, Okla. @ 89th Street
Feb. 06 – Sauget, Ill. @ Pop’s Nightclub
Feb. 07 – Kansas City, Mo @ The Riot Room
Feb. 08 – Iowa City, Iowa @ Gabe’s
Feb. 09 – Minneapolis, Minn. @ Studio B at the Skyway Theatre
Feb. 10 – Madison, Wis. @ High Noon Saloon
Feb. 12 – Milwaukee, Wis. @ Shank Hall
Feb. 13 – Chicago, Ill. @ Reggie’s Rock Club
Feb. 14 – Indianapolis, Ind. @ The Hi-Fi
Feb. 15 – Chesterfield, Mich. @ Diesel Concert Lounge
Feb. 16 – Cleveland Heights, Ohio @ The Grog Shop
Feb. 17 – Pittsburgh, Penn. @ Crafthouse
Feb. 19 – Philadelphia, Penn. @ Voltage Lounge
Feb. 20 – Allston, Mass @ Brighton Music Hall
Feb. 22 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Saint Vitus
Feb. 23 – Garwood, N.J. @ Crossroads
Feb. 24 – Baltimore, Md. @ Ottobar
