I Just Read About That…

[ATTENDED: November 23, 2022] Jinjer

I saw Jinjer almost exactly one year ago to the day.  It was also the night before Thanksgiving (that’s kind of weird, no?}

When they announced this show I bought a ticket immediately.  Last year, there was no war in Ukraine.  There was no crisis or concern.  This year, I wanted to support them and their country.  I didn’t even really pay attention to the rest of the bill.

P.O.D. (really?), Vended and from Ukraine, Space of Variations.

I didn’t want to see any of these other bands (well, maybe Space of Variations).  And I didn’t want to spend two and a half hours standing around listening to bands I didn’t really want to hear.

So I thought I might not go.  But I listened to some Jinjer and decided that I did want to see them after all.  Especially when I saw that they were playing “Pisces” on this tour (which they didn’t play for us last time).

So I did something I never do. I deliberately arrived late.  I hung out with the family had dinner and then left at 8:15.  Traffic was surprisingly light.  I arrived at the Fillmore around 9:25 and the parking attendants weren’t there, so there was free parking.  And when I walked in, the room was only about half full.  Bad for Jinjer, but great for me!  (I thought last year’s TLA show was sold out.  Did they really not have double the fans?  Or was the date a problem for many (that’s what I assumed).

But the bigger venue suited their stage show.  And I was able to get better pictures and to see thier bassist a lot better than last time.

The previous tour was in support of their then new album, Wallflowers.  They played 8 songs off of the album.  This time, they played six songs from it and really mixed up the older songs nicely.  In fact, they played seven songs that they didn’t play last time (not bad for a 15 song set).

Speaking of 15 songs, last year the middle band missed the show for some reason or another, so it was just the first opener and Jinjer. Jinjer played 16 songs.  On this tour, there were four bands and somehow Jinjer played only one fewer song.

So I really don’t know many Jinjer songs.  I’ve listened to their records and I know what they sound like.  I know that singer Tatiana Shmailyuk has an otherworldy voice capable of remarkable high notes and a low growl that the first time you hear it, you are shocked.

The rest of the band is kind of overlooked by her voice, but once you focus on the music, their musicianship is really impressive.  Guitarist Roman Ibramkhalilov has a great sound–shifting from quiet picking to heavy chords with ease and Bassist Eugene Abdukhanov is all over the fretboard, playing riffs and heavy notes to change up the dynamic of the songs.  Drummer Vladislav Ulasevich also adds wonderful fills and stops and starts to add drama to the songs. I was much more aware of him this time as well–putting in cymbal flourishes and some interesting sound choices for his percussion.

Indeed, this band is hard to focus on live because everyone is worth watching.

With the crowd not packed in, it was easy to avoid the tall guys who lined the crowd (why weren’t they in the pit?)  There was a pit but it was kind of small and kind of mellow (were people tired after three hours of moshing?).  A drunk guy fell on me.

And I enjoyed the whole set.  I loved hearing Tatiana hit those high notes and loved even more her growling.  She was a lot of fun, bouncing around and hopping, ponytails flying around.

By the time the got to “Pisces” (literally the only song I wanted to hear, even though I enjoyed the rest of the set) people had moved and shifted and I wound up pretty close to the stage.  And hearing it live was great.

I knew they were going to do an encore, but I backed out to the back of the crowd to watch it.  This let me sneak out when they finished (and were taking a photo) and grab a shirt before the line formed.  Then I hopped in the car and headed home.

There was no traffic on the way home.   It was a great show and an amazingly efficient experience.  I wouldn’t make a habit of deliberately missing opening bands (especially since I usually wind up liking them), but this was fantastic,

Now that I’ve seen Pisces, I don’t think I need to see Jinjer again.  In fact, I’m probably not going to go to too many more metal shows.  I think I’ve seen everyone I wanted to.

Here’s the skinny on the openers:

Which turned out to be Space of Variations–a Ukrainian band that I hadn’t heard of but who I have since heard were excellent (their CD is intense).  They are squarely in the metalcore vein, but they throw all kinds of tricks into their songs for maximum variety.

Vended–featuring two children of members of Slipknot and which sounded like it would be loud and unrelenting.   Loudersound says

 Vended do sound a hell of a lot like Slipknot. It’s understandable; Griffin Taylor has the DNA of his father, and the roars and barks that come out of his mouth are eerily similar. But, unlike others that have actually tried to ape Taylor Sr. in the past, it really does look, feel and sound natural to Griffin. Musically, there are the kinds of bruising, rhythmic volleys coming from all angles in songs

And P.O.D. a band I thought was Christian and who I thought was long broken up.  Metalstorm tells me they were hugely popular, very briefly.

P.O.D. were a decent nu metal band (which depending on how you view the genre is/isn’t saying much) and did craft several songs that saw the band offer up two key components in being successful; they managed to sound better and different compared the to their competition. Tracks like “Masterpiece Conspiracy” and “Satellite” are good songs, and ones you could hear and quickly recognize who was playing. The band took the ball with this and ran to the top of the charts with that one track you will remember in “Alive”; the other track you may recognize is “Youth Of The Nation”, while those with better memories may also be taken down nostalgia lane with the (cheesy chorus aside) banger “Boom”. These five tracks help elevate Satellite above mere nu metal also-ran material.

Satellite saw the band center their focus both musically and thematically from their prior work; gone were the polemics of “Abortion Is Murder” from Snuff The Punk and in were the ruminations of unity in “Ghetto”. Satellite saw a switch up to a more optimistic tone (and shift to less controversial topics), which would further distinguish the band in a field of identiclone nu metal bands.