With Boyhollow
10.26.10 | Ogden Theatre
Despite freezing temperatures and a biting wind, fans lined up outside the Ogden for Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77. Instead of scaring people off, the cold weather kept everyone inside and dancing for the entirety of the concert.
About thirty minutes after doors opened at 9 p.m., Boyhollow took the stage and got the crowd amply warmed up for Bloody Beetroots. Offering up some dub cuts, he sent everyone into a frenzy with what sounded like the hippest iTunes playlist ever.
Bloody Beetroots came out around 10:40 and started off with a slow, simple, synthed-out track before unleashing some barely-audible-over-the-beat vocals and rippin' guitar riffs. The act didn't miss a beat for the first four songs. Even more impressive, the dudes clearly seemed to be shooting from the hip, playing off the vibe in the venue and listening to each other.
There were rumors floating around that Steve Aoki might show up, but those were quashed pretty quickly when the Beetroots played "WARP," a song that features him. They mixed it into an old Refused sample called "New Noise"; the track's got an insane buildup, but the Beetroots did it justice.
The drummer, in all his masked-marauder-ness, absolutely fucking destroyed his drum set. About four songs deep, Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo pointed over to drummer Edward Grinch and let him shine in the spotlight for a minute. In response, Grinch unleashed some serious pent-up aggression on his drumheads for two minutes straight. The alternative drum roll played over a thunderous double bass and seizing hi-hat pretty much stole the show.
The crowd was amped the entire night. It was impossible to move in the pit unless you were jumping with one fist in the air -- for the entire show. The energy was non-stop from the first song until the last water bottle (of many) tossed from behind the drum set. The encore proved to be even better. It was a sick encore, and as refreshing as walking outside into the frigid air was afterward, I was ready to hear more.
CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK Personal Bias: I like the Beetroots a lot and had high expectations for this show. Expectations were completely met. Random Detail: The Bloody Beetroots never print song lists; it's just improv on stage -- that's chemistry. By The Way: The band didn't have a merch booth set up. I was a bit surprised by this, except a lot of people were wearing homemade Beetroots shirts. Maybe it's their niche.
