I don’t think the Valley Bar in Phoenix, AZ, was ready for this tour with Greg Puciato, Escuela Grind, Deaf Club, and Trace Amount. This was a packed lineup, and honestly, I know first hand that both Deaf Club and Escuela grind bring the heat after seeing them multiple times.
Opening up the night was Trace Amount, an electronic screaming act. It reminded me of a combination of Aphex Twin and Venetian Snares.
Deaf Club is probably one of my favorite bands to come out in the past couple of years. Every time I see this band, they keep getting on bigger tours, and I’m here for it. Fronted by the eccentric Justin Pearson (The Locust, Deadcross), guitarist Brian Amalifitano (ACxDC), Jason Klein (Run with the Hunted), and Scott Osment (weak flesh), watching Deaf Club is like going through puberty; it’s awkward, you’re confused, all while feeling good in certain areas, and you’ll never experience anything like it.
Up next was Escuela Grind, which is like Richard Simmons on crack cocaine while dancing on a stripper pole. It’s grindcore/power violence with a hint of death metal. They hit you with a ton of bricks and are straight-up unapologetic. Lead singer Katrina is absolutely insane, with a death stare that would have single-handedly brought down the Berlin Wall. I’ve watched this band grow over the years, and honestly, they just keep getting better! Their cover of ‘The Message ‘ by Grand Master Flash was goddamn epic, and I can’t wait for them to come back into Phoenix to rip it a new asshole. I wanted to give a huge shout out to Katrina for standing up for trans rights and making it clear that Escuela Grind is an ally to the trans community everywhere.
Greg Puciato announced he was embarking on his solo tour after finishing the recent tour with Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains). This was my first time seeing him play his solo stuff, and I couldn’t have been more impressed. It’s crazy to think I saw Greg with The Dillinger Escape Plan at the world-famous Roxy in Hollywood, CA, right after ‘Irony is a Dead Scene” was released with ‘Mike Patton’ on vocals. There was a rumor that Mike Patton was going to be singing that night, as none of us knew who exactly was singing for Dillinger. Greg Puciato came out like a bat in hell, and the rest is history. I’ve seen The Dillinger Escape Plan over a dozen times, and seeing Greg progress as a vocalist over the years has been impressive. With every project he has been in, he takes his vocals to another level. Seeing him on this solo tour and backing vocals for Jerry Cantrell proved just that. The only difference with this tour is that he gets to be his crazy self and get out in the crowd. His vocal range is downright insane at this point, and it shows with his recent work with this band, ‘The Black Queen’. Everyone at the Valley Bar was feeding off of Greg’s energy, which, I might add, is endless. Nothing stops this guy, as he’s the same crazy vocalist. A couple highlights of the night were when Justin Pearson snuck up on stage to hand Greg a vegan donut from Sojos Donuts in Mesa, AZ! The smile on Greg’s face said everything as he tried to sing and eat the donut.
Before they went into the song ‘Lowered,” Greg made a comment about how nice it was to have a couple of friends in the crowd. As he invited Reba from Code Orange up to sing the song ‘Lowered,” Greg then threw a huge thank you to Max Cavalera (Soulfly, Killer Be Killed) for being at the show. As the night was coming to an end, Greg and company walked off stage to talk to Max and his wife Gloria backstage, and then he ran back on stage to sing the Alice in Chains cover of ‘Theme Bones’.
Setlist
