Mudvayne Held a Heavy Metal Therapy Session at The Factory in St. Louis Saturday

 

— by Sean Derrick

 

Nu Metal stalwarts Mudvayne continued their successful fall tour with a stop at The Factory in Saint Louis Saturday. With them they brought an idea of therapeutic sessions in the form of live shows, and they are absolutely right.

Touring in celebration of the 25th anniversary of their debut album L.D. 50 Mudvayne brought along their old friends Static-X. The tour also featured relative newcomers Vended, who on Saturday celebrated 1 year since their debut self-titled album dropped.

Mudvayne spent the first half of the show performing select songs from L.D. 50, 9 in all, before finishing up with 6 songs in a “greatest hits”-style setlist.

Vocalist Chad Gray expounded on his idea that attending a metal show, not just a Mudvayne show, can be beneficial as he pleaded with people to leave their worries outside the doors and to take a break from their worries while at a show. He stated that everyone needs a break from the real-world issues that no one is immune from, if only for a few hours.

With Mudvayne/Static-X/Vended’s continued pulse pounding, heart palpitating, monster intense beats and chords the music itself provided much needed stress relief for many of the 3,000 members of the “heavy metal tribe of the St. Louis area”. He went on to describe tribe as family and told the crowd that his shows were safe spaces for this family and implored them to help up “family” if they see them down.

Don’t let anyone tell you Mudvayne has slowed down. I actually had someone ask me “Well, haven’t they aged?” I answered back “yeah, and water is wet. but they still will melt your face at a show.”

With technical precision the band powered through complex numbers like “Prod”, “Under My Skin”, “Dig”, and “Not Falling” with ease.  The band (Gray, bassist Ryan Martinie, guitarists Marcus Rafferty and Jason Kocis who had to fill in for Greg Tribbett who’s wife recently and tragically passed from Cancer, and drummer Matthew McDonough) speared through the varying chord progressions perfectly and made them even sound fuller and heavier 9is that possible?) and as fresh as when they first came out.

Mudvayne, while focusing on their L.D. 50 album for much of the night, also performed a recently released new song. That’s right “Hurt People Hurt People” is the first new Mudvayne material since 2009’s self-titled album. Could we maybe see a new album in the not too distant future? Fingers crossed that happens. Until then we have the live shows to help us make it through this crazy life. More Mudvayne therapy? Yes please!

Static-X who are also celebrating their own 25th anniversary of their Wisconsin Death Trip album, focused much of their sensory overloaded set with 9 of their songs coming from their debut album, as well.

Static-X (Xero – lead vocals, bassist Tony Campos, guitarist Koichi Fukuda, and drummer Ken Jay) all played with a determined vigor while brandishing images of the late Wayne Static on video screens flanking the band.

Their set was a sensory overload of sound, visually stimulating effects, larger than life figures such as X-bot, Disco Witch, and Franken Wayne designed after the band’s founder and frontman, Wayne Static, and interactive items such as beach balls to compliment their intense setlist.

The tour runs through October 26. If you need some therapy (don’t we all?) check out a show. And check out the rest of the photos after the setlist below.

 

Mudvayne Setlist:

Dig

Internal Primates Forever

-1

Severed

Death Blooms

Cradle

Under My Skin

Prod

Nothing to Gein

Dull Boy

Hurt People Hurt People

World So Cold

Determined

Not Falling

Happy?

 

Static-X Setlist

Bled for Days

Wisconsin Death Trip

Fix

Terminator Oscillator

Sweat of the Bud

Love Dump

I Am

The Trance is the Motion

Black and White

Get to the Gone

Dirthouse

Cold

I’m With Stupid

Push It