Ill Niño, w/ Bobaflex at the Cabooze, Minneapolis (05 June 2016)

It’s got to be tough to be the first band on the bill, and even worst when the venue didn’t list the correct show time. The venue showed 5:30pm as start time, but in actuality Auridus played at 5pm. All the bands had 25-min sets, with the exceptions of Bobaflex (30 min) and headliner Ill Niño (hour).

Note: Although the poster lists Terror Universal, the band did not show up for the Cabooze show.

Trigger Armada

Trigger Armada was next, playing songs from a “coming out soon” album. The band features bass/singer Peder Schuller, drummer Jeremy Dobratz, guitarist Bryce Dahlke, rhythm guitarist Jose Chinas, and technician Mikey McDonald.
Since they haven’t recorded any songs, I can only guess at some of their song titles, which included ‘Legacy Lies the Lord’ and ‘Here I Stand’.

Strange Forest

Strange Forest came on stage at 6:20pm. The band (singer/keys Jayson Hughes, drummer Michael Portner, guitarist Dylan Smith, and bassist Nathan Vorwerk) came about when their regular band Civil Definition went on “indefinite hiatus”.

In addition to demos and new songs like ‘Onesy’ (which is what they are calling it), the band played a couple of tracks from their EP Ecosystem, including ‘Breathing Disaster’ and ‘The Weight’. The latter song had missed a whole chorus section, which no one in the audience would missed if it wasn’t for the fact that singer Hughes mentioned it on stage.

Names to Faces

Names to Faces was the poppiest band on the bill, as evident by their Roxette cover ‘Listen to Your Heart’ during their soundcheck. The local band (singer Jeanine Volk, guitars Jeremy Davin, bassist Spencer Short, and drummer Nathan Lillo) drew in a good crowd, showing that they have good local fanbase.

Despite the soundcheck prior to their set, they hit with the dreaded technical difficulty during their first song.

Voodoo Terror Tribe

The first non-Minneapolis band to take the stage was “Dirty” Jersey’s Voodoo Terror Tribe. I thought the band looked and sounded great, even though singer Gil Pz was coughing and clearly sick. Drummer T-Bone was spot on keeping the rhythm, while bassist Primer was looking very scary with his Slipknottish outfit, and guitarist Emir Erkal looking too cool for school.

Highlight of their set was a hard rock version of Billy Idol’s ‘Rebel Yell’, which got the audience dancing and singing along.

Shattered Sun

Texas six-piece Shattered Sun (vocalist Marcos Leal, guitars Daniel Trejo, guitars Jessie Santos, bass Joseph Guajardo, drums Robert Garza, and keys Henry Garza) was a lot of fun. During their title track for Hope Within Hatred (Victory Records), their tour manager showed up on stage holding a sign that read “Needs Weeds” (“or Dabs” in small print).

They ended their set with ‘Return to Serenity’ and ‘No Sympathy’, with singer Leal doing his best Cookie Monster impression.

Bobaflex’s Marty and Shaun

Point Pleasant’s Bobaflex (singer/guitarist Shaun McCoy, guitarist/singer Martin McCoy, guitarist Dave Tipple, drummer, Tommy Johnson, and bassist Jymmy Tolland) took the stage at 9pm.

Bobaflex’s set was divided with the first four songs being song by Shaun McCoy, while his brother Marty would take over the remaining set, starting with ‘Never Coming Back’ (from Charlatan's Web). The band had brought on tour two fog blowers, which looks like two explosive volcanoes. They look fantastic, especially when paired with bright, colorful lights.

Bobaflex

Excited with their new record, Anything That Moves, the band’s 30-min set featured a few songs from the new album, including ‘Start a War’, ‘Mama (Don't Take My Drugs Away)’, ‘Dry Your Eyes’ (this one featured plenty of hand-clapping) and ‘A Spider in the Dark’.

Celebrating the 15 year anniversary of Revolution Revolucion, Ill Niño (singer Cristian Machado, drummer Dave Chavarri, bassist Laz Pina, guitarist Ahrue Luster, rhythm guitarist Diego Verduzco, and percussionist Oscar Santiago) decided to play the album in its entirety.

Since some songs required chord changes or just quick transition, the “Latin Metal” band solved this having a guitar tech working in the background and a dedicated standing pre-tuned guitar that is easily accessed from their lead guitarist Ahrue Luster.

Setlist

Fans familiar with the record eagerly anticipate the faster songs and a small mosh pit would break out often… forcing singer Cristian Machado to comment, ‚ÄúYour numbers are small but, man, you guys have heart.‚Äù

The band, including Frankie their sound guy, must be having fun on this tour, because of the trivia on their setlist. I have to confess, of the over thousands of shows I‚Äôve seen, their setlist my favorite. The setlist reads, ‚ÄúFrankie, fun fact for the day: Did you know that the American Buffalo, despite weighing nearly a ton, the mighty buffalo can run 40 MPH and jump 6 feet vertically! PS Day off tomorrow… f*** yeah!‚Äù

Ill Niño’s Revolution Revolucion Tour continues tonight at the Aftershock Bar & Grill in Merriam, Kansas.