Let's set the scene.
Middle of October, in the Chicago suburb of West Chicago at the WC Social Club.
A small, few hundred capacity club right on state highway 38. It's a great little venue with awesome sound, and cool stage that gets close to the bands you are there to rock out to.
First up was 'No Shelter', a rather new, local metal band. In an effort to be honest, they were okay. The music was good, their vocalist has room for improvement though. He appears to be new to being a vocalist, but they also appear to be quite young. If they keep practicing, and he keeps working on his vocal skills and abilities, I think that they could have a pretty good sound. The energy is there, there is some passion there too. The talent is there, it needs some refinement though.
Taking the stage next was 'St. October', this was debut show in Chicago. I saw them previously at a monster fest in Rock Island, Il back over the summer. Full disclosure, they are friends of mine, but that isn't stopping me from an honest review of their performance. You could tell they were nervous, first show in Chicagoland, and they were opening for a band that they are massive fans of. Once they hit the stage though, they flipped that switch and it was show time. 'St. October' is a very well rehearsed, and really tight band. They nailed it, Monica's vocals were on point, their new drummer sounded great, everything was on point. I think they definitely gained many new fans that night, and will hopefully be returning to the Chicagoland sooner than later.
'Bachelor's Grove' took the stage next. Last time I saw them, I described the singer Abby as an “adorable little psychopath” with a look and style akin to Bellatrix Lestrange. Their energy on stage is almost unmatched. Abby is always bouncing, jumping and running around. I wish I had that much energy. They have improved even in the short amount of time since I last saw them. They're actually celebrating a recent release of a brand new full length album as of this writing. They played some songs off of it, and everything sounded great. They are quickly becoming one of my favorite Chicago-area bands.
'The Illogical' were interesting. Not a bad interesting, more of a I'm not sure what the hell I watched lol. They were great, very interesting look for sure. Very much evil clowns, very much punk and metal based. Chaotic, and raw is really how I can describe their sound. The last 3 or 4 songs of their set their singer, Eddie, spent it out in the crowd on the floor, with people circling around him like some sort of ritual was happening. It was quite the sight, and very memorable. The music was good, they're worth checking out if you get the chance.
Moving onto the main event, the man, the myth, Mr. Mother Fucker, the Duke of Spook. 'Wednesday 13'. I am new to Wednesday 13 and his music, what I had heard leading up to the show I enjoyed though. I am so glad that I had the chance to cover this show. What a fantastic concert. He has been around for 30 years this year, he was also famously in 'Murderdolls' with the late Joey Jordison. Obviously a bunch of new songs off of 'Horrifier' were played. The crowd really loved hearing the new songs live, song like “You're So Hideous”, “Insides Out”, and a new crowd favorite as stated by Wednesday himself, “Good Day to Be a Bad Guy”. It really is an absolute banger and a total earworm, especially live. In tribute to fallen Joey Jordison, they played “Nowhere”, which was a 'Murderdolls' song. The crowd was super into it, and sang along to the entire song.
Wednesday is a great frontman, and really knows how to work the crowd and be entertaining. He has developed a lot of crowd skills over his storied career, and it really shows. His love of performing isn't lost on anyone, it's very clear he loves what he is doing. My favorite thing that he said on stage that night was “Today is Wednesday the 12th....I WAS THIS FUCKING CLOSE”.
They played “Keep Watching the Skies” before the encore break. Most bands will play their “final” song, walk off and come back for 1 or 2 more songs after a minute or 2. Long enough to take a quick breather. Not 'Wednesday 13'. After their encore break, they came back for 4 more songs. Ultimately ending their career spanning set with another 'Murderdolls' song, “I Love to Say Fuck”. Finishing the night out with that song was just perfect. The umbrella with an image of a middle finger was the cherry on top. The crowd went home happy, there is no denying it.
I had a great time, all the bands were great, and Wednesday himself was fantastic. This tour is nearing the end, but whenever he plays near you next, do yourself a favor and go see the show. You won't regret it.
-Bill “Furious” Groen
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Links
Wednesday 13
Website: https://officialwednesday13.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/officialwed13
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrmotherfucker13/
The Illogical
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pankuguranji
Bachelor's Grove
Website: https://www.bachelorsgroveband.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bachelorsgroveband
St. October
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/St.October13