| Dope in Maine written by Heidi |
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| Live Photos By Heidi |
--Review, Dope, August 5 at State Theatre in Portland,
Maine-- Guest Writer Heidi
August 5th, 2005: The venue is the respectable old State
Theatre in Portland, Maine: it’s warm outside and even
warmer inside, cigarette smoke heavy in the air despite
the huge letters “No Smoking” emblazoned on the wall
opposite the most heavily used entrance to the seating
area. The ceiling is tall and perhaps this place was once
majestic: now the painted molding seems dingy in the
half-light.
The stage goes dark and the cries of fans in the pit begin
to rise, a beast’s roar comprised of two hundred
individual voices. Sirens rise and the beast is being fed
its favorite dish: the flavor is hard and intense,
simultaneously serious and sarcastic, controlled and
wild. Dope has taken the stage, and it doesn’t matter
whether this place is Portland, Maine, or Portland,
Oregon. It’s all about the show, and Edsel Dope and his
boys sure know how to serve one up.
This is the Jagermeister FREEdom tour, and Dope is here
with Crossbreed, Nocturne, and headliner
Mushroomhead. It’s a Friday night and the tunes from
Dope’s new album, American Apathy (released just last
month), are exactly what the fans want. Edsel has the
crowd
Maine-- Guest Writer Heidi
August 5th, 2005: The venue is the respectable old State
Theatre in Portland, Maine: it’s warm outside and even
warmer inside, cigarette smoke heavy in the air despite
the huge letters “No Smoking” emblazoned on the wall
opposite the most heavily used entrance to the seating
area. The ceiling is tall and perhaps this place was once
majestic: now the painted molding seems dingy in the
half-light.
The stage goes dark and the cries of fans in the pit begin
to rise, a beast’s roar comprised of two hundred
individual voices. Sirens rise and the beast is being fed
its favorite dish: the flavor is hard and intense,
simultaneously serious and sarcastic, controlled and
wild. Dope has taken the stage, and it doesn’t matter
whether this place is Portland, Maine, or Portland,
Oregon. It’s all about the show, and Edsel Dope and his
boys sure know how to serve one up.
This is the Jagermeister FREEdom tour, and Dope is here
with Crossbreed, Nocturne, and headliner
Mushroomhead. It’s a Friday night and the tunes from
Dope’s new album, American Apathy (released just last
month), are exactly what the fans want. Edsel has the
crowd
killing their vocal chords singing along with favorites from past albums, too: “Burn” keeps the beast roaring with its fast
growling chorus, "kill the fucking enemy / kill the fucking enemy / burn, burn, burn the motherfucker down . . . "
The old favorite “Bitch” makes an appearance, too, and “Spin Me Round (The American Psycho mix)” surprises everyone
who hasn’t heard the material on the bonus CD that accompanies the limited edition of American Apathy.
For anyone that hasn’t seen Dope live, it’s hard to put into words the sort of masterwork that frontman Edsel Dope, guitarist
Virus, bassist Brix Milner, and drummer Racci “Sketchy” Shay put on stage. With that much charisma and talent on stage, it’
s hard to know who to watch at any given moment, with Virus ripping amazing riffs on a guitar that has to love its heavy
attentions, and Brix’s basslines keeping the crowd jumping with an
happily enveloping power. Like the phenomenal frontman he is, Edsel’s charging presence is unforgettable: Racci combines
raw animal power and impressive showmanship for a drummer that would steal the show of any lesser band. But Dope is no
lesser band, and this show was nothing short of fantastic.
growling chorus, "kill the fucking enemy / kill the fucking enemy / burn, burn, burn the motherfucker down . . . "
The old favorite “Bitch” makes an appearance, too, and “Spin Me Round (The American Psycho mix)” surprises everyone
who hasn’t heard the material on the bonus CD that accompanies the limited edition of American Apathy.
For anyone that hasn’t seen Dope live, it’s hard to put into words the sort of masterwork that frontman Edsel Dope, guitarist
Virus, bassist Brix Milner, and drummer Racci “Sketchy” Shay put on stage. With that much charisma and talent on stage, it’
s hard to know who to watch at any given moment, with Virus ripping amazing riffs on a guitar that has to love its heavy
attentions, and Brix’s basslines keeping the crowd jumping with an
happily enveloping power. Like the phenomenal frontman he is, Edsel’s charging presence is unforgettable: Racci combines
raw animal power and impressive showmanship for a drummer that would steal the show of any lesser band. But Dope is no
lesser band, and this show was nothing short of fantastic.
