Now That's Class is a small club nestled in between Cleveland proper and Lakewood. They frequently host local and regional punk, indie, and metal shows and have a skateboard ramp inside of an old double storefront. Walking in, the place reminded me of countless dive punk bars I've been to in the past to see shows. My buddy paid $5 for our two beers, and it felt like home. The walls were covered in stickers and graffiti and one shelf behind the bar was a veritable shrine to Rodney Dangerfield, complete with something that looked like a cookie jar shaped like Rodney's head, a vinyl copy of "Rappin' Rodney" and the No Respect board game. The first band was just performing their sound check as we entered.
Where Angels Rot tended to have good energy and played black/death metal to a handful of people. They were young and the drummer had a very big kit that he seemed a little lost behind. They were at their best when playing the slower, almost dirge-like interludes that peppered most of their songs. But when they kicked into faster tempos the double bass drums tended to muddy and lag. They played well individually but need more time together to gel as a group. The guitarist stood out as the talent in the group, taking on both lead and rhythm duties in the four-piece.
The second band, Subtype Zero, played incredibly well together and were a lot of fun to watch. They played a thrashier, shreddier metal that had hints of Slayer and Suicidal Tendencies groove to it. The two guitarists traded leads, the bassist added harmonics to the composition, and the drummer was much more at home behind his set.
Hammr is a 3-piece grind metal group. The members are a bit older and fit well into their roles. Their brand of metal isn't one that I normally listen to, but it was a lot of fun to watch live. The highlight of their set for me was watching the singer switch out his bass for a guitar after the first song. He had initially strapped on the bass and played through their opener but then set it on top of his stack, I thought to change a string or tune. But then he grabbed a gig bag as though he had forgotten it and got out another guitar. The band played the rest of the set with the bass atop the amp and playing two guitars.
The headliner for the night, Devil Master from Philly, put on a great show beginning with setting up. My buddy and I had been watching a dude in a long leather duster through the whole show because he looked like someone from '80s goth metal band Christian Death. I missed the beginning of the set up because I had gone to use the restroom and buy a beer, but when I got back I saw Christian Death stringing artificial cobweb from a nail on the wall to the microphone in the center of the stage. The band packed the tiny stage with its 6 members, the largest band of the night. The band played a punk-infused black metal, a crossover I had not heard much of before. Among other highlights of the show was the keyboard player who made no facial expressions and barely moved the entire show. For many of the songs, his hands were placed atop his keyboard, fingers draped over the front of it. It was a strong performance choice, but fun as hell to watch amid the frenetic dancing and gesturing of the rest of the band.
The show was great and here it is, nearly 12 hours later and my ears are still ringing. All four bands reminded me of what I loved about going to shows in Cleveland when I was young. The small venue started out rather sparsely attended but was packed by the time the headliner wrapped. A few people moshed just in front of the stage and a few feet in front of where I stood and there was an overwhelmingly open and welcoming atmosphere. This is a place I want to go back to see more shows.
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