| Show Machines I of Loving Grace Redefine Musical ical Dave Hansen Concert Review THE group that has been labeled by many people as s Nine Inch Nails but peppier according to Ma Machines hines of Loving Grace singer and lyric writer Scott Benzel Benzel Benzel Ben- Ben zel delivered intellect and a focused message in an ear assault ing rendition Friday Feb 25 at Salt Lake City club Its an easy way way- out to place a band in a certain category by comparisons comparisons comparisons com com- instead of really describing describing describing ing what they sound like said Mike Fisher In a music world with plenty of industrial groups that are hard- hard driving and often darkly tainted Machines of Loving Grace strive to break way sway from labels and categories that prevail in the market We hope people are willing to tobe tobe be open-minded open and listen to what's being played We try to move away from that being categorized I think its it's especially hard for journalists Benzel said in ina a reflective tone as he munched on onan onan an ap apple sitting legged cross-legged in the upstairs Trent the mind behind Nine Inch Nails helped the band with the remix of their single Bum Like Brilliant Trash rash at t Jackies Jackie's Funeral from their debut effort He was as nice casual and offered to h help lp us out which h was great We like what he does and respect him Benzel said A smile crept over his face as he said But the blessing has sort of become become become be be- come a curse in the way that his name is always placed with ours But no doubt as the Machines continue to tour and create the music they do so well the Nine Inch Nails surely will decrease in J size and disappear from the magazine and newspaper articles involving them The Machines stopped at t last October with headlining band My Life With mth the Thrill Kill Kult t. Touring w with th the Thrill Kill Kult was definitely the craziest a alot alot alot lot of fun But were we're having a great time right now and things are running running running run run- ning better and smoother They now are headlining their own tour to promote the latest effort effort effort ef ef- ef- ef fort Concentration This has proved profi profitable table and reassuring for the bandIts bandIts bandIts band Its Concentration done what we wanted it nice to see people recognize the songs now and sing along with you Benzel said through a you know what I mean smile Singing along was one of the many actions the crowd got into at atthe atthe atthe the show as an extended performance performance performance mance of Butterfly Wings was performed The single raiding airwaves airwaves airwaves air air- waves across the nation had con con- goers cert-goers shouting Dont place faith in unison with Benzel's protruding voice of screaming rage Butterfly Wings' Wings really opened things up for us qs Its It's put us on a level of tour Benzel said in relation to how Concentration is doing We also have a new song on the soundtrack for a film called The Crow that should be out in two or three months G Machines played playe the new song g plus favorites from Concentration tion Blue and white light emanated from a thick fog at times covering the band during the grinding guitar of Stuart Kup Kupers rs Fishers Fisher's deep and sometimes sometimes sometimes some some- times sounding eerie-sounding keyboards the definite producing power-producing bass of Ray and the on dead-on timing of Brad Kemp I p r r r 4 l v r t j 9 gf ly yx p I Contributor Mertyn Merlyn Rosenberg Machines of Loving Grace give a hard-driving hard concentrated message to the crowd at Friday Feb 25 pounding the drums Benzel's multi-levelled multi voice ranging from steady melody to whispers growls and screams completed the feel of passion and ritual buzzing buzzing hardcore with class Trigger For Happiness opened the Machines' Machines spree of Concentration Concentration Concentration tion songs along with the sinister sounds of Lilith Eve and Limi Limiter ter The sound system wasn't quite up to par this time through leaving songs not quite as clear as they would have liked Benzel thanked the crowd for bearing with them through the technical ties But little distortion aside the Machines made sure that the crowd was In I n fact crowded floor moshers were get get- I ting a little out of control but Benzel Benzel Benzel Ben Ben- zel repeatedly fell back into the crowd members members' arms surfing the show of hands below him Acceleration was performed perform d with precision and power overdrive with Fisher adding his own percussion percussion percussion percus percus- sion along with Kemp Bum Like Brilliant Trash at Jackies Jackie's Funeral Ancestor Cult and Albert Speer also were performed performed performed per per- formed with emotional force pleasing the ridden energy-ridden crowd Albert Speer was an architect who became a Nazi leader Benzel said Speer was charged with organizing organizing organizing or or- Hitler's rallies and jailed then wrote a book claiming his human decency We compared the rise of Nazism to contemporary mass media control Concentration is about restraint control and getting focused We Wed d dont don't nt want to cram politics down the throats of ever everyone one but people need to tobe be aware Benzel said The darkness prevailing g the lyrics on Concentration deal directly with Benzel's personal feelings I was pretty pissed off Benzel said with a light smirk I was living on friends floors record companies weren't was just a dark phase of my life Watching the elections on TV didn't help much either he said laughingly But Im I'm happy now The Loving Machines left the stage at the end of their hour-an-a- hour half set and came back for an extra song leaving the crowd happy as well I |
