Voivod / Faith No More / Soundgarden

  Soundgarden
  Faith No More
  Voivod

Date:

Monday, January 22, 1990

Venue:

The Trocadero

Location:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Notes:

In support of Nothingface (VoiVod); Louder Than Love (Soundgarden); The Real Thing (Faith No More) Leading things off, Faith No More, wasted no time getting the crowd slamming. On its debut independent release and two subsequent records for a major label, the quintet out of San Francisco was among the first to blend hip-hop with metal.
New singer Mike Patton, who replaced Chuck Mosely on the band's latest release The Real Thing (Slash/Reprise), was clumsy but energetic. Shaking his head at whiplash speed, he powered the group through 40 minutes, including rowdy old material such as "Introduce Yourself" and "We Care a Lot."
Though it no longer stands alone in the genre it helped create, FNM distinguished itself at the Troc with the swirling keyboard sounds of Roddy Bottum and the group's appreciation of melodic choruses.
Second up was Soundgarden, the highlight of the evening, led by frontman extraordinaire Chris Cornell. Whereas FNM drew from rap, Soundgarden, a quartet from Seattle, borrowed from the blues. Big guitar riffs were at the core of every song, seasoned with Mitch Mitchell-style drumming.
On "Hands All Over," from the band's first major-label release, Louder Than Love (A&M), a hypnotizing guitar lead gave way to dark vocal wails by Cornell that conjured up Jim Morrison at his best. Cornell moved into a twisted verse and chorus from the Guess Who's "American Woman" before returning to "Hands."
Other highlights were "Gun" and "I Awake," in which the band manipulated time signatures to lull the crowd before bursting into speed-metal spurts that drove those on the floor into slamming frenzies.
A cover version of Spinal Tap's "Big Bottom" lent a sense of humor to the hourlong performance, which ended with about three minutes of sonic feedback.
Despite its headliner status and superior musicians, Voivod couldn't match Soundgarden's performance. Singer Denis Belanger was far less a force than the other bands' frontmen, though guitarist Denis D'Amour was dazzling. "Missing Sequences" from the group's latest album, Nothingface (Mechanic/MCA), showed off the band's technical skills. But Voivod's sci-fi metal style grew thin after about an hour.

Seen By:

Utah Dave
Ryan Shaw