Pasadena face melters Gypsyhawk pulled into Atlanta for the 2nd to last night of their extensive tour as direct support for Valient Thorr. I was so pumped to see my boys once again bringing the rock to the faces of Atlanta and after seeing their last show here opening for The Sword, I could only imagine how fucking righteous this night would be.
Gypsyhawk’s way too short but oh so sweet set opened with a kick to dome as lead singer/bassist Eric Harris announced, “We’re Gypsyhawk from Van Halen’s backyard in Pasadena, CA. This one’s called Overloaded.” With solid wall of volume, the pounding kick drum of Ian Brown hit me in chest like a solid rock n’ roll punch. This made me smile right away and I just knew that this show was going to reach epic levels.
For the most part, the audience seemed to be pretty fucking lame but it was the diehards 
right up against the stage that seemed to feed Gypysyhawk with the raw energy vibes that they needed to take things to the next level. “Gypsyhawk” is where the tone for the rest of the night was set but when they kicked into “State Lines” the band seemed to had hit a monumental take off. Even the most unmoved members of audience seemed to be blown away as they thrust their fists in the air and showed their enthusiasm for this massive jam. “Hedgeking” was absolutely stratospheric and at this point they were peeking unlike I had ever seen them. Guitarists Erik “Ron Houser” Kluiber and Andrew “The Packman” Packer stepped up to center stage each taking some face melting solos and then unleashing their twin harmony leads that without a doubt would’ve earned a huge thumbs up and Guinness pint from Phil Lynott himself.
Gypsyhawk surprised the crap out of everyone by delivering a cover of the Boston classic “Peace of Mind.” I had seen footage of them doing this and kind of felt like they had missed the mark on this one but after seeing it live, while it wasn’t perfect, it had a lot of heart and it was really fun to hear. I’d really prefer to hear them either do another original song or maybe even a cover that is more in their zone as this one seemed to be a toughie at times for Harris vocally. Hell, doing anything with Brad Delp singing must be nearly impossible but kudos to them for rocking the hell out of it.
As the end of the show drew to a close, my wish came true as the band kicked out “Commander of the High Forest.” This song is without a doubt Gypsyhawk’s “rabbit in the hat.” The jazz breakdown in the middle had Harris and Co. grovin’ like villains only to just completely drop the big ol doom metal Sabbath bomb which brought a HUGE roar from the crowd. I don’t give a rat’s ass who you are. If you’re watching a Gypsyhawk show and you’re not into it that’s cool but if by the end of the song you’re not saying, “Fuuuuuuuuck!”, then you have serious issues. Being that The Hawk was already flying high in the stratosphere, “Commander…”, which is already a song of epic proportions, was just slammed into my poor face and proven to me that that song has to be not just Gypsyhawk’s best songs but one of the greatest epic masterpieces I’ve ever heard.
As they left the stage I couldn’t help but just smile and just take in the fact that I had seen one stellar fucking performance. Gypsyhawk blew my mind and even as I type this a day later, I’m still basking in the afterglow of a powerful facemelt. Gypsyhawk made that connection with the people that were giving them the energy and they gave it right back to us twofold. Gypsyhawk is a band that makes me feel a certain level of pride in being a fan of. When a band this fucking good is out there putting out the caliber of music and performance that they do, it’s not hard to imagine me looking around the room with an “I told you so” shit eating grin.
Gypsyhawk Setlist
Overloaded, Gypsyhawk, The Answers (new song), State Lines, Hedgeking, Peace of Mind, Commander of the High Forest
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