Pathfinder Metalfest VI
Death of Kings, Argus, Draekon, Divinity Compromised, Infectious
July 12, 2013
Marietta, GA – 120 Music Hall
Once again, local metal aficionado and promoter Hoyt Gregory Parris pulled together some of the country’s finest underground metal bands for 2013’s Pathfinder Metalfest VI. As with past festivals, this year’s festival was supposed to be headlined by a bigger named band and this year was supposed to be headlined by 80’s metal titans Leatherwolf. At nearly the last minute, Leatherwolf pulled out of the festival leaving Hoyt scrambling to make last minute shuffles and decisions. In true “the show must go on” fashion, Hoyt recruited local epic/power/death/thrash band Death of Kings to secure the closing slot.
Upon getting to the venue, I was reminded about just how much I like this venue. I love it when the music room area is closed off and they make it a “non-smoking” show. This always makes for a good night as there is nothing worse than being in a small room filled with smoke. I was greeted by a very frazzled but smiling Hoyt and secured my VIP pass for the show. I found an empty table and enjoyed a beer while I watching everyone slowly fill the room. The overall draw for this festival was probably the smallest I have seen but this is understandable. When you’re “bigger name” headliner pulls out and you’re left with nothing but smaller named national acts, this is a hard draw but proved to be a solid line up nonetheless.
Infectious – Kennesaw, GA
First up was Infectious from Kennesaw, GA. I keep fighting the urge to type “Infections” but that’s beside the point. This band of extremely young kids took the stage to open things up. These kids looked so young that they pretty much could’ve been born yesterday. Ok, that’s a bit stretching it but man, these kids looked all of 16, 17 at the most. Infectious played a mix of what sounded to be modern meets some classic metal. These kids obviously listen to some of the classics because their songs featured some pretty sweet tempo changes ala Iron Maiden and Metallica. The band seemed to be a little nervous but by the 2nd song they seemed to be in the groove and totally comfortable. They had a great stage presence and seemed to be really enjoying themselves. Infectious were better than most “seasoned” local acts I’ve seen but they still have plenty of room to grow.
The band’s set was made up of all original material but the band did do a cover of “Dead 
Skin Mask” by Slayer and while not the best choice of cover, they showed that they definitely have the chops to pull off a song like that. The singer seemed to be having trouble channeling that intensity and grit that pushes that song but musically it was spot on. I don’t know the names of the songs but the band did close with a song that their singer said was “a super old classic Infectious song!” I just kinda laughed and that and thought “super old? What? 2010?” Lead singer/guitarist Richard Hanson seems to be the weak link in this band though as I felt that his voice lacked any kind of real dynamics or power. This isn’t to say that he won’t get better at it. He seemed to be embracing a more modern “metal” kind of vocals like Avenged Sevenfold or some band like that. I can only hope that maybe he’ll dive into some more classic metal bands and find that power and dynamic to take his band to another level. The MVP of this band was definitely lead guitarist Avery Delozier. This dude has what it takes to really become a force to be reckoned with as a metal guitarist.
All in all Infectious is off to a great start. I wasn’t completely blown away but I was definitely pleasantly surprised and impressed with the musicianship and performance of these young lads. I would love to see where they’re at in a couple of years and see what they can grow into. If they can just tighten up their songs a bit, polish their performance, and work on the vocals a bit, these kids could be one of the better bands in town.
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Divinity Compromised – Chicago, IL
Up next was Divinity Compromised and their huge ass drum kit! When I saw that huge double bass kit enter the stage area I just smiled and thought to myself, “This is either going to be amazing or not so much.” This was yet another band I had not heard one single note of so it was exciting to stand there in wonder. That band took the stage opening with “Children of a Dead God” and right out of the gates I was floored by how amazingly tight and dynamic they were. Think Epica meets Dream Theater meets Iron Maiden meets Savatage. Divinity Compromised has managed to forge a truly unique and appealing blend of metal by combining the symphonic elements of Epica and Savatage, the progressive nature of Dream Theater, and the epic harmony guitar driven sound of Iron Maiden with a singer who sounds like the bastard child of Paul DiAnna, Bruce Dickinson, and Jon Oliva.
Musically, Divinity Compromised blew me away but their live performance seemed to lack the power and dynamics that their music had. Lead singer Lothar Keller and bassist Andy
Bunk totally carried the show as they seemed to be the only ones that really exuded any kind of energy or physical passion in the performance. Guitarist Jeff Treadwell at times was so melancholy and still that I had to fight the urge to go hold a mirror under his face to make sure he was still breathing. When you’re playing music this fucking epic, I just don’t’ get how you couldn’t move to it. If you don’t look moved and you’re the one playing it, it kind of makes it hard for your audience to be moved. This is where Keller and Bunk totally stepped it up and created a performance worth watching.
Divinity Compromised’s set was a primo display of epic metal originals but the band really shined when they delivered an outstanding cover of the Savatage classic “Hall of the Mountain King.” Keller really showcased his ode to Jon Oliva and pushed his vocals to the limit which brought on a huge roar from the crowd and truly seemed to blow everyone away. Divinity Compromised really blew me away and made a hell of a first impression. Even as bored as their guitarist looked, I would still go see these guys again because the songs were so fucking good and watching Lothar Keller sing alone is worth the price of admission. This is without a doubt a band I will be keeping a close eye on.
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Draekon – Indianapolis, IN
I also want to take this time to put in my two cents about the jackass who was the “MC” of the evening. I’m not sure who that guy was but he was a drunken mess that did nothing more than make an ass out of himself before each band’s set. He walked on stage, a huge hot mess, and announced Draekon as Argus. Really? How insulting and embarrassing is it that you can’t even get the band’s name right? The band just kind of looked on as if to say, “Get the fuck out of here dude.” IT’s guys like this that really piss me off. People like this guy are what set back Metalheads 20 steps because it just feeds into that stereotype that Metalheads are just drunken buffoons. If this had been my festival, I would’ve been embarrassed that this guy was representing me as an MC. Totally tasteless and ridiculous.
Once the drunk idiot left the stage, Draekon took the stage next and I could tell right away that this was going to be a pretty magical performance. There were only a handful of people pressed up against the barricade but these folks were there for Draekon. These guys were the “buzz” of the night without a doubt and I overheard a few folks talking about how they were so blown away by them the last time they were here for Metalfest V. At Metalfest V, Draekon really caught my ear and they were one of those bands that totally won me over with their music. They still seemed like they were finding their ground a bit as a live band but there was something about them that told me, “Don, this is a band to watch out for.”
Well, one year later, Draekon took the stage to a hefty roar from the sparse but extremely 
vocal fans up front. As the band slammed right into “Path to Fate” from their upcoming EP Only Ashes Remain, I knew right away I was witnessing something really fucking magical. The band was playing so fucking good and there was looseness to their chemistry that wasn’t there the first time I saw them. Draekon then delivered “The Value of All” from Prelude to Tragedy and this was where the band absolutely left the stratosphere. Drummer Stanford Stivers just may be the best metal drummer you’ve never heard of and this song had him just tearing shit up while guitarist Joshua Simpson owned faces left and right as he ripped notes with style and precision. From this point on Draekon was absolutely untouchable as they soared to that next level taking all of us with them. As the band played, I surveyed the room only to see people who were once standing and sitting in the back making their way to the stage to take it all in. You could see the surprise and excitement on singer Chad Barnes’ face as the reaction to this performance was a roar filling the room.
Barnes and Co. really drove their way too short but epic performance home with “Darkness Falls” which brought on an Iron Maiden audience like reaction which had everyone pumping their fists and singing the chorus at the top of their lungs. Barnes really took ownership of that stage and you could feel the energy that was coming from him. The crowd could feel it and they gave it right back only to have it reciprocated two fold by Barnes and his mates. Closing out this truly electrifying performance was “Only Ashes Remain”, the title track from their forthcoming EP. Draekon received a huge response from the crowd and I just couldn’t help but stick my chest out and feel a sense of pride. This was a truly magical performance and one that solidified Draekon as not just the kings of Metalfest VI but as one of my favorite bands.
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Argus – Pittsburgh, PA
Originally slated to go on 2nd to last with Pittsburgh, PA’s Argus closing out the night. At the last minute, Death of Kings was moved to the closing slot which I actually was happy about. I’ve seen Death of Kings three times and have pretty much decided that they are not the band for me. I was glad that Argus was taking the stage earlier than planned but in all honesty, I felt like at this point I had already seen the best of the best.
Argus took the stage like seasoned veterans with a twin guitar attack that was very reminiscent to the classic NWOBHM movement. Billing themselves as “doom-tinged” is a 
very accurate thing because these guys aren’t really “doom.” Trust me, this is a good thing because while they do have a bit of a “doom” element, it’s only a small piece of their sound. Argus at times even exuded a kind of Dio-era Rainbow vibe and lead singer Butch Balich exudes this kind of Dio meets Ozzy kind of stage persona. You can tell he’s completely connected and engaged with the songs and this makes the audience feel like they want to be part of this connection along with him. While the band’s performance was a great performance, I just had a hard time making that connection with them. These guys were fucking stellar musicians but their songs really lacked any dynamics that set them apart from each other. At times, I kind of felt bored by their songs but it was their energy and performance that kept me from completely losing touch with them. Their closing song “Devils Devils” was a really awesome song that I felt stood out from the rest of them. At least they chose a great song to close with that was engaging.
I’m sure I would enjoy seeing Argus live again as I really did dig their live set. Looking back on it now, I wonder if it’s just that it was such a downer for me because I felt that Draekon had played this amazing set. In my opinion, Draekon was really hard to follow because I felt that they had ruled the night. Maybe if Argus had gone one before Draekon I would’ve felt differently so because of that, I wouldn’t be so quick to write off Argus. I’d also like to give these guys albums a listen to see if that connection can be made. Maybe I will hear and experience something that I didn’t in their performance.
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Death of Kings – Atlanta, GA
Didn’t stick around for their set. I’m sure there was a lot of yelling and heavy use of the word “Fuck.”
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All in all, I would call Pathfinder Metalfest VI a huge success. It may not have looked like it numbers wise but Hoyt once again brought some of the best metal bands I just may have never seen or heard together for one night to open everyone up to something new. It’s a pretty thankless job but I would like to take this time to tell Hoyt thank you. As a nearly 40 year old metal fan, it’s his concerts that have opened my horizons to some of the best underground, independent metal out there. For anyone that has taken in these shows, you know what I’m talking. For those of you that didn’t, you sadly missed out and some of the best that metal has to offer.
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