I love a good heavy metal story where a band pays their dues, refines their sound, and figures out exactly who they are and where they are going. It doesn’t happen very often as the band either falls apart from creative differences, gives up too quickly, or quite frankly aren’t good enough. Maria Brink and In This Moment are the embodiment of the hardworking band does good fairy tale, and ironically it seems in many ways they’re just getting started.
Having launched their career on the most forward thinking independent label in my opinion, Century Media let the band do their thing and evolve over a number of years and records. Once they were ready for their breakthrough, the label passed them off to a major, in this case the mighty Atlantic Records. This is how the industry is supposed to work and in this case it’s set up In This Moment perfectly.
Touring in support of their major label debut Black Widow, In This Moment returned to the Bay Area for one of the best shows I have seen all year at the legendary Fillmore. It was the perfect combination of metal, theatrics, storytelling, and musicianship. Front-woman Maria Brink truly took on the persona of a black widow as she pulled the audience into the show and kept them hanging on every note.
As you can see in the accompanying photos, Brink has taken a heavy metal Cirque Du Soleil approach to her performance with elaborate costume changes, effects, dancers etc.—all backed by some very solid and capable metal dudes laying down the sonic soundscapes.
In This Moment’s live show is taking metal into new places as they explore the new while also paying tribute to the classics. It’s both bombastic and soaring, while at times abrasive and brutally heavy. Highlights from the set included “Whore,” the title track from their album Blood, which I think is the band’s definitive masterpiece, along with several new songs from their latest Black Widow including the new single “Sick Like Me” and the crowd favorite “Sex Metal Barbie.”
Look for big things from Maria Brink and company in 2015 as I am sure Atlantic Records will keep this one on their radar well into the New Year—and metal fans should as well.
Check out hi res photos in the gallery. Black Widow is available now on limited edition colored vinyl.
