Round 2 of The Heavyweights at The Stache (inside The Intersection) 1.30.15
The moral of this post, “there is great local metal right under your noses”, begs the question… Why aren’t you sniffing it out? I know for a fucking fact that some of you are sniffing other stuff … sniff more metal!!!
I saw the crowd going there. “Where have these guys been all my life??” asked one dude, like he found a new drug to love. There was some stellar local talent to be heard, seen and smelled out.
There was a great show of support and a surprising number of people hanging out all night (not just coming for their band). AND, tons of guys from other local bands were there too. It all warmed my cold metal heart.
This is an overview of the bands, with some video. My hope is to give you an idea of what the band is like, not necessarily review the show. I’m a fan, not a musician. – Jen
Seraphim – WINNER
Seraphim went for the jugular and came out victorious in round 2. They have that modern metal style, with blast beats (that vibrated my video camera on the other side of the room), a solid balance of screaming and clean vocals, and catchy breakdowns … post-hardcore if you must.
They don’t play a ton, so the crowd was out in force to vote for their favorite band. And that they did. Seraphim is heading to the finals for year #3 …. Can they pull off the win and become Heavyweights Champion 2015??
Society Kills – WINNER
Incorporating so many genres of metal that it’s hard to label them (which is a good thing IMO), Society Kills kicks out elements of thrash, hardcore, punk, and American. And they’re fun to watch and listen to, with awesome energy on stage and catchy hooks to bang your head to.
Ned from WGRD proclaimed his love for the band while introducing them. Something about shots on stage m/ Check out their latest track, Break Light Failure before they hit the finals for the second time on March 7.
Blackgate
Power-thrash-tastic-ness from Grand Rapids, Blackgate is taking the West MI local metal scene by storm. It’s like a modern twist on some good old 80s shit. A couple of Blackgate virgins in the crowd were seen throwing up horns of approval.
Tech problems that threw them off a bit at round 2, and of course it was the only full song I was able to record on video. So, the video is a song on YouTube.
Even though Blackgate didn’t advance to the finals, we still get to see part of the 
band there … as competitors in the Ultimate Shredder Guitar Contest! Roger and Matt will be shredding guitars and Zach defending his crown of 2 years ago …. on the bass. Maybe Ryan and Dave will offer to play backup? LOL
Caligari
Stonery, doomy metal with great riffs, Caligari made an excellent debut at the Heavyweights. They got a great response from a new crowd, partly I think because they have this friendly edge to the doom they create. It’s not all low and grumbly, there are some rock elements that brighten the place up a bit.
They took some time off to regroup and have definitely come back stronger. Look for them playing some of the local watering holes around GR.
The Winners
Seraphim and Society Kills will head to the finals on March 6 in the main room of The Intersection, along with Essentia and Infinite Design from round 1, and 2 more winners from the final prelim Feb 6.
One winner at the finals will pull down a sweet prize package including cash from The Stache & The Intersection, recording time at Darkwave Audio, MoshPitNation gear, Jac Hammer Glass pieces, tattoos from Forever Ink, band merch from Merch Live, heavy metal art from Wicked Illustration and more.
Check out Round 1 Bands >
Show Calendar > All the metal shows in MI in one place m/ m/
