Concert Review: Scream the Prayer Tour 2009

The Scream the Prayer Tour made its stop in Nashville on Saturday, July 18, at Rocketown. Ten bands aiming to encourage the body of Christ and entertain those to whom this makes no sense. “The fight is over your souls!” proclaims Sleeping Giant. Clearly this music is aimed at a particular audience. The screams and group recitation of lyrics obviously speak to the hearts of the lonely and discouraged within the Church. Statements of faith, of frustration with complacency, of spite for judgmental acts, are screamed in unison. Often, and rightly so, the vocalists hand over the microphone to the crowd to enjoy the passion their words have instilled. I can’t say for sure that anyone left that place any different than when they came. I would like to think so.

Due to the long line of concert-goers waiting to get inside I missed a few of the opening acts. As I entered the main room Agraceful was finishing their set. I was unable to see Corpus Christi or Before Their Eyes as they went on before Agraceful. I soon found a great vantage point in the balcony while For Today was preparing for their set. As they were running their sound check the room became more and more packed in with people.

For Today laid down non-stop metal with the scream and precision guitar technique one would expect. Song after song came end to end creating new levels of intensity and engaging the audience with every new verse. It felt like 15 minutes before their first tuning break. Lead Singer Mattie Montgomery was not afraid to speak the gospel and call out their Church for its laziness when it comes to assisting their community. He laid down the word spurred on by the Fire inside. “All hell will not stand against us, for only those who choose to die will claim the life I have for them. So now the question stands: Would you die for me?” Lyrics from Immanuel (The Redeemer).

In what felt like deflation Gwen Stacy began their set. They played middle of the road hardcore, which in and of it self is not too terribly bad, but they were un-engaging. Shows sometimes can be hit or miss for bands night to night. This night, Gwen Stacy, was a miss.

To pick things back up Oh Sleeper began their set. If you are familiar with this music style and unfamiliar with this band, you need to check them out; excellent metal from Ft. Worth Texas. They engaged the crowed with every song handing the mic over to the mass of bodies more than once. They graced us with a new song. The composition was introduced with the encouragement to sing along with the chorus. “We will sing to a world reborn from suffering;” the place joined in as if they each person was thinking of someone else.

It was after their set that I realized the balcony was no place to view this show. I promptly found a spot near the stage as Project 86 began to setup. If you are like me, you might have seen Project 86 as they made their rounds with P.O.D. a while back. Not many things are as good as you remember. They are much better than I remember. Andrew Schwab is a dynamic front man whose vocal style and stage presence command your attention. Of course, they played songs from their new album Picket Fence Cartel, which had a fresh intensity and aggressive posture.

The highlight from their set had to be when they brought out “Sincerely, Ichobod.” Building with an almost faint tracked piano intro, the place erupted with, “OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!!!” Then Schwab screamed. “We’ll take it all back and then some/ Never again…Off with your head/ We’ll cut out all that’s a hindrance/ Bleed the old man. Off with your head.” This song was sung almost entirely from the crowd. As Andrew shouted one line he craned the microphone into the compressed group so they could join him in railing against humanity’s sinful condition.

Following Project 86 was A Plea for Purging. They had just made the long trek back from Minnesota where they played the Sunshine Festival. Not much about their set was incredibly impressive. However, if you wanted to avoid being spat on you would have to make sure you were at least 20 feet from the stage. At least I could say they didn’t ruin the momentum and spirit created by the bands before them.

A Plea for Purging left the stage as Sleeping Giant was gearing up. I didn’t know what I was about to see. In fact, on the first listen I didn’t find their album particularly exceptional. The first half of their set was good, but nothing really stood out. After about five songs lead vocalist, Thom Green, began to speak. He laid bare a particular incident in his once dark past. The act is not important; however, from that point on, he had the complete attention of every one in that room. Green gave a heartfelt presentation of the gospel that seemed rather unique to any metal show I’ve been to. This was not a passing “If anyone is going through problems come talk to us” type of outreach, it was a true extension of grace and example of how it can change a life.

Soon after Green called for anyone backstage to come forward and stand with him. Members from some of the other bands as well as staff members lined the stage and readied themselves for a hardcore worship service. Drummers took pieces of their kits and set them up on the main speaker towers. They then proceeded to climb up and hammer out an almost tribal beat. The next 20 minutes were filled with call and response worship shouting for the Church to prepare and praise to their maker.

Once Sleeping Giant finished playing the house music came up with “She’s just a small town girl.” To which the room properly responded “Living in a lonely world.” It seemed the whole venue finished the first verse flawlessly. You have to appreciate the humor here coming off of a performance high.

For me this was the crescendo. Following Sleeping Giant were two heavy hitters of the genre’, The Chariot, and Haste the Day. I swore after I gave The Chariot a bad review on Wars and Rumors of Wars I said I would see them live in order to get the full The Chariot effect. Well, they were worth sticking around for. Not necessarily for their music but definitely for the performance. I don’t consider it a spoiler to tell you they appeared quite insane. Like an animal just released from captivity, their set included many reckless stage dives as well as some serious guitar tossing. During one song, Josh Scogin, lead vocalist, began the song playing the bass. I am not so much sure he was playing it as much as he was banging it into things. He then proceeded to toss it far into the air and across the stage to bassist Jonathan (KC Wolf) Kindler. Thankfully Kindler caught the bass. I hate to see good instruments abused, even if it is rather entertaining.

Haste the Day went on and showed why they are the headlining act. They were as professional as metal can get. Of course the crowd loved them. However, I didn’t see much that I would consider impressive. It seemed like the polar opposite to The Chariot where I didn’t care for the music but the show was captivating.

I recognize that this type of music can cause side effects in some such as headaches, confusion, and an overwhelming urge to escape the source of one’s personal sonic nightmare. However, for the part of society that finds enjoyment in red faced screaming till you’re hoarse, intense precision rhythm with heavy de-tuned guitars, the Scream the Prayer Tour has much of what you might desire. If you reside in one of the remaining cities on this tour make it your point to get a ticket and enjoy seven hours of straight metal mixed with a gospel message.

“We will resist our sin to the point of blood, and we will wear our scars like badges of honor. But let our hope cry out that our God is greater than the pain of persecution” (For Today, “Saul of Tarsus (The Messenger),” Portraits. 2009).

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