Go For The Opener: Trap Them 'cores the crowd for The Black Dahlia Murder
Article Tools
Welcome to Go For the Opener, in which we at The A.V. Club plead that if you’re getting ready to see a big concert, be sure to get there early and pay attention to the opening acts.
The big show: The Black Dahlia Murder, Ottobar, Monday, Nov. 2, 7:30 p.m.
The openers: Trap Them, Skeletonwitch, and Toxic Holocaust
Why you should listen: To reach The Black Dahlia Murder’s set of melodic metalcore on Saturday, concertgoers will first do battle with Salem, N.H.'s Trap Them, the equivalent of an eight-armed monster leaping from a dumpster and blindly chucking hammers toward everyone in its vicinity. On 2008’s Seizures In Barren Praise, the band deconstructs modern grindcore to its crusty punk roots and builds it back up with growling layers of bass and guitar distortion, blitzkrieg drum blasts, and tortured political (and personal) angst. Pulling as much from the frenzied hardcore of Black Flag as it does from Napalm Death, Trap Them’s "core" deliberately drowns out its metal influence. Its energetic and blisteringly loud live set (bring earplugs) should provide a refreshing contrast to Dahlia’s also-punishing melodic blasts.
