‘Twas the night of the super blue blood moon of death and dismemberment, and headlining The Way Forward Tour was Intervals, the progressive instrumental rock band from Toronto. Los Angeles marked the sixth stop of the fully instrumental tour as Jason Richardson, Mestis, Nick Johnston, and Night Verses joined Intervals as supporting bands. I have to preface this by saying it feels somewhat “wrong” to try and describe an entirely instrumental set by using words, but I’ll give it a try.
Night Verses began this Tuesday night with a calm jam session that was a great way to ease into the long night of instrumental music. Their slower tempo made for some pretty epic breakdowns that reminded me of Silent Planet. The set was instrumental in its entirety except for a few moments where the drummer stood up on his drum kit and screamed at the crowd.
Nick Johnston played next and kept the vibe pretty chill as well. The hour of the super blue blood moon of death and dismemberment was not yet upon us. Loud screams from the back would echo through the room as Nick and the band rocked out to their lengthy guitar solos and tasty riffs.
The stomach rumblings began as Mestis jumped on stage. The 3 piece band began the heavy portion of the night as Javier of Animals As Leaders rocked an 8 string guitar. There were a few minor hiccups throughout the set but it’s more than forgivable because it was only their 2nd show. They increased the tempo which also raised the energy in the room from head bobbing to head banging. Unfortunately, this is the first and only night that Mestis would be joining The Way Forward Tour.
The blue blood moon of brutal bass drops had taken its full effect. Jason Richardsonturned the heavy dial up to 11 as he and Luke Holland (drums) shredded through the night. Luke sported a white and gold drum kit while Jason played various 7 string guitars. The technicality and the heaviness of the music, mixed with the flashing lights made for an epic live experience. The headbanging crowd cheered throughout the colorful solos and tasty drum beats. After Jason Richardson concluded his set, the brutal nature of the blue blood moon faded and transformed into crazy tasty songs by the headliner of the night, Intervals!
While this isn’t the place for circle pits or walls of death if you looked around in the crowd all of the heads were bobbing. This being my 3rd time seeing Intervals, I have to say Aaron has truly hit his stride both in musical composition and performance. He seems a lot more energetic and open on stage than previous shows. When they played a few old songs back to back, the crowd went wild cheering all clapping in unison. Aaron led the crowd in singing happy birthday to their bassist Jacob, nicknamed Jonny Fasthands by Aaron. After an amazing set filled with songs off of several albums and EP’s, Aaron closed the night by bringing up Jason Richardson, Javier Reyes, Nick Johnston and taking turns jamming with the rest of Intervals on stage. Aaron said it was his favorite part of the night and described it as “exploring their feelings.” I am pretty sure it lasted close to fifteen minutes and I assure you it was an awesome 15 minutes to conclude an epic night. Even though the effects of the super blue blood moon of instrumental awesomeness have faded, you can still catch The Way Forward Tour as its continuing its way across the country!
