Testament
The Formation of Damnation
Nuclear Assault Records

I cant tell you how very long I have waited for this. Yeah I have all the other CDs that Testament has put out, but to have the band back together is beautiful. Magical even. To have Alex Skolnick back where he belongs on lead, the planets were aligned this year.

"Formation" merges the many sounds of Testament flawlessly. From the classic thrash sound that Testament is known for on "More Than Meets the Eye" to the Chuck Bill's death metal vocals on the title track "The Formation of Damnation." The chemistry that was the original line up is still present on this release, although they are short Louie Clemente. "Leave Me Forever" about the only song that really stands out as something new style wise. Switching between a jazzy funkiness on the guitar to a thrash sound, it is a definite highlight on the album.

I am so very much in love with this album, I have a hard time putting it to words. It inspires memories of the many times I have spent with the band over the years and to have them back with most of the original line up is amazing.

Testament is currently on tour promoting the album as well as hooking up on the Masters Of Metal Tour with Motorhead, Heaven and Hell, and Judas Priest. Club Kingsnake will be catching them on a solo show at The Rave here in Milwaukee on August 1.

Rolling out of bed today it is our anniversary, and Brian and I plan to do it in true rock star style. I shoot a call into Jesse James Dupree's assistant to set up the interview have breakfast and head off to the tattoo shop to join my hubby. After our mutual inkings, we head back home to load up and trek back down to the lake front a mere 15 minutes from our home.

I'm not sure who had the brilliant idea to close streets and only allow traffic into the grounds from one direction, but personally I would like to slap them upside the head. The drive took over an hour for less than 5 miles. Traffic was horrible and being someone who actually knows the city well, I managed to get lost because of so many closed streets. We had planned to arrive an hour before Black Stone Cherry's set, but got there as they were preparing to load on the stage.

I hooked up with Jesse's road manager and met with Jesse briefly. He didn't realize it was a video interview, and while he didn't mind the fact, he did want to wash the road off. Taking a round a bout way to Milwaukee on the back of his Harley, a shower was in order. So we kicked back and relaxed to the Black Stone Cherry set.

I was really shocked with these kids. I wasn't expecting what I heard, I was expecting a more pop sound. There was almost a bluesy undertones to their music and the guitars just had an amazingly warm sound that filled up the air. For some reason sitting at the lake, with a warm breeze blowing and listening to "Rollin On" was probably one of the most relaxing moments I have had in a while. Mixing in blues, southern rock and classic rock sounds, these kids (and I do mean kids, the oldest is 23) have some impressive talent and a well rounded sound. They closed with an amazing cover of "Voodoo Child", which they managed to change up just enough to make their own while still keeping the original in your mind. I cant wait to see how this band grows over the years!

I ran out to hit the real bathroom (I still can not use the back stage porta potty, just cant do it) and pick up some food. AHHH Mader's. A quick dinner and time for the sit down with Jesse. Unfortunately I did have to tear him away from the JJO girls for a few minuets and we found a quick room to sit down a chat. That interview will be posted shortly. I kept it fairly short as he was hitting the stage in a half an hour.

For those who have never taken the time to see a Jackyl show, you are missing some good old fashion fun. Jesse is a true frontman who is there to entertain, be it the front row or the guys on stage behind him. Outrageous and outlandish, when he is fronting Jackyl he is the "Redneck Punk". Their show is tried and true and while little changes (except for the stories) the band puts on a phenomenal show. A few change ups, including a short "NIB" cover, they play their hits. The crowd overpowered Jesse's vocals on "Secret of the Bottle". And yes both the Johnson Red and the Stihl were there backstage. Yes Jesse did drop his drawers. As they cleared the photo pit I issued a look to my husband that meant only one thing. Get me my photo of Jesse and the Chainsaw and he did not disappoint. Closing with the ever classic "Lumberjack", the entire crowd went insane. My only disappointments (well kinda) were the fact that the mic was not loaded (his mic stand is a shotgun, and at previous outdoor shows I have seen him shoot it) and that they did not play "Rev it up and Go Go" from the new album being released by Jesse James and Dixie Inc. I really wasn't expecting to hear it, but a girl can dream. I have to say that this show was as good as the first, second and third Jackyl shows I have seen. The band still has amazing energy and still entertains the crowd.

As we meander our way through the heavily imbibed attendees at the close of the night, we make it to our car at 11:45. We turn on our car at 11:50 after letting the heat out. We turn it off again at midnight. And we sit. Once again, the closed roads are our nemesis. We finally pull out of the parking lot at 12:45 am and arrive home at 1:30. Summerfest 2008 is over for us. While attendance was down this year (I would assume high gas prices kept a lot of our neighbors to the south away) it was still a respectable 831,024 for the 10 days. See everyone next year down there!

Summerfest is OVER! We survived the weekend, along with countless others.

Billed as the worlds largest music festival, Summerfest always has some variety of music for everyone. The biggest drawback with Summerfest to me is ALWAYS the crowds. Its a little early for any final numbers, but 2007 attendance was 892,005. Even with the horrible storms that have washed through the Midwest lately, I think over all attendance was still up there.

Celebrating it's 41st anniversary, Summerfest is the pride and joy of the Milwaukee Lakefront. Sure it isn't SXSW, but it is amazing none the less. Food is as much a focus as the music. 40 plus restaurants litter the grounds. You can have everything from Alligator on a stick to Wendy's Hamburgers. My favorite place is always the Ethnic Gardens. I must have the Sauerbraten from Mader's. Two family owned roasted corn vendors are there, and if you eat at Robby's Roasted Corn, hip-hop star Speech from Arrested Development might very well be the person serving you. Even recently deceased comedian George Carlin added Milwaukee and Summerfest to to his resume, after getting arrested for those 7 dirty words he liked to say at the 1972 event. If I started to list the bands and musicians who have played both on the pay stage and free stages, I would be never finish. Needless to say, Summerfest caters to as many folks as humanly possible in 10 days.

Hubby and I are actually celebrating our anniversary this weekend 13 years together and 5 years married. What is more romantic than a bit of metal and rock n roll to ring in the anniversary. This is probably still the coolest advantages of this site.

We got their early and checked out the 9mm Solution set. Popular local band that I have written about many times in the past, it was their debut show for their new bassist, Chad Novell, who also puts time in with bands Strangeland and Orphonic Orchestra. Overall the sound of the band was much heavier this time around. The band was impressively tight for having only had Chad as a member for a few weeks. Standing in the wings watching I did almost think the singer Hobbes would be arrested. In his stage ensemble, he wears a toy 9 mm gun. Halfway through the first song, several of Milwaukee's Finest showed up on the back stage wings. Having been to enough 9 MM shows, I was simply hoping Hobbes noticed this as well from the stage and kept his jacket on. All went well however and no arrests happened.

Unfortunately, we were unable to secure photo clearance for Black Tide, but I spose that's ok. They never showed up. I didn't catch the name of the band that covered for them, however I think if the crowd changed their name to Black Tide Sucks. You have to give the fill in credit, having already preformed on another stage, they made a trek to play before an angry crowd that got stood up and gave it their all. I do deeply regret that I missed their name being announced. With out the photo pass for Black Tide, Brian and I took this as a great chance to grab some dinner.

When we arrived, we still didn't have any clearance for Five Finger Death Punch. Thankfully I managed to hook up with the road manager and get the OK needed for Brian to shoot. Had I remembered that Jeff had previously shuttled the band around in Austin I wouldn't have needed to panic, but it was all golden. I have to say, the guys in FFDP seemed to really enjoy Summerfest. 2 years working in the backstage area and numerous years just hanging (when I was younger I would actually attend all 10 days, good band or not) I have never seen a band so taken with the grounds. All the members were regularly wandering the park itself, and from what I saw, they gave 2 thumbs up to the roasted corn. Singer Ivan probably described it best, calling it our own personal Mardi Gras. Their set was amazing, but seemed terribly short for some reason. It really wasn't, but they just rolled through things at a steady pace, it didn't give you a chance to realize time was passing. Ivan has a great singing voice as well as the chunky growling. Best heard on "The Bleeding" its almost as if two people are singing, and I must add this song sounded amazing live. Another highlight of the set was "The Way of the Fist"which is probably my favorite song simply because of the lyrics in the chorus. Awesome songwriting there.

Day one is down, the walk to the truck takes a mere 15 minutes. Our drive home is also a lot easier then one would expect for the Fourth of July. Time to go home, rest and do it all over again.