I’d have to say, this little Author & Punisher rabbit hole Tool lead me down has been very satisfying. I read up on A&P and became interested in the concept...then I saw he was playing with Cattle Decapitation. Upon Hellboy’s recommendations, I consumed the hell out of their new album, loved it, & decided to hit their Seattle show on Tuesday. Holy fuck was that a great decision! Watching A&P from an arms reach away was worth the price of admission alone. The Cattle Decapitation set covered everything I like about Death Atlas, and the crowd was super into it. Tiny venue with a dense pit and the band right in your face— it felt gooooood. Atheist was on the bill, as well... and the hole gets deeper. If you like Pantera, and haven’t heard of Atheist (like myself) — open up your music app of choice and give ‘em a shot. I’ve been ears-deep in Atheist for the last two days. Imagine if Pantera had Dimebag on Bass as well as guitar, and peppered in time-changes as frequently as Tool. They shred, they thrash, they groove, and they were a hell of a lot of fun. Another solid find for regular rotation. That’s 3 new bands for my catalogue if anyone is keeping score. Thanks, Tool, for the breadcrumbs...
Also, I had coincidentally met the drummer for the opener, Vitriol, at a friends house in Portland a while back— which made me feel REAL fucking cool.

...And what a wild ride it has been.