LVHXC – Celebrating 20 years of TAKE

November 9, 2024 – A huge part of my later teen years were spent in venues like Eagle Aerie Hall. I often can recall happy memories at The Farm, The Box Office, Rock N Java, Yayo’s Tacos, The Sanctuary, and so many other little holes in the walls of Las Vegas and Henderson that no longer exist. 

I rolled out to Eagle Aerie Hall early before most of the crowd had arrived. This show was a special one. A celebration of the 20 years of Las Vegas hardcore band, TAKE, along with highlighting the release of their latest record, Time Bomb. Along for the ride was a diverse, and highly intense support lineup featuring Run Your Luck, TEACH, Body of Filth, xDOULOSx, and Mourning Anguish. All of these bands are Vegas locals except for xDOULOSx, which are from Riverside, California according to their socials. 

Run Your Luck

Run Your Luck had the pleasure of the opening slot on this bill. The venue was still light in attendance at this point in time, but that’s not too unusual for this venue, a lot of the crowd started to trickle in while these guys were playing and members of the other bands could be seen on the floor in the pit. These guys embody a lot of the sounds of classic punk and hardcore. The simplicity of riffs reminded me somewhat of a Black Flag meets the modern Terror or early Have Heart. Simplicity is not an insult, in this genre it’s effective and it gets people moving. 

Upon digging through these guys’ social presence, they are pretty active all over the place, having played many times at Eagle Aerie, and also performing at various events at Area15, The Space, and others. I hope to see these guys really grab onto their base some more, they’ve got some really great potential and I’m interested in seeing what they can do with it moving forward. 

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TEACH

TEACH offered a much heavier sound, and I’m sure I’ve seen these guys play before, but honestly can’t remember. I see their names on a lot of past show fliers that my friends have played on. And as I sit here and type this out I’m already disappointed with myself because these guys embody a lot of what I enjoy about deathcore, really. Certain elements remind me of the earlier days of Chelsea Grin or an formative era of Lorna Shore. I am also seeing that I’m already following their facebook page so even more shame on me, ha. Anyway, this is definitely another band you need to add to your playlists if you like your music heavy and gritty. These guys sure got the kids on the floor to really start throwing down. An energy that stood no chance of letting up through the rest of the show.

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Just a little note, I wasn’t sure how I wanted to lay this coverage out so I didn’t have many photos from Run Your Luck or TEACH’s sets. I hope to be able to cover/photograph both of these bands again in the future to give a better visual of the overall show. xx

Body of Filth

It’s been a while since I’ve seen the Vegas Beatdown guys in Body of Filth. But I’ve been following their growth since the beginning. These guys had a lineup change since the last time I saw them. With a new drummer and a new vocalist introduced within the last year and a half, Body of Filth have really solidified their place in the scene. They have been actively playing shows all over Vegas and in surrounding states, and let me tell you… they have really honed in on their style. 

For those unaware, “beatdown” is a subgenre within the hardcore punk umbrella. Origins can be traced back to bands like Madball, and loosely can be linked to bands like Hatebreed. But this particular brand of beatdown that Body of Filth is playing is largely fueled by a vital piece of our very alive and active deathcore scene. What sets these guys apart from the rest though is that they’re including much more slam and death metal elements. All of these things presented on stage have the ability to give even the biggest elite or critic reason to headbang. And if I’m being frank, this was the best I’ve seen them perform. The entire room seemed to be spinning for the entirety of their set, and clearly the kids on the floor couldn’t get enough. 

Halfway through the set you could see pool noodle toys and things of the like thrown all over the venue and these stayed in people’s hands through the rest of the evening. If you’ve ever been to an all ages hardcore show, you can probably guess how much fun this made the atmosphere. Body of Filth always has cool shit going on so make sure you hit up all their socials and keep tabs!

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xDOULOSx

Up next we had the only out of towner, xDOULOSx, hailing from our neighbors to the West. After doing my research, I learned that this band has been a dominating force in the SoCal hardcore scene as of lately, and honestly… I can see why. They, like others on this bill, draw a heavy inspiration from hardcore, but I could also hear pieces of nu-metal, along with some gritty metal mixed in there. Listening to the tracks I’ve found online I’m kind of reminded of the raw energy and sounds that I really love from thrash metal. Several tracks actually remind me of maybe a more raw rendition of Hatebreed. Whether or not that’s an intention on the band’s part, it’s definitely an element that can bridge gaps of fans who enjoy metal and hardcore punk. 

At any rate, xDOULOSx kept the energy high and the crowd rowdy. They were an excellent addition to this lineup and I hope I have the opportunity to see them again in the future. 

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Mourning Anguish

I’ll do my best not to be overly biased when it comes to Mourning Anguish. I’ve had the pleasure of working with these guys quite a bit through the years, and they’re another one of those bands that are clearly focused on their growth and reach as a band. Of all the bands on this bill, Mourning Anguish are mostly engulfed in the deathcore genre, not too unlike their peers in Body of Filth. Mourning Anguish draws a bit more from darker tones of death and black metal, with some cheeky lyrical content about Pokemon. 

This show gave Mourning Anguish the incredible opportunity to be in front of a sold out room, and the energy of the crowd never once faltered. Vocalist Preston Graff commanded the attention of the fans in the pit, while guitarist Chris Roupp could be seen yelling over the crowd to keep it all up. Marco Rogel kept the bass riffing hard, while Greg Bowerman intensely kept the pulverizing drumming at a peak. 

Mourning Anguish are more selective with shows that they play, but they’ve made many strides through the years, such as connecting with Adam Warren of Oceano for their track, D.O.A.M., and Kyle Medina of Bodysnatcher who’s featured on Dissention Rain.  Things like this are just another testament to how incredible this piece of the scene continues to grow and expand. 

If you’re a deathcore or death metal fan, go do yourself a favor and add Mourning Anguish to your playlists now!

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TAKE

And for our final performance of the evening. TAKE has such a layered and extensive history in the LVHXC scene. Though I have only been involved in their journey for the last few years, one would have to be blind to not see the impact that this band has had on the scene, and the people within it. The band has had many lineup changes through the years, and this show gave spotlight to some of those members, including drummer and scene regular Matticus Finch. We also saw Nick Arthur, who is making his comeback with Molotov Solution, Frederick Stewart of TEACH, Preston Graff from Mourning Anguish, and a handful others that my mind is slipping on at the moment. Perhaps the most meaningful and distinct one that I absolutely have to mention though, is my friend Michaelangelo who fronted Throughout The End back in the formative days of the Las Vegas deathcore scene. It was also his birthday, and at the end of the show Take vocalist John Gagnon sang a very special happy birthday along with the entirety of the crowd before everyone started packing everything up.  

One of my favorite things about TAKE is their ability to add these really fun and funny elements to their live shows that really up the ante when it comes to crowd participation and excitement. I have more than a few examples of this, I’ve seen them consistently throw beach balls and pool toys, streamers, and things of the like. It’s almost like a party atmosphere whenever it’s their turn to take the stage, no matter where on the bill that they are. Streamers, decorative masks, even a blow up alligator could be seen thrashing around the crowd. It also wouldn’t be a hardcore show if there weren’t some stage diving! The dim room made it hard to keep track of them, but numerous times people could be seen get on the stage and jump off. I was unfortunately a victim of one who slammed into a friend of mine, and her head happened to crack right into my jaw, which left me with some headaches for the day or so afterwards. (NO WORRIES THOUGH! Both my friend and I are okay!)

Outside of the fact that this was a 20 years celebration of TAKE’s inception, it was also a show to celebrate the release of their latest album, Time Bomb. A ten song masterpiece that showcases all of the best elements that TAKE has been known to offer through the years. Intense breakdowns, contrasting between guttural and clean vocals, and also these bits of melodic guitar work that would even get the metalheads making that stank face that we sometimes make when we hear a gritty riff or an insane solo. 

John Gagnon closed out their set by saying pretty much the same words that are said on the opening track of the new album. If you need someone to listen, if you need someone to help you through, no matter what that is, reach out and they will be there for you. John is dedicated to a message of unity in a world where people benefit from our division. I commend him for this dedication and giving people a safe place to exist in.

All of this brings me back to the first paragraph of this article, about me talking about my experience growing up in the music scene. Without taking away from TAKE and their incredible twenty year journey that I am ever so grateful to have been able to participate within, I currently find myself thinking about the state of the scenes and the industry. I remember how much it meant to me to go to shows every single night growing up. There were kids and adults of all ages on the Eagle Aerie floor for this show. I couldn’t help but feel glad that there are still spaces for kids who are interested in this culture, who are interested and are cultivating a love for music and community. I also feel indebted to the people in the scene who have lifted me up time after time, for the music scene has always been the only place I’ve truly felt at home within. 

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I hope to be able to shed more light on these spaces, and these intensely talented bands that operate within them. Las Vegas is the home to so many different talents that are often glossed over and really shouldn’t be. I highly recommend going and checking out the socials of all these bands, and keeping tabs on all the shows these bands and others have going on in the future.

Until next time… 

PHOTO CREDIT: Live photos by Courtney Ware for ZrockR Magazine – (c) 2024 – All Rights Reserved.