Silent Planet, a Los Angeles bred metalcore outfit, will stop through The Hi-Tone on Jan. 22 in support of their new album “The Night God Slept.” But not alone: Kentucky rock natives Artifex Pereo and local metal bands What We Do in Secret, Creux, Altruria and Our Dearly Departed will open the show.
In a music scene that’s seen a recent spike in attendance, What We Do in Secret vocalist Josh Adams is happy that promoters are bringing tour packages like this through Memphis — giving locals more opportunities to play and showgoers a variety in who they are paying to see.
“Its a weird cycle of music in Memphis right now,” Adams said. “We’re coming out of it … but its not growing as fast as it could be.”
Adams said the current attendance at local shows is promising, but not what it was circa 2011 and 2012.
“When I started to play shows in my old band After the Exhale, you would have 100 people out to a local show,” Adams said. “Now it’s like you’re lucky to have 100 people out to a medium-level, nationally touring act.”
With a slew of shows happening on any given day, Adams hopes that more local and touring bands will see a revitalized active support from the community.
Despite Memphis’ hit or miss pattern of crowd presence, newer bands like Altruria remain positive about the resurgence of growth in the scene.
“If we have four big bands that everybody knows here that’s a big deal,” Altruria drummer Glen Hooper said. “If you can get up there where people hear about you and ask about you … that’s huge.”
John Patrick, vocalist of Creux and “inner circle” veteran of the Memphis metal community, described many of the local metal shows as being “a lot of chaos.” He said, however, Silent Plant and Artifex Pereo should be safe for those who don’t usually attend heavier shows.
“It’s gonna be a pretty heavy show, but it’s gonna be fun. I don’t expect anybody to be hate moshing,” Patrick said. “I think it’s gonna be a pretty safe environment for people who are usually kinda freaked out about going to shows because they think they might get hit. When somebody targets somebody at a show that kind of takes people away from it.”
Austin Miller, vocalist for Altruria, said there is a distinct difference between hardcore dancing and “hate moshing” — one serves a purpose while the other is meant to purposefully harm showgoers.
“Metal is one of those genres where if you are into it you literally will lose yourself in music and that’s what moshing is. It completely takes over you as a person,” Miller said.
With many of the local band members having obligations like school and work, it can be difficult to factor music into their responsibilities. Adams, a professional studies and human services major at the University of Memphis, looks forward to each and every show. Opening for Silent Planet is no exception.
“In those moments [on stage], everything is gone,” Adams said. “For those thirty minutes it’s just me and the God I worship playing a show together and me just screaming my heart out. At the end of the show I get to share why I scream my heart out, that’s what makes it worth it.”
For Patrick, it’s a combination of opening for the touring acts along with the promise of support from the local community that gets him excited.
“Silent Planet is blowing up,” Patrick said.
The show starts at 6 p.m. and admission is $10. Additional information can be found at www.hitonememphis.com.
