Cloak
July 28, 2018
Atlanta, GA
The Drunken Unicorn
I know what you’re probably thinking. “Dude, why the fuck are you out at an Atlanta Black Metal show?” Well, to answer your question, I was there to see Cloak. Why? Because they don’t fucking suck. Even though I don’t like that brand of cookie monster vocals, something Cloak works for me. I think it’s because they embody elements of The Devil’s Blood, Watain, Venom, and that their songs aren’t just break neck metal noise. Their songs are epic and the music actually takes me somewhere with all of the dynamic versatility in the arrangements.
I have never been shy about my feelings regarding the Atlanta metal scene. This town has some of the worst bands in the largest numbers of just about any city in the US. Trust me, I’ve sat through tons of them and 3/4 of them had me wishing I could cut my ears off. In a nutshell, Atlanta just isn’t a town for great music so when a truly great band band does emerge and capture my attention, you damn well better believe that I’m going to out there to support them and take it all in.
After sitting through a couple of Atlanta’s finest (I say that as sarcasm), Cloak finally took the stage and let me just say that this fucking band did not disappoint me. The first thing that struck me was that finally I was seeing a local band who actually put out some fucking effort and creating a stage show. It’s amazing the difference a few cool scrims, a backdrop, and some choreographed smoke machines can do for a performance. The band kicked off with “Where No Light Shines” from their 2017 release To Venomous Depths and then went right into “Withing the Timeless Black” which totally drew me into their world.
Cloak is a band that seems to scratch quite a few itches for me. Cloak’s music is so melodic and the songs are so perfectly executed and the guitars aren’t tuned down so low it sounds like Satan ripping a hot on in his pants. On stage, they give it 110%. Lead vocalist/guitarist Scott Taysom commands the stage with all of the power of someone that has been playing huge stages all his live while drummer Sean Bruneau is without a doubt one of the best drummers I have ever seen. As a live band, Cloak plays on a plane so far above any local metal I have seen to date and at times during performance even found myself thinking, “These guys are too good for Atlanta.”
Closing out their oh too short but amazing set was “Deep Red” and with that they were done. The minute they ended that last note it was obvious that they left everything on that stage and gave everything they had to an audience that gave them next to nothing but crossed arms and some barely nodding heads. Why the people weren’t losing their minds and going nuts is beyond me. If this show had been in Sweden there would’ve been chanting, bodies being passed around, and absolute mayhem. I also have to say that it didn’t help that the sound for this band was absolutely atrocious. A band like this deserves and needs to be mixed properly in order to truly get to the root of each melodic note and chord played.
The Drunken Unicorn is hands down one of the worst fucking venues to see a show. Horrible sound, horrible lighting, everything about it just frustrates the living fuck out of me. Is it so hard to get someone capable of working a mixing board and actually giving the bands the common courtesy of actually doing their job? Cloak, hands down, is the best fucking metal band in Atlanta. These guys are something truly special and they are a band that I have definitely created a special place for in my black, snarky, smart ass little heart.
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