Live Review: Will Haven w/Palm Reader at The London Dome!

It’s been a while since we’ve been to the The Dome in Tuffnel Park. The venue is the big brother of the smaller Boston Music Room that sits below it and tonight will see Sacramento California’s finest Noise Metal exports Will Haven joined by our very own Palm Reader! Both bands have released phenomenal new albums this year, Will Haven with “Muerte” and Palm Reader with “Braille”, ensuring that both bands solid reputations not only remain intact, but are also enhanced. These aren’t bands that are touring former glories while struggling to produce consistent quality in their newer material. Oh no. These are a pair of the finest around, showing others how it’s done.

Instrumental trio The Grey [6/10] take the stage for a 30 minute set and ironically play through some dark and atmospheric tracks that could belong to tonights headliners without vocals. The best instrumental acts sound like a film score and have so much in the way of nuances in their material that vocals aren’t missed. Sadly The Grey not only write material that is begging for a vocalist but lacks any form of nuance. So what we’re left with is slab after slab of instrumental material that lacks something to draw in the crowd. That being said, their drummer is absolutely phenomenal.

Palm Reader [8/10] step things up dramatically from tonight’s openers, fusing a blend of post hardcore and metal that should make any number of lesser bands look up and pay attention. The bands set contains plenty of material from the bands new album “Braille” while also throwing in more than a fair share old older material. It’s another set where the drummer gets a decent work out and songs like set closer “Coalesce” are a dream. Indeed songs like “Inertia” and “Swarm” only succeed in getting heads bandaging and opening up the pit.

Sacramento Californian veterans Will Haven [9/10] deliver slab after slab of quality in a career spanning set with guitarist Jeff Irwin climbing on the speaker stack on the right of the stage at numerous points. “Carpe Diem” goes down a storm while material from new album “Muerte” slots in seemlessly with dark atmospherics and grooves that leaves the competition for dead. Frontman Grady Avenell is on fine form tonight and barely breaks with proceedings to speak to the crowd. Mid set cover of Faith No More classic “Jizzlober” may come as a surprise for some but for the fans it shows that the band are part genes and part influences. Encore “Moving To Montana” is on which is not only a classic of its time but also sees drummer Mitch Wheeler getting a sweat on. Will Haven are a band that have paid their dews. Now it’s time to reap the rewards. The only song that is missing tonight is “If She Could Speak”.