Live Review: Christian Mistress/Miami Nights @ Tube, September 27th, 2010
As someone who grew up witnessing the rise of metal and the fact that its primary proponents were white men, it has been gratifying beyond all measure to see so many people of color in the audiences and on stage these days, as well as the rising number of women fronting metal bands. There’s the fine Swedish band Arch Enemy (led by the chill-inducing vocalist Angela Gossow), Portlanders Witch Mountain (with Uta Plotkin’s incredibly powerful vox), and, one of my new favorite bands, Christian Mistress. This Olympia-based quintet has just recently signed with the great 20 Buck Spin label and, with the release of their first full-length Agony & Opium, are setting out on a U.S. tour, which started off with this Portland performance.
Their sound is well-worn and creased, like a vintage leather jacket. It leans heavily on the approach of ’70s groups like Saxon and Blitzkrieg, with two fretboard punishing guitarists leading the charge and a no-nonsense rhythm section providing a steady and ostentation-free foundation. And, as with many of the groups that made up the new wave of British heavy metal, Christian Mistress’ true distinction lays with their vocalist. In this case, it is the brassy, bold guise of Christine Davis. She took charge of the cozy confines of Tube within seconds of the band’s first song. She pushed her way through the crowd of 50 or so, singing in the faces of onlookers, and then whipping her long brown hair around during instrumental breaks. Guitarists Ryan McClain and Oscar Sparbel could only distract their fans for a few moments during each song. All eyes were on Davis.
Christian Mistress have obviously been prepping for their tour for some time, as the only wobbles that came up during their 40-minute set were brief and quickly brushed aside. Otherwise, it was straight, unrelenting line to the finish. Time between songs were kept to a minimum of three seconds, and other than one slow number that relied on some gorgeous finger-picked guitar playing by Sparbel, tempos and fevers were high.
Opener Miami Nights was also a female-driven metal project but the intentions of the one woman at the helm couldn’t have been more different than Christian Mistress. With two large amps, a Gibson SG, and line of guitar pedals, the lone female behind the microphone wailed and growled while scraping out harsh chords and shuddering bits of feedback. It was an amazing performance but one that I’m not sure could be taken entirely seriously. Her last song incorporated the lyrics of “Row Row Row Your Boat” and the smirk on her face let me to worry that this was more an attempt to poke fun at metal mores. Still, the sheer artfulness of her noise and expressive vocals were enough to gloss over any ironic concerns.
