San Francisco Fillmore Review, 8/26/09

Every time that Dredg pulls into town, especially when playing the Fillmore, there is always a sense of comraderie in the air - the type that's typically only found at a baseball stadium rooting for the home team. There's a sense of excitement and immense anticipation felt by those who "claim" these teams, bands, or what have you, as their own. I take some of that selfish pride myself. It's fun and makes you feel special.
As Tall as Lions, jazzy, melodious, and at times, surreal, set the mood for the evening. RX Bandits proceeded them playing a full set filled with reggae-infused beats and vocals mixed with rock and ska. At around 10 pm, Dredg emerged and kicked into full swing.
I'd predicted that they might open with Pariah, beginning with soft vocals and then exploding into its heavy riffs and transcendental melodies. Following Pariah were the next two songs off of the new album - Drunk Slide and Ireland. I noticed that there was a second guitarist on stage who I'd at first wondered was Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age. No, not at all. It was actually Ben Flanaghan, an old college buddy of mine whose band I'd loved, followed, and eventually filmed a documentary for. He was amazing, of course, and added even more to an already astounding performance by Dredg. The band played the majority of songs from The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion. The set was strong, the band tight, and the audience emanating a lot of love...yes, I said it. I was really touched to be in an audience that knew the lyrics to every new song and sang it loud and proudly. It gave new meaning to the banner that hung behind the stage with the words "Then Sing" for sing we did, even those of us who really can't, or maybe shouldn't. There were also several classics from El Cielo, Catch Without Arms, and even Leitmotif performed, such as "Triangle" which I believe Gavin mentioned had not been performed at the Fillmore since 2006. Dredg knew us that night. They weren't just playing for us, they were playing with us. They also seemed to be having a lot of fun that night. Gavin improvised a song that included a lyric, "We are always drunk in San Francisco." He addressed the crowd several times including during one instance where there seemed to be some kids wrestling down below - ah, young trouble-makers. A real treat was having one of the Patzner brothers from Judgement Day play the most bad-ass rock violin I've ever seen, most especially during "Long Days and Vague Clues"! His head banging curly hair just added to the virtuosic performance.
Having been lucky enough to live in San Francisco and see Dredg several times in concert, and run into them in the street (not to mention the time my husband and I almost ran over them, but that's a whole other story), I have to say that this was one of the top, if not the best, Dredg concert I have ever seen! I am such a huge fan of the new album, of which I find both musically and lyrically inspirational and powerful. I can't wait to see them again...and again.

Thank you, Gavin, Drew, Mark, and Dino!

~Angie Reza Tures