American head Charge - Bring the noise!!!

***1/2

American head charge finally play London

American head Charge ***1/2 are numerous cancelled tours, finally make it to the London, Dome in Tuffnell Park. Some members might have changed but the bands attitude stays the same, and their determination is electrifying. But for me the lack of original members Chad Hanks and Justin Fowler really can be felt, and even the fact Ted Hallows is not longer in the band puts a little bit of a damper on the evening.

Saying this the new members really do a good job, and they embody the spirit of AHC. Even though they bring a slightly heavy vibe to the band, leaving certain elements of Industrial Metal and Nu-Metal out of the live performance and bringing in a new Melodic Metal sound. This can be heard on tracks like 'Loyalty' and 'All wrapped Up', I have to say my preference is more to the Industrial Metal vibe. I always liked what Justin Fowler and early member Aaron Zilch brought to the band which I think is missing in tonight's performance.

The sad thing is that The Dome have decided to crank the volume of the sound up to 11 and the speakers are really shaking, so at times it makes it hard to listen to, and you can't hear all the melodies and sequences in some songs. But this is not American head Charge's fault, it is the same for every band tonight.

Cameron Heacock looks very cool with his Stoner Metal Esq. beard and retro Adidas socks that are on his ankles and arms. He looks a lot slimmer than normal, and his vocals are really on point. I have to say his voice is better than ever, and he adds in new elements to the songs that was not there before.

So as they break into tracks like 'Dirty' and 'Perfectionist' you realise that this is a new era for American head Charge, they are back and the fans are having the time of their life. They are jumping around from start to finish, with Karma Singh Cheema diving into the crowd at various points, and then crowd surfing back to the stage to play guitar again.

With Jeremiah Stratton (AKA Major Trauma) from the band (hed)pe, you see they have a sticksman that will deliver the goods every show. Jeremiah just cannot stop smiling tonight, he is having a great time. (hed)pe toured with American head Charge many times, where he became good friends with the guys. So when they needed a drummer, he was the logical choice.

The band are really tight and songs like 'Pledge Allegiance' are big tonight, so when they end the set with a two song encore of major single 'Just so you Know' and the brutal 'Never get Caught' you feel they have given you all the songs that you would have picked. 

I would say this was a good solid gig by American head Charge, but it was very different from when I saw them supporting Slipknot and at the Download Festival. If you love your music heavy, you can't go wrong with the new AHC... but if your a fan of the Industrial sound. You might have been a little disappointed by tonight's show, but it was still a great night at the Dome.

American head Charge - Setlist
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Let all the World Believe
Violent Reaction
All wrapped Up
Americ**t evolving into Useless...
Dirty 
Drowning under Everything
Perfectionist
Take what I've Taken
Loyalty
Pledge Allegiance
Ridicule
Seamless
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Just so you Know
Never get Caught​

Review and Photo's by Dan Devour

Check Out! the Video for 'Loyalty' Below...