On Thursday June 30, 2022 I made the journey to the south bay, Cupertino to be exact. The destination was The Homestead Bowl and X-bar. The X-bar is a small concert venue located in, of all places, a bowling alley. This unlikely venue was host to four death metal bands and a small group of dedicated metal fans celebrating the Terrestrial Takeover tour.
First up was Summoning the Lich. This short but powerful set drew the growing crowd to the front of the stage with their raw energy. Hailing from St. Louis, Missouri, this four piece band tore the stage up the entire set. The showmanship of David Bruno quite literally took center stage while the rest of the guys shredded behind him. Their set ended as abruptly as it started leaving the growing crowd hungry for the bands to come.
Summoning the Lich are:
David Bruno – Vocals
Ryan Felps – Guitars
TJ Chilton – Drums
John Flynn – Bass
No setlist available
Aenimus was up next. This is an all new Aenimus in that the only original member is Seth Stone. The pandemic was hard on the band but they have risen from the ashes with an new lineup and new music as well. The new lineup brings Seth to the front of the stage as the new lead singer (formerly the bass player) and he killed it. Towards the end of the set, Jake Vancil (The Odius Construct) joined them on stage for a death metal duet.
Aenimus are:
Seth Stone – vocals
Greg Paulson – guitar
Brian Gosling – guitar
Josh Mathis – drums
John Flynn – bass (tour only)
No setlist available
Arkaik were up next. The Riverside, California based death metal band was well received as they hit the modest stage. The band was on fire as the crowd was whipped into an energetic gyrating pit. They cranked through about ten sweaty, aggressive songs before their set came to an end.
Arkaik are:
Jared Christianson – Vocals
Nathan Bigelow – Drums
Miguel Esparza – Guitars
Chris Ratcliffe – Bass
James Fraser – Guitars
No setlist available
Finally, Allegaeon hit the stage. This melodic death metal band with their uber technical riffs and their melodic interludes, was definitely a crowd favorite. Gregg Burgess’ almost flamenco-like interludes really showed his musical talents as he broke away from the driving metal riffs. Usually, when the band breaks and then comes back for an encore, they leave the stage and take a small break. This time, they said “we aren’t doing that this time. What are we going to do? Go bowling?” They then broke into their last song to the roar of the fired up metalheads.
Allegaeon are:
Greg Burgess – lead guitar
Michael Stancel – rhythm guitar
Riley McShane – vocals
Brandon Michael – bass
Jeff Saltzman – drums
No setlist available
Follow Summoning the Lich on social media
Follow Aenimus on social media
Follow Arkaik on social media
Follow Allegaeon on social media
Photographer of about 10 years, I have been shooting concerts for about 8 of those years. I started to get serious about concert photography about 6 or 7 years ago and now try to shoot as many as I can. I shoot mostly rock but, have done some country and big band stuff. I love music and since I am nowhere close to being a musician, this is a way I can be a small part of what, in the words of Henry Rollins, “gets me through the highs, the lows and everything in between”.
