Machine Head Photos and Interview from the Rockstar Mayhem Festival in Mansfield, MA
By Jason Joseph at July 23, 2011 | 10:24 pm | Print
It takes a lot to get me out of my self-imposed semi-retirement, and one of those “a lots” happens to be a band from Oakland, California called Machine Head. I love every album this band has made, every lineup they have played with and every phase of music they have gone through. They have a new album called “Unto The Locust” coming out September 20th through Roadrunner Records and it is sure to be insane. They played the lead track off the album during their performance at the Rockstar Mayhem Festival in Mansfield, Massachusetts, and the song was called “Locust.” In a word, it was awesome, in more than a few words, holy fucking shit I can’t wait for this album!
Machine Head guitarist Phil Demmel was kind enough to give us a few minutes of his time before the show, as he sat down with Eric and Rich for a quick little chit-chat about the album. Phil had something come up and could have totally blew us off or passed us off to drummer Dave McClain, who was totally sitting around the press area begging for someone to interview him (OK, probably not!), but he didn’t and that just goes to show the kind of guys Machine Head are. We realize that these guys get asked a million of the same questions, so I asked Eric to try and have some fun and ask about the Red Sox and Phillies playing in the World Series this year, and all I have to show for it is being called a “typical Boston fan.” OK, fine, guilty as charged. I definitely appreciated the fact that he totally remembered the autographed Ryan Howard shirt I gave him a few years ago, and it was awesome catching up with him a bit later on in between bands. Great dude.
The performance itself was outstanding, but really, how could I expect anything less? I really can’t remember how many times I’ve seen Machine Head at this point. It’s probably close to 10. Their set was short due to the fact that it was a festival and all, but they totally made the most of it with a blistering five song setlist. You can check it out in the pictures below. All in all, this was a killer show from a killer band and if you plan on hitting up the Rockstar Mayhem Tour or any of the other tours they’ll be doing in support of “Unto The Locust,” definitely make sure you check them out. OK, if you’re going to see them on their own tour, you probably will be, but you get what I’m saying. Enough words, time for pictures!
