Artist - Livid Minds
Album - 3 Song Demo
Label - Self Released
Reviewer - Marc Halverson
Livid Minds are a local, Portland based band, who describe their sound best as, “A band with a metal sound, and love nothing more then to perform for a crowd. We have been playing together for about two years, and going strong.” They cite such bands as Pantera, Mudvayne, Clutch, Deftones, and local bands Inflikt and Hollow Point, as major influences on their music. However, they definitely have their own unique brand of metal meets melody with catchy choruses. With that being said, you should definitely check out Livid Minds live, and their sound should appeal to any old or new school head banger.
The opening track ‘Thorn in My Side,’ is a fast and heavy hitting track that brings earlier Metallica to mind, especially in the guitar, lead by Mooch. Front man, Kevin, belts out fast pitched vocals and carries a solid melody that transitions smoothly through each verse. The song is compounded with solid bass driven by Ben and furious double kicks from Dave. “Passage” opens with a slow instrumental beat and immediately the guitars and drums kick in. The song moves into a more melodic tone focused on Kevin’s vocals and then the chorus picks up and the song turns into a hard hitting assault with pummeling double kicks. ‘Drive’ tears right through you ears with a catchy riff that shows shades of resemblance to the Deftones work on their “Adrenaline” album. The song then transitions into a slow melodic break and then, finishes up with a hard hitting break down that brings this demo to a blazing end.
With the resurgence of metal/hardcore in the local Portland area the past few years lead by Inflikt, Mindcell, Amongst Us, Syx, and Hollow Point; Livid Minds have definitely brought their own brand of metal to the underground scene. They can only continue to grow and make a name for themselves in the future as one of the leading acts to represent the Portland metal/hardcore scene.
Livid Minds are:
Kevin – Singer/Songwriter
Mooch – Guitars
Ben – Bass
Dave - Drums
