The Esoteric and LoveHateHero
Saturday, May 21, 2005 at Solid State in Portland, OR
By Marc Halverson
Photography by Erica Keenan
Before the show, I sat down with the lead singer of The Esoteric, Steve Cruz and we discussed their new album “The Sureness of Sleepwalking”. The Esoteric are a five piece band from Lawrence, Kansas, who were formed in 1996. They play a unique style of melodic metal with elements of hardcore. I had never seen them live or heard their music prior to the show.
The Esoteric took the stage and immediately and tore into songs from “The Sureness of Sleepwalking”. Even though there is not much of a stage in the Solid State, front man, Steve Cruz pulled stretched out his mic and marched frantically from side to side and controlled the crowd. Both guitarists, Cory White and Eric Graves ripped through with powerful riffs and break downs that set the place off. Anthony Diale laid down solid bass and was compounded by thunderous drumming executed by Marshall Kilpatric. The Esoteric played a short set but it was rather impressive and I will definitely see them again the next time they roll through Portland. Unfortunately, I did not get to see LoveHateHero but I heard they played a solid set as well. If you have not heard The Esoteric, check them out and be open to a different approach of metal and hardcore.
