Attila at the Gramercy Theatre

Chris Fronzak of Attila

Vocalist Chris Fronzak formed Attila as a metalcore band while in high school in 2005 in Atlanta, Georgia. The band has recorded five albums, including 2013’s About That Life. The band is presently comprised of Fronzak on lead vocals, Chris Linck and Nate Salameh on guitars, Kalan Blehm on bass and Sean Heenan on drums. Fronzak and Heenan are the last remaining original members.

At the Gramercy Theatre tonight, most of the audience was made up of high schoolers, and during the performance it became apparent that this was the only demographic that would be interested in Attila. Fronzak played up the party rebel image in his lyrics and in his between-song chatter to the point where it seemed it was more image than substance. He spent considerable time and energy asking the audience to jump, scream or mosh, and the audience responded. Nevertheless, if the music had been strong enough, he would not have needed to request these behaviors. Musically, the compositions had decent breakdowns, the guitarists occasionally hit interesting leads, and Fronzak threw in a few raps for an interesting change-up, but the songs were hampered by stupid lyrics and lack of originality. Young metal fans will revel in Fronzak’s cursing and the band’s central devil-may-care message; older metal heads will be looking elsewhere for innovation and intelligence.

Visit Attila at www.attilaband.com.