Bad Wolves at the Gramercy Theatre

Diamante & Tommy Vext
(John Boecklin obscured)

After six albums with DevilDriver, which he co-founded in 2002, drummer John Boecklin left the band in 2014 and two years later launched a new project called I of Tongues. In 2015, Boecklin and Brooklynite Tommy Vext (ex-Divine Heresy, ex-Snot) spoke about forming  a melodic metal band that featured  more  singing  than  screaming. By 2017 they had recruited lead guitarist Doc Coyle (ex-God Forbid), rhythm guitarist Chris Cain (ex-Bury Your Dead, ex-For the Fallen Dreams) and bassist Kyle Konkiel (ex-In This Moment, Vimic) to form Bad Wolves, based in Los Angeles, California. The band released a debut studio album, Disobey, on May 11, 2018.

Bad Wolves is best known for its 2018 cover of the Cranberries' 1994 protest song, “Zombie," written by Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan about the 1993 IRA bombings in Warrington, England. O'Riordan, was supposed to have added her vocals to Bad Wolves' cover of the song, but she died in a suicide the day before the recording session. The band recorded the cover without her, and promised all proceeds to O'Riordan's children. Just before Bad Wolves performed at the Gramercy Theatre tonight, the band presented a check for $250,000 to O'Riordan's ex-husband and two sons, with the promise of more to come.

"Zombie" was indeed the concert's showstopper, but the band also performed 11 other tracks from the 13-track album as well. While the album is a collection of super-slick power metal songs, tonight's live performance drove those songs into a grittier terrain. Vext sang with a smooth voice for much of the set, but even from the opening song opened his larynx for rough growling melodies. The first part of the volatile set incorporated crashing elements of nu metal and later songs borrowed a bit from hip hop and progressive rock. The band found its way to ballads as well, including "Hear Me Know," during which Vext invited opening act Diamante to perform a duet as on the album. Bad Wolves demonstrated that it has an arsenal of diverse hard rockers, but it may take time for the band to become known for more than a commercial cover song.

Visit Bad Wolves at www.badwolvesnation.com.

Setlist:

1. Officer Down
2. Learn to Live
3. No Masters
4. Remember When
5. Shape Shifter
6. Better The Devil
7. Run for Your Life
8. Truth or Dare
9. Hear Me Now (with Diamante)
10. Jesus Slaves
11. Toast to the Ghost
12. Zombie (The Cranberries cover)