Wingfest Part 3 – Heavy Metal And Hot Wings

For the third year in a row, Rich Hurst and his band Jesus Wears Armani hosted Wingfest – a gathering of metal fans and metal bands. Just like last year the festival was held at Tony V’s Garage in Everett on 9 December 2017. With each paid ticket, festival attenders also received a basket of hot wings. Ten bands played, starting with Born Without Blood at 2:00pm and ending with Jesus Wears Armani at 11:30pm.

Born Without Blood – Justin Metal, Kyle Huntress, Scott Sandefur, and Erick Paxecko blend military precision, heavy bass, tuned-down chords and raw vocals. They were the perfect band to get the festival started.

Ellensburg’s Prey The Hunter usually consists of Jon Combs, Spencer Hjalseth, Matt Stecz, Nick Kuthi, and Shanaun Green. They were down one member at Wingfest, but still brought on a blistering set of fast old-school styled metal with lyrics that touched on contemporary topics.

As Pillars Fall came from Tacoma, and consists of James Chappell, Kasey Kemmerlin, Anthony Gonzol, and Garrett Ruggles. Their funky bass lines and and high energy vocals were a welcome addition to Wingfest.

I’ve seen Odyssian several times of the last couple years. Each time they bring out their excellent musicianship and advanced syncopation to blend it with metal vocals and a one-of-a-kind stage presence. I always enjoy seeing Taylor, Jackson, Austin, Jack, and Terry play.

Damn The Flood is a new obsession of mine; they play with heavy influence of lower-tuned metal, stoner rock, and desert scene. Joe Pepe’s vocals are and perfect for the keys they choose. Kenton Holme is a young and talented guitarist who I’ve come to appreciate in recent years. Including his work in Bleed The Stone and Salem Knights. Find them, watch them, and love them.

Blood & Thunder incorporated keyboards into their Epic Metal sound. They played a compelling set of songs with unique time signatures. Their drummer Ryan, brought “metal-tastic” vocals. Look for these guys when you are searching for an interesting take on Metal.

Band mates include:

Ryan Yancey – Drums / Vocals
Nick Hughes – Bass
Cam Shiel- Guitar
Damian Boger- Keyboards
Major Bruno- Guitar

Method 13 simply brings out the energy and pulls the audience along for the ride. Aaron Steinbacher is on Vocals, Aaron Alday on Guitar, Craig Cabana also on Guitar, Gerardo Pelaez on Bass, and Michael Pelaez is on Drums. These guys are all veteran musicians in the local scene and know how to animate their visual presence to keep the attendees engaged.

Chamber 6 blends a dynamite stage view, high quality metal, and dynamic lyrics from Marcuss Leckenby. Their set that night showed the band at its finest moment. Mark, Stephen, Kory, Marcuss and Mike, were engaged, while giving the audience exactly what they wanted.

Near the end of their set, Marcuss proposed to his girlfriend Shalyn on the stage in front of all the concert-goers. Cheering and applause were all that could be heard. She said Yes!

Puyallup’s Massacre At The Opera kept the energy going as they took the stage as the night was winding down. Chris Gummeson’s vocals – brawny and controlled. The band has been together long enough to be spot-on and they always perform at 100%. Wingfest was no different. Their fan base is broad and wide.

Closing out the night was Jesus Wears Armani. The Kings of Metal in 3/4 time. Rich Hurst’s is an Army veteran whose lyrics deal with combat, war, PTSD and the things that can drive us apart if we – as Americans – don’t stand together. Casey and Olav – on guitar and bass – play off each other perfectly, and are well synchronized. Jared underlines the entire mix with a solid barrage of percussion.

Olav raffled off a haircut at the concert; one attendee got the honor of shaving Olav’s head in whatever manner he wished. In the end, a bald top with a small comb over became Olav’s new look!

Wingfest was Rich Hurst’s dream, and the dream has brought together many of the finest metal bands in the region. Look for Wingfest IV to commence in early December 2018. If you love metal, this is a festival that you will LOVE.