By Kat Renz
Unbanged head hanging low from missing Wednesday’s Iron Maiden show down in Concord? Fear not, for a second chance to hear “Powerslave” live on stage awaits tonight, May 31. Sort of. High priestess of tribute bands Lynda Mortensen promises a night of metal mayhem with Children of the Damned; Damage, Inc.; Hail Satan; and Electric Funeral playing your favorite anthems by Iron Maiden, old-school Metallica, Mercyful Fate/King Diamond, and Black Sabbath, respectively, at the Red Devil Lounge.
Are you rolling your eyes or already making them up in King Diamond face paint? I know – I’m torn, too. Tribute bands are simultaneously shamelessly exciting and totally depressing. Ubiquitous and popular, it seems every famous band now has its tribute counterpart. (AC/DC may claim the most: a glaringly incomplete Google search found 20 AC/DC tribute bands from around the world, including British Columbia’s BC/DC and ThundHerStruck, yet another all-women one from LA.) The appeal is obvious. Performers get to embody their most-beloved rock star, and the audience gets to see a sincere counterfeit of their favorite over-dosed, broken-up, or not-touring band.
With this glut of impersonators, parameters by which to judge are essential. First there’s the sound. While it’s vital to cut the lead vocalist some slack – ever try to match Bruce Dickinson’s vocal theatrics, much less in front of people? – if the vocals don’t make the cut, it’s over. No magic, no tribute, and no closing your eyes and forgetting.