Tuneful metal mavericks Pallbearer bring tour to the Great American
A leading light of modern metal, adventurous doom merchants Pallbearer bring their current tour to the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco Wednesday night.
Founded in 2008 by guitarist Brett Campbell and bassist/keyboardist Joseph D. Rowland while attending Central Arkansas University in Little Rock, Pallbearer came together in the wake of the duo's work in the experimental, synth-driven drone metal band Sports. After bringing second guitarist and drummer Devin Holt into the fold, the group caught the ears of labels with the self-release of a three-song demo in 2010 that showcased their monolithic style of metal.
Signing to noted metal imprint Profound Lore the following year, Pallbearer announced itself as a force on the underground ever since releasing their celebrated seismic debut Sorrow and Extinction in 2012. Weaving elements of psychedelia and progressive rock into their tuneful epics that highlight guitarist and main composer Campbell's melodic vocals, Pallbearer earned rave endorsements from such mainstream music outlets as Pitchfork, Spin and NPR.
The quartet -- rounded out by the addition of current drummer Mark Lierly after the recording of the band's debut -- has continued to push the boundaries of the genre, recording the equally acclaimed follow-up Foundations of Burden with celebrated producer (Sleep, Neurosis, Swans, Melvins) and touring with fellow metal luminaries like YOB and Tombs.
The band further refined its mix of doom, prog and psychedelia with its most accessible effort yet, 2017's Heartless. With Rowland adding more synthesizers and Campbell delivering indelible vocal melodies throughout, the album ended up on numerous "best of" lists that year. While the group would not release a follow-up until the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in the fall of 2020, Pallbearer's fourth effort Forgotten Days -- their first for new label Nuclear Blast -- once again earned the quartet universal acclaim.
On their last visit to San Francisco two years ago, Pallbearer celebrated the tenth anniversary of their landmark debut Sorrow and Extinction by performing the album in its entirety along with selections from their other albums. Last May, the band released what some have hailed as the crowning achievement of their career, the sweeping epic Mind Burns Alive. Five years in the making due to delays from the pandemic, the recording delves further into the progressive end of the musical spectrum with the incorporation of synthesizers and saxophone, at times echoing the mournful melodies, powerful dynamics and emotional heft of classic '70s era King Crimson.
In June, the band kicked off its most extensive North American tour in years that comes to the Bay Area this week, stopping at Harlow's in Sacramento Tuesday night before moving on to the Great American Music Hall on Wednesday and the Catalyst in Santa Cruz Friday. Pallbearer is joined by celebrated experimental metal group Inter Arma. The Richmond, VA-based quintet has been pushing the boundaries of heavy music for the better part of two decades with its corrosive and complex mix of doom, hyper-technical death metal and psychedelia. Its latest effort New Heaven -- the band's fifth for Relapse Records -- has earned the crew glowing reviews.
Opening the show is the Keening, a new project led by Rebecca Vernon, the singer of late lamented Salt Lake City doom experimentalists SubRosa. Amplifying to folk elements of that group, Vernon's new band takes richly orchestrated, chamber music approach to her gothic murder ballads with an all-star group of supporting musicians including Witch Mountain drummer Nathan Carson, bassist and noted engineer Billy Anderson (who co-produced the Keening's debut album Little Bird with Carson and Vernon), violinist Andrea Morgan (who has played with metal outfits Exulansis and Mortuous) and guitarist Christy Cather (Ludicra, Ails). The band played the Decibel Metal & Beer Festival last December and performed Little Bird in its entirety at the 2024 Roadburn Festival in the Netherlands in spring.
Pallbearer with Inter Arma and the Keening
Tuesday, July 23, 7 p.m. $34
Harlow's
Wednesday, July 24, 7 p.m. $25-$29
Great American Music Hall
Friday, July 26, 7 p.m. $25-$30
The Catalyst