The Ottoman Empire w/Mirror Black, Erebus, & Bourbon Breath
Saturday, December 29th, 2007 @ The Annex

    I definitely don’t get out to local shows as much as I would like to. Because of that and because I have been looking forward to checking out the Ottoman Empire’s live show for over a year now, I was pumped! After a couple beers at the bar, I was ready for one hell of a show.
    First on stage was Bourbon Breath (Quad Cities, Iowa). Before the show, I had already checked out the band’s myspace page and knew of the Clutch & C.O.C. type of Southern Rock that they came ready to blast at me. Despite the problems with vocal mic, Bourbon Breath put on a solid performance and got my night off to a good start right away!
    Next up was Erebus (Madison, WI). They call themselves political metal, but also claim their music cannot be categorized. Whenever somebody says that, I see it as a challenge. I was determined to give them a label. I failed. When I get around reviewing their demo, I will grant them a perfect 10 for originality. For now I call them thrash metal with a bunch of cool styles added in there twisted and mashed together (and some deathy vocals). With an average stage presence of the band and a highly energetic performance by the vocalist (that often sent him out moshing amongst the crowd), my arousal at The Annex continued.
    Power/traditional metal act, Mirror Black (Madison, WI), was next on the list to keep this night alive. A group of men who looked well-experienced in the music industry took the stage. I’m not sure of the background of the band, but their performance went so smoothly it was as if the music was flowing out of their souls. Well done.
    Now, it was time for The Ottoman Empire (Madison, WI). One of their guitarists (Brian) told me before they took the stage, “You won’t be disappointed”. I hadn’t even planned on doing a concert review of this show until I began witnessing the captivating aura given off by this group on stage. Holy hell! Why haven’t I gotten to one of their shows before? Now due to their popularity growing elsewhere, it sounds like my chances of seeing them live again will be rarer. It is almost like finding out you had a winning lottery ticket all this time, but the deadline to cash it in has expired. Luckily though, this band expressed their love for Madison during the show and will more than likely schedule shows in the area again (even if they are picked up by a label soon). Their energetic power metal sound is strong and will rope in those who are more selective about the metal they listen to. The entire band plays together so tightly, I can’t imagine them ever being anything less than amazing. Every aspect of their sound and image gets a 10 in my book. GO check them out if they play near you. And somebody get these people a contract!
    So, yeah, that’s my review. It kind of sounds like I buttered up the review a bit to make it sound more appealing, doesn’t it? Fuck that. The show was just that fucking awesome!

www.myspace.com/bourbonbreath 
www.myspace.com/erebuswi 
www.myspace.com/mirrorblack
www.myspace.com/theottomanempire