Aliens, Unicorns and Pirates: A Night with Alestorm
Alestorm gave House of Blues a run for its booze and left the venue a shipwreck. The power metal band delivered a show where the pits turned into tidepools and everyone was crowdsurfing. Supported by Glyph and Gloryhammer, the night was chaotic, fun and a power fantasy no one will forget.
House of Blues Anaheim transformed into every inner child’s dream of battling in faraway lands and escaping reality through sheer chaos and joy. The crowd came dressed to walk the plank, slay dragons or aim ray guns at the sky. It was a night of nonstop crowdsurfing and relentless energy.
Glyph opened the night by “arriving” on planet Earth and declaring conquest. The power metal band set the tone immediately. They kicked things off by theatrically executing an inflatable dragon, sending the message that no one was safe from heavy riffs and thunderous shouts. Though fairly new, with members from Skelator, Greyhawk and Gatekeeper, they’re no strangers to the power metal scene. Their set was intergalactic and steeped in worldbuilding — every bit a space opera played through guitars and bass.
When the cosmic journey ended, we were whisked into a fantasy realm with Gloryhammer. The stage transformed into a castle barricade with a glowing hammer inspired by Thor. They opened with a gag featuring Delilah and a Tom Jones cutout before diving into ‘The Land of Unicorns’. Armed with an inflatable unicorn, the crowd — including myself — launched into a unicorn mosh pit, trampling and shoving with rainbow-colored aggression. From there, it was nonstop crowdsurfing and moshing during songs like ‘Fly Away’, ‘Gloryhammer’ and ‘Wasteland Warriors Hoots Patrol’. The band was unforgiving — power chord riffs blazed, drums hit like cavalry hooves and vocalist Sozos Michael’s voice echoed through the venue with soaring highs and clean, powerful shouts. The crowd answered with hoots and Skyrim-inspired chants during every break, all building to the climax of ‘The Unicorn Invasion of Dundee’. Battered from duels and airborne bodies, we were still unprepared for the rum-soaked piracy that awaited us with Alestorm.
A gigantic inflatable rubber duck menaced the crowd before the lights turned green and a SpongeBob-style intro announced the incoming debauchery and rum-fueled mayhem of Alestorm. They kicked off with ‘Keelhauled’, instantly triggering a whirlpool circle pit. Alcohol appeared out of nowhere as the band and crowd drank and shoved each other, setting the tone for the rest of the night. Highlights included the chant-along of ‘Mexico’, the hyperspeed power of ‘Shipwrecked’, and the crowd-rowing chaos of ‘Zombies Ate My Pirate Ship’. The band’s energy never faltered. Frontman Christopher Bowes had the kind of charisma that could convince you to mutiny, drain the ship’s rum and throw a party before sunset.
Alestorm wasn’t just a show, but a high-seas spectacle. By the time the anchor dropped, we’d journeyed through space, battled evil wizards and downed enough rum to start it all over again.
