Totally Conflicted, an assault on the ears
by redmasque1 on 11/10/17The Masquerade - AtlantaRating: 3 out of 5I will start with the good stuff. Hinder played a relatively short set, but it was filled with their favorites and they're a solid party band. We got an unexpected acoustic treat from Adelita's Way's singer and guitarist due to some bad fortune on their part (bus breakdown which resulted in the two of them flying in to perform for us). Wayland was a surprisingly fun band with solid music and good stage presence.
The first band, Sojourn was passable as the first on a bill of five bands, but they were nothing special. They do have some pretty cool instrumental stuff going on, but as full songs, most of theirs don't really stand up to the bands they are playing with.
Now on to the worst thing I've ever witnessed. Josh Todd and the Conflict is nothing less than a horrible assault on the ears. They played fast, hard, and loud and every single song is terrible. Josh Todd can't sing, the lyrics are stupid, and the lyrical patterns often don't even fit into the song. In fairness, the band is actually pretty good and the music itself is solid, sitting right on the border of hard rock and heavy metal. I wish that I had considered walking out to the outdoor atrium after a couple songs to escape this hideousness, but I did not do that and paid for it dearly.