Concerts

Metal Bird

It's melodic, it's anthemic, it's smart, it's louder than hell: It's the new heavy metal, and Pelican is one of its foremost purveyors. Formed in the early '00s from the ashes of Tusk, another acclaimed, high-volume project, the Chicago quartet fuses sprawling, low-end drone with wickedly interwoven guitar parts and...

By Jonathan Zwickel

May 18, 2006

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It's melodic, it's anthemic, it's smart, it's louder than hell: It's the new heavy metal, and Pelican is one of its foremost purveyors. Formed in the early '00s from the ashes of Tusk, another acclaimed, high-volume project, the Chicago quartet fuses sprawling, low-end drone with wickedly interwoven guitar parts and a massive, maniacal rhythm section. The group's purely instrumental songs evolve with glacial slowness and certainty: After six minutes of relentless, slow-mo melting and exploding, there's no way to ignore the power and nuance Pelican wields. Last year's The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw was a post-rock, post-metal masterpiece, in the vein of South Florida metal maestros and Pelican predecessors Torche. Highly recommended stuff for all those who hotbox their Scions, knowingly spell rock as "r-a-w-k," or bought that special, high-priced amp because it goes to 11.

Pelican plays with Mono and Life and Times at 8 p.m. Thursday, May 18, at Churchill's Pub, 5501 NE Second Ave., Miami. Tickets cost $12. Call 305-757-1807.

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