S E V E R A N C E

This page is designated to inform all those who were unable to attend our shows of exactly how things went that evening.  Everytime we do a show, there will be a new posting a day or two after the show.  So read on, and see how crazy things can be on the road.  JP

Our 2nd show at Newman's was another incredibly invigorating experience. The night began with Mike's (yes, our vocalist continues his polygamous ways with yet another band!!) cover band. After that, old-school thrash band Black Tooth Grin took the stage for about 30 minutes. These guys will begin playing a lot more frequently, so look for this band if your into old-school, original thrash. Our brothers in Confused took over with their "true hardcore" sound. Severance had not played with these guys since the early '90s, and our first time sharing the stage was back in 1987 when Severance was known as Rest in Pain!!!!  How's that for a bit of trivia!!!???  Confused caused no confusion, but only delivered sheer hardcore pleasure like the hardcore giants that have influenced them  (Cro-Mags, DRI, Suicidal Tendencies, and several more). If none of these bands sound familiar to you, then you really haven't experienced "true hardcore." Arnold, Scooter, Al and Omar, in my opinion, are the best line-up that Confused has ever had. Listening to this band again was like a temporary reversion to my high school days (except I still managed to keep my present-day wrinkles). They have a new CD out with 21 tracks, some studio, some live. Pick it up, NOW!!! Contact information is included at the end of this recap.
Those of you who have kept up with the latest from the Severance Camp well know of Ralph's departure from the band. Well, this was not going to stop us from doing the best we could with four members. Let's do the math (pull out your calculators if needed), two guitarists minus one guitarist is equivalent to 12 strings minus 6 strings, giving us 6 strings from which to deliver our live madness. Although this is a big compromise for Severance, we did what we had to do. The compromise did not end there. Within the first song, Joe Dan "Don't worry, I know music theory" de la Rosa, popped two strings!!!  Let me rephrase that again for those who think I may have committed a typing error: he freaking popped two strings simultaneously!!! In the multiple centuries that the guitar has existed, this has probably only happened twice before, probably to Jesus Christ with his Christian band and to Julius Caesar with his death metal band before his convincing victory over Pompey. Add August 3rd (technically the 4th) to that list of unexpected, unlikely events. If anyone can bullshit himself around the guitar and find a way to compromise, it is Joe Dan, who miraculously managed to perform over 40 minutes of music (comprising of approximately over 50 guitar riffs, and even some damn leads as well!!!). The energy of the crowd made 8 songs seem like only 3. Erik Alamia, bassist for Black Tooth Grin, saved my life twice by supplying me with much-needed H20 during our set. Thanks bro!! In addition, the waitress from Newman's behind the bar must be acknowledged for hooking me up with a huge ass glass (the size of those bright orange construction cones that are used on the streets) of orange juice after the show. It was safe to say that I was definitely replenished with enough Vitamin C for the rest of the month. I don't know her name, but thanks anyway!!. The crowd was very receptive, and that is very much appreciated.  Many friends showed up including Debbie, Rick, Sydney (from San Antonio), Slow Grind Boys, Driver 23s Clan, Abram, Lunatic Alex, Mark from AVSP, Melissa/Hector/Laura, Venessa (Corpus Christi), Greek Dan (who helped out with sound) and his wife, Leo, Picos, Danny, Scarebeus Robert, Ted Rackley from Fandango U.S.A., Crystal Hinojosa, Ben, and tons more; close to a hundred heads showed up on a Sunday night!!!! That shit is noteworthy. We had some anonymous roadies for the night who took the initiative to help us out with our gear. Thanks to those guys. In general, thanks to everybody who made that night memorable; the crowd, the staff, the bands, the fans, the unknown roadies, everybody in that cramped up bar for tolerating the noise and willing to accept the consequences of a difficult and seemingly incessant Monday at work. In addition to the love for music, memorable nights like this make our efforts all worth the while. JP

Confused contact information: (Booking) 1-210-862-4550  or  e-mail at sicklovehate@aol.com
Confused additional contact informaiton: 1-956-212-8223    or e-mail at eyanez@hotmail.com

Dead Gift Entertainment pulled out another great show for the Valley scene. For what started off to feel like a fiasco, didn't turn out to be too bad at all. To begin with, the show started a little later than expected so Dogma Hollow had to get cut off. They were already ready to perform on stage, but the tour manager claimed that they should have been done by the time they were about to begin. Without complaint, Dogma Hollow reliquished their performance and allowed to Panteon to start on schedule. It was because of them (Dogma Hollow) that the remainder of the show went smoothly, and I feel this needs to be mentioned because it showed a lot of class on behalf of the Dogma Hollow boys. Secondly, the soundman (yes you pinche Arnold), showed up after all locals had finished their performances. Because of this, the locals had a subpar sound, but that didn't hinder the crowd from pitting throughout the evening. At least the tour package was able to reap the benefits of a decent sound. With at least 150 metalheads in attendance, the pitting was ferocious yet amicable. Our set was a little shorter than we would have liked (only 4 songs), but considering the fact that we had not rehearsed for 2 weeks, it was probably wise that we quit while we were ahead. From speaking to the all the bands, they were quite impressed with the Valley scene that evening. One band even went to the extent to state, "You guys are blowing San Antonio away. That's for sure!!" It was great to see many friends from Mexico at the venue as well as many other local friends: Edgar, Vanessa, Roy, Noel, etc. The ownership at Smokin' Aces need to be commended for allowing this event to be held in their establishment when they could have easily opted to host a UFC pay-per-view fight instead. The Valley scene has once again made a remarkable impression on the visiting bands; keep it up. JP

Even though we were only able to witness the first day's insanity of the Goregrowler's Ball, it is safe to say that the Ball was a success. Bands from all over the state were tearing it up. The head count was close to 150, and the transitions between the 10+ bands went smoothly. Aaron Mendiola (a.k.a. Goregrowler) needs to be commended for setting up the whole event, inviting us to play, and making everyone happy. With so many bands to please, this can be quite the task.  The sound, at first, was a little unpleasant, but by the end of the night, all sounded great.  A few bands ended up cancelling, and Sarcolytic ended up cutting their set short because the cops showed up requesting for the music to be lowered (since the show was outdoors); but the show continued without further interruption, and every band in attendance was able to perform. The pits were pretty active and friendly. Sean Whitaker from Insidious Decrepancy must be thanked for lending us a chord and a strap for Abel. Enrique "Mil Mekos" Mendez went beyond the call of duty by driving for the majority of the trip and for helping out with everything. Kat from San Antonio hooked us up with free fajita and chicken tacos that, at the time, seemed to be the best tacos in the world. Severance must have collectively consumed over 20 of these edible jewels. We made several new friends that night, and the crowd feed back was greatly appreciated. Javier Trevino lent us his trailer for the trip- a big "thank you" goes out to him for being so cool. It had been close to a decade since we last played San Antonio. Hopefully it won't be that long before we perform there again. Rumor has it that this event will be annual; hopefully we can do this again next year.  JP

Considering that McAllen has one of the best scenes in the state of Texas, I would have to say that the crowd size for the Pyrexia show was weak.  The 50 metalheads in attendance witnessed one hell of a show.  Fed of Me started the night with their brand of intricate deathcore.  Then yours truly (Severance) took the stage to rush through 5 of our songs.  It took us 20 minutes to play 30 minutes of music; yes, we know how to defy the essence of time. Sons of Azrael from Buffalo, New York were the first of the national acts to perform; then Florida's Infernaeon took the stage to perform their style of black/death metal with keyboards.  Los Angeles' Crematorium represented the west coast with their death metal and provided a good warm up for the evening's headliners, Pyrexia.  Because of time constraints, Pyrexia was only able to play about 6 six songs, but they crushed in the little time they had.  They did perform a one-song encore at the crowd's request.  Justin DiPinto from Mortal Decay/Malevolent Creation played drums and Mac from Internal Suffering filled in on bass for the tour.  There were no fights, there was constant pitting, and everybody was having a good time.  Arnold once again created his soundboard magic and helped everybody sound powerful and loud, which is pretty difficult when you have reggaeton/hip-hop music seeping through the roof at an unpleasant volume.  Carrying the equipment up the 220 steps of stairs (it felt like that many, but it was probably closer to 30) was agonizing, but AD from McAllen (who happens to love Severance) helped us out immensely.  Thanks bro, I owe you a beer or two.  Thanks to Juan from The Metro for allowing this show to take place at his club, and for supplying me with a lamp to help light up our merchandise area. Joaquin from Fed of Me/Dead Gift Entertainment made this show possible, and he needs to be commended for bringing down all the national death metal acts that we've been getting in our area.  Check out his myspace page to stay on top of all the madness this guy is bringing down to McAllen.  Even with the fact that Corpus Christi only had 15 people show up to their show the night before, I would say that the McAllen scene made up for it and left a decent impression on the boys on the Tour of the Wicked bill. Maybe next time the scene can bring in the triple-digit crowds we are so used to seeing. We will wait and see... JP  

                                                  

Dead But Walking's last show at the VFW went pretty well.  To begin with, we'd like to clear things up a bit.  This was our last show at the VFW, not our last show ever.  Many people became confused with the announcement because Dead But Walking would not be doing anymore shows; therefore, Severance wouldn't be doing anymore shows at the VFW since our vocalist Mike runs Dead But Walking Productions.  Severance is far from dead; we will be doing more shows. The evening went pretty well, considering that the crowds were a little more tame than what we've seen at the VFW.   Fed of Me had to cancel their performance, but everybody else showed up and performed their asses off.  Thanks to all who bought merchandise, and thanks to Edgar Trejo for taking care of merchandise for the evening. It was a little odd being the only death metal band on the bill, but the crowd embraced us as they usually do.  If I'm not mistaken, we've done 5 shows at the VFW, and most of them brought smiles of satisfaction to our faces.  If any of you reading this attended any of those shows, we appreciate your support of the local scene.   JP

                                                              

   
Sunday, July 29th, proved to be a rather eventful evening for the Severance history book.  This was our first time playing at Newman's, and things turned out very memorable. There were a few wrinkles presented that were quickly ironed out- Undying Prophecy had to cancel because of bandmember issues(ask them for more details); the original soundguy bailed a few hours earlier; Fed of Me cancelled ( they were added a little after the completion of the first flyer); and Blast Perversion's vocalist was under the weather.  To remedy the aforementioned, Walk the Graves filled in for Undying Prophecy; Mike (our vocalist) took over the sound situation; Fed of Me was not replaced; and Blast Perversion endured a member's illness and went ahead and performed.  We want to thank Brandon and the Newman's crew for allowing this mayhem to occur under their roof.  There was something for everybody to enjoy at Newman's. If you like hardcore, Walk the Graves brought their tunes to the stage and left a good impression on many.  If you enjoy porngrind, Blast Perversion satisfied those immoral urges.  If you wanted old-school death metal, Severance supplied the goods.  If you wanted a cold beverage, the bar was just a shout away.  If you like Ultimate Fighting Championship events, our former bassist, Oliver, was attacked by an irrate crowd member who relentlessly bashed his fist into Oliver's back for about 20 or so punches.  If you like irony, this attack happened at the beginning of one of our new songs that is entitled "Humunkind", which is about the cruelty that we as humans inflict upon other humans. The sound for the evening started off a bit incomplete but eventually improved.  Several of our old friends were there to share this moment with us, and several became new friends.  All those wearing their unholy Severance shirts need to be commended for supporting us on the most holiest of days- Sunday.  Thanks to Danny from Blast Perversion for lending me his drumset for the evening.  Thanks to those who attempted to stop the brawl during "Humunkind" and thus preventing a bloodbath on the frontrow.  Venessa may have very well saved my life by getting me a bottled water towards the end of our 9-song set (a feat we have never before embarked on), and she must be acknowledged.  Thanks to Denny's for being there when hungry musicians/fans need to replenish themselves.  Hopefully, Newman's will host us for another show.  Until then,... JP

Quality precedes quantity was the lesson learned on Friday, June 15th at the VFW. Although this was the smallest sized crowd we have performed for at the VFW, the mayhem was no less obvious.  Maybe it was the lack of air conditioning that put everybody in a violent, agitated state.  Whatever it was, it proved to be beneficial for the constant, maelstrom-like mosh pits. Mario from Of Blood and Ashes gifted us, as well as every other band, with an impressive sound for the evening.  Considering our lone roadcrew member, Roy "Dirty Sanchez" Sanchez, was unable to attend, things went considerably smooth.  Thanks to Maggie for tending to the merchandise while we played and to Ruben from Rigor Mortis Records for hooking me up with some clip-on lamps for merchandise displaying. A few Severance shirts were being sported by some of the crowd members, and that is always apreciated.  It was good to see a few of our old friends there; Lee, Leo, Mark, etc. Before I forget, Venessa Serna from Corpus Christi needs to be acknowledged for possibly saving my life by buying me a much-needed, bottled water at the conclusion of our set.  It felt like we were playing in one of those mini warming ovens you see at your local convenience stores that keep those brutally delicious burritos and all the leftover breakfast tacos at an acceptably safe temperature. Well the important thing is that none of us died, but we came pretty damn close!!  JP
        

Our 2nd performance in our state's capital proved to be a noteworthy event.  The folks at The Red 7 outdid themselves with the sound that evening.  Everything was audible and enjoyable.  Extreme Texas Metal must be acknowledged for making this event possible and for including Severance on the bill.  Even though the crowd was a little under triple-digit figures, those in attendance made up for it with a great response.  Thanks to all those who purchased merchandise; you fed me (JP) for the weekend.  It was great to see so many myspace friend requests from the Austin area when we got back the next day.  Many of our friends ended up joining us for the evening.  Mario from Of Blood and Ashes from the Valley was in Austin and decided to go by and give some support.  Adrian Longoria and his friend Omar drove from Houston to check us out.  Former members, Juan and Dustin, were in attendance (good luck with the Severance tribute band guys!!! Ha Ha!!).  Some other old friends of ours were there as well-- Aaron, Sandra, Roy, and several more.  An extra special thanks to Gary for letting me borrow his drums, the guys in Exulcerate for lending us their cabinets, and all the other bands who generously allowed us to use their equipment, therefore making our trip a little less tedious.  No thanks to the crew at Denny's for taking over an hour to feed Mike, Omar and me when we were dying of hunger to begin with.  Getting the order wrong doesn't make matters any better either. With the exception of  Ralph's stomach virus causing him to spend the majority of the evening by the can disgorging, everything was perfect. Thanks to Ruben from Rigor Mortis Records for always being there for us with merchandise help ( and hangars!!).  Austin's scene has proved to be one of the best in the state; we hope it continues embracing Severance the way it did on the 21st of April. We will be back there soon.  JP


                                                           

Just by looking at the bands scheduled to perform, we were expecting a pretty insane evening at Chapa's Bar on March 11, 2007, and none of us was disappointed.  Several hundred of the Valley's metal faithful showed up to the best show we have ever played in Brownsville.  With the exception of Panteon's cancellation, everything went incredibly smooth.  Efrain took care of scheduling masterfully, and his sound crew helped immensely. From my view behind the drumset, all I can say is that I was glad to be on stage and not in the daunting pits that whirled below.  If you can imagine 100 UFC fighters all trying to viciously pulverize the ones around them, then you have a good idea what the pits were like that night- not just for Severance, for all the bands. Cephalic Carnage tore it up like always, and Brujeria never disappoints.  Leonard from Cephalic Carnage went to the extent of saying, "It is an honor to share the stage with Severance.  They killed tonight." Comments like that are immeasurable.  We need to acknowledge a few individuals who made the evening go a little better for us.  Thanks to Jaime from In Asunder for lending me some cymbal stands for our set.  Flor volunteered to look over our merchandise while we played, and that was much-needed.  Many people made the drive from McAllen to Brownsville as we did, and that deserves mentioning because that is a lengthy and dangerous drive with all the construction between here and there.  Maggie Espericueta took some amazing photos (once again) that you can view on our Visions Page.  A good handful of metal heads bought merchandise in support of Severance, and that is always appreciated.  Ruben from Rigor Mortis Records always lends a helping hand with anything we need, and we are grateful for that.  It was good to see many of our friends at the show, and it was equally as pleasant to make the new friends we made that night.  I'm sure it is safe to say that everyone who was in attendance at Chapa's on March 11, 2007 left the venue with a life-long memory- I know we did.  Thanks Brownsville/Valley. JP

                                                          

Wow, close to 300 metal heads showed up for this event, proving once again, that the Valley scene ranks with the best of them!!  Our brothers in Uncleansed played their first show in McAllen and loved it.  All the bands carried their own weight and performed impressively.  Pitting was insane throughout the whole evening.  Mike Mena managed the evening's festivities nicely to ensure everybody had their allotted performance times.  Thanks to all those who supported Severance through merchandise purchases and to Abram and Roy for offering their roadie skills for the evening and helping things run smoothly.  Thanks also to Ruben from Rigor Mortis Records for looking over our merchandise while we were on stage.  It's nights like these that make life worth living. See you at the next show. JP

                                                                    

The IXth Annual Anti-Christ Mass in Houston was definitely worth the drive to Houston.  Nine bands entertained over 150 metal heads at Walter's on Washington.  Thanks to Luis Carlos for giving us the opportunity to perform at this event--you are a man of your word bro.  Everything went very smooth, which is rare in an event like this.  It was good to see some old friends at this event as well: Brian from McAllen, Aaron from Exculcerate, Wes from Blaspherion, Bill from KPFT in Houston, Sean and Jim from Uncleansed, Larry formerly of Infernal Dominion, and a shit load more that are slipping my mind. People from all over the state were in attendance.  Thanks to Daryl from Uncleansed for supplying me with a drumset to pound on for 40 minutes.  Many people purchased merchandise this evening, and your support is, as always, greatly appreciated.  Thanks to Vore for the CD trade.  Adrian Longoria a.k.a. roadie of death, gave us a helping hand with equipment as well.  Maggie Espericueta risked her life taking pics of us while on stage--thanks for that.  Brian Ferrell ( no relation to Will) from Ossuary Industries took care of us hardcore.  Your hospitality will not be forgotten bro. An honorary mention goes out to the group of guys taking up the whole front row during our set who headbanged non-stop to every tune we spewed out. Unfortunately, I don't know your names.  This was a good way for Severance to end the year.  Until next time...   JP  

Another evening of giving from the Valley metalheads proved successful at the 3rd Annual STMP Toys for Tots Campaign.  The number of gifts received hit the triple digits once again.  It was cool to see some new, up and coming bands that I'm sure you will hear a lot more of in the near future.  Thanks to Serge and Lori for organizing everything and to Chris for running killer sound, again.  Many bought merchandise, and that is always appreciated.  The efforts and results of this event are going to put smiles on the faces of many less fortunate children in our area, so in essence, THANK YOU to those who attended and brought a toy.  Check out the Visions Page for a few live shots of this event. JP

Another impressively brutal show at the infamous VFW.  Thanks to the Dead But Walking Crew for organizing this event.  The cold weather and rain was not enough to deter roughly 200 metalheads from attending this show.  Thanks to all those who bought merchandise in support of Severance.  All the bands carried their own weight and each tore it up.  Violent, yet friendly, mosh pits swarmed through the entire evening.  The scene here has much to be envied by other scenes; this evening was concrete proof of that.  See you at the next show.  JP

Brujeria's first time in Brownsville was a pretty rowdy night. Everything you would expect from a Brujeria show was present: pukings, injuries, mosh pits, breast-flashings, drunkenness, etc. Chapa's Bar was practically sold out. The sound for the night was incredible. Arnold from Catastrophe managed, once again, to make us sound impressive. Thanks to Adrian Longoria, the veteran roadie, for his help with transporting and setting up equipment. The crowd response was amazing. It was good to be back in Brownsville after so many years. Local favorites, Panteon, displayed their dark metal for the Brownsville metal heads as well. Thanks to Enrique for booking us once again and to Efrain for making things run smoothly. Hopefully we'll be back in Brownsville much sooner than later. JP

STMP did it again!! The Deceased was definitely a success. Considering the show was during the week, the crowd was just as impressive as the weekend shows at Smiley's. Every band was great. King from Deceased really enjoyed the evening here, and it was cool to see the Valleyites getting into some old school heavy/thrash metal. Thanks to the ladies who cooked the food(rice, beans, brisket, potato salad, etc.) for the bands that evening; I don't know your names, but your consumable contributions were greatly appreciated. Sterling, formerly of Degradation, was a set-up savior once again on stage with the drums. Thanks for the help my blasting brother. Jon from Slow Grind/Blast Perversion worked aurally pleasant miracles on the board again. All in all, it was a pretty enjoyable evening. JP

Damn, I don't know where to start recapping this show. Should I start with the 150+ people in attendance, the ridiculous merchandise sales, the killer support, or the insane, endless mosh pits!!??!?? This show was great in every way. Whenever a band is about to do a show, they hope everything goes well even though it rarely does. This show was one of those rare incidents where everything was exceptional. Thanks to Mario for putting this all together and for getting us a very good sound. Even though each Severance member was at risk of being brutally trampled by uncontrollable, raging moshers because of a lack of a stage, it was all well worth it. The video footage of the show looks like a massive riot!!! Speaking of video footage, thanks to Roy Sanchez (again) and Hector Ochoa for doing their best impressions of Steven Speilberg by filming the show. Thanks to Sylvia for handling merchandise again. We had roadies that night that we didn't even know we had!!! Thanks to those guys as well. Thanks to Beto and my brother, Albert, for helping out with the drums. This show displayed two things to us: the fact that the McAllen area scene still rules all scenes, and it showed different generations of metalheads enjoying what makes us one-metal. Thanks to all those "new schoolers" and "old schoolers" who decided to come spend an evening with us along with a few other kick ass local bands. Merchandise sales were incredible; thanks to all those who purchased anything; we know cash does not grow on trees. In between each song, I couldn't believe the crowd intensity I was witnessing before me. I had to question whether or not this was really happening--it was. Even though we have been trying to play the VFW for quite some time, this was our very first time, but it won't be our last. See you again, sometime soon. JP

Our first time at the Hookah proved to be a rather pleasant experience. Considering there was another show across town, the attentive crowd of over 100 was plenty to ask for. Gored seemed to enjoy their first performance in McAllen as well. Blast Perversion and Armed to Intervene also shredded the stage to add to the insanity. Thanks to Jovan, the owner of the Hookah, for letting the scene flourish in his establishment. Not many business owners are willing to take the risk of doing these kinds of shows, but Jovan stepped up to grab the metal torch. Many of our friends showed up to hang out and listen to metal. Thanks for always being there guys. Props go out to Undying Prophecy, Dogma Hollow, Satan's Sluts, Until I Wake, Valdris, EMS, Of Forsaken Divinity, A Beautiful Lotus and every other local band that was there to support our cause-- I know I forgot a few bands, sorry. See you at the next show. JP

Most bands judge their live performances by what they did wrong, what they didn't do wrong, crowd response, energy level, live sound, etc., but when you don't get to play at all, that's a different story entirely. Pointing fingers at whomever was responsible for the fiasco at Club Onyx is pointless. We have had many situations in Severance's 15+ year life span, but we have never witnessed something like this. Unfortunately, we weren't the only ones unable to play; none of the locals set foot on stage. I had a feeling booking 8 bands for a show was overdoing it a little, and I was right. At least the crowd got to see the main bands on the package. Considering that tempers were flaring before the show from every direction because of a lack of PA and misorganization, the end result was pretty good. Each band on the package blasted through their songs and seemed to enjoy the Valley crowd. Many of our friends from across the border showed up as well, which doesn't surprise me. Close to 200 metalheads showed up to be a part of the Decades of Death Tour. I don't know who ended up running and setting up the sound equipment, but whoever it was probably ended up saving a riot in the making. You do not want to piss off a metal crowd by cancelling a show at the very last minute. You're better off kicking a wasp's nest and just standing there. The sound was pretty damn good towards the end of the show. Regardless, thanks to all those who bought our merchandise and supported us anyway, even though we didn't get to perform. I think the crowd reaction/attendance helped make the situation a little better for the 4 bands on the package, so it wasn't a total disaster. I just hope things don't get any worse than this. JP

STMP's first show in McAllen went very well.  Over 100 people gathered to witness this event.  It was great to do another show with our little brothers in Undying Prophecy.  Unfortunately, a couple bands dropped out at the last minute, but everything else went well.  Thanks to all the bands; everybody was cool.  Jon (Slowgrind) did a great job at the board.  A sincere thank you goes out to Serge for making us a part of his first McAllen show.  Thanks to all those who showed up in their Severance attire.  The party afterwards at the Hookah Lounge was great as well.  Thanks to Ruben and Maggie for managing the merchandise for us and to the VFW for holding my box of merchandise overnight.  Congratulations to the Undying Prophecy boys for coming in 2nd place in the unofficial United States Foosball Tournament of Champions.  Yours truly (Severance) came in first.  Maybe with some practice, they may actually score a point/goal next time!!!!! Many more shows are to come, so keep your eyes peeled and see you at the next one.  JP

Once again Serge from S.T.M.P. gets my "Humanitarian of the Year Award" for donating his time and effort to get this event off the ground, and, of course, for making Severance a part of it. Pits were off the charts that night!!!! I don't know what it was, maybe it's the Holiday Spirit!!!!! This was STMP's 50th show, and it was a great one. We'd like to thank Oliver(former Severance bassist) for watching over the merchandise while we performed. Thanks to Abram Herrera for his much needed assistance, as well as Sterling (fellow drumbasher) from Degradation for helping me set up my kit. Every band ripped up major ass. It couldn't have gone any better. Like last year's event, over 100 toys were donated my Valley metalheads to help those in need. A special thanks goes out to that pit-crazed female mosher who kept the pits going during our set, and then managed to hang from the ceiling railings and swing herself like a gymnast!!! Somebody needs to get her to the next USA Olympic Gymnast tryouts. I give her performance a perfect 10!!! It's events like this that make life a little more colorful, not just for the bands and the fans but for the children whose families probably can't afford to make Christmas a significant and memorable experience. Christmas is just another day in a cold, uninsulated, unheated, wooden home to most kids in need--but at least we have given them a reason to smile unlike any other day. I'm positively certain that these toys will bring smiles to many children's faces, smiles that everyone in attendance at Satuday's show is responsible for. Thanks again- everyone. JP

Things went pretty well at the Thanksgiving Day Vader Show in Corpus Christi.  About 150 heads showed up for the post turkey-dinner slam fest.  Again, our set was cut short, but our message was sent across in the little time we were on stage.  Scattered Remains dropped out of the bill, so Plague from San Antonio filled in.  Unfortunately, half of Exculcerate showed up late, so they performed as a two-piece (drums and guitar) up until their last song.  Thanks again to Roland for making this event festive in more ways than one.  Quite a few heads from the Valley showed up to represent.  Their attendance was greatly appreciated.  Nobody puked in the mosh pit, so nobody won the Severance merchandise that was being given to the first puker of the evening.  Our apologies to Vader from Ralph and Abel for drinking their beer; their temptation was overwhelming.  The Dew-Scented and Decapitated guys were very down-to-earth dudes who hung out with the Severance clan for the majority of the night.  Thanks to the Exculerate drummer for lending me his drum module power adapter for my triggers.  Our European brothers in Decapitated, Dew-Scented and Vader don't acknowledge Thanksgiving as holiday in their country, but they gave thanks anyway for a brutal evening of metal-that was an evening to remember. JP                 
         
                                               

This show was amazing!!!  Serge from STMP really outdid himself (and not just because he fed the bands with Domino's Pizza-but it helped). I guess he felt obligated to feed us to make up for the broken air conditioning system that left the whole venue peaking at least 120 degrees.  I don't know how the evening finished without somebody fainting, but I know many of us were close to it.  Every band on this bill totally tore shit up.  The pitting was insane, yet not hateful.  Chris and Serge have to be credited with getting a very good sound from the system that evening.  Close to 100 heads showed up to witness Disgorge (CA) and some of the heaviest bands the great state of Texas has to offer: Braced for Nails, Images of Violence, Degradation, Cesspool and Severance.  Thanks to all the other bands not on the bill that showed up for support.  We had no roadies this time, so there is no room for roadie-appreciation.  Maggie came through with group shots (again) which you can view on the Visions Page, and some cool girl wearing a red top, blue jeans, and short, brown hair (sorry, I didn't get her name) was kind enough to take the group pics that you can see on the Legions Page. Thanks to both of you for taking pics.  Brian from Ossuary Industries looked over our merchandise while we performed--thanks my bald brother!!!  I think it was safe to say that Disgorge received a good impression of the RGV Death Metal Scene.  JP  
                         

This was one of the best showings we have seen in Corpus Christi in quite a while. The crowd was great, and the sound was impressive. Thanks to Roland for setting this whole thing up. It was great to meet the Skinless and Despised Icon dudes. Unfortunately, With Passion was in an accident on the way to the show from their Houston gig and, therefore, did not show up. Hopefully everyone was o.k. Thanks to Maggie for taking pictures (which can be seen on the Visions page) and to Sylvia for handling merchandise that evening. Despised Icon is scheduled to come back with Suffocation and Cryptopsy later this year. Keep an eye out for that. JP

Panteon, Killamora and Severance shared the stage for the last time at Barock. With the exception of a few band cancellations, everything else went pretty well. Thanks to all the fellow bands that showed up to support like Satan Sluts, EMS, Vile Decay, Slow Grind and a few more whose names seem to slip me by. This was the last night for shows at this venue because it has been sold with the intentions of making a Chinese restaurant. Yes, finally, a Chinese restaurant in McAllen!!!!!!!! The Barock booking crew is planning on taking things to Kooly's in Mission, so hopefully things will start developing there to keep the local scene active. Nothing is set up locally for Severance as of yet, but we will let you know when something does come up. JP

Even though the crowd size was nothing to brag about, the turn out of the show was enjoyable. Most of the bands showed up and Roland managed to get things flowing smoothly. It was nice to finish our set this time and not get cut off by the CCPD like we did the last time after only playing one song. Thanks (again) to Jon from Slow Grind for lending me his kit to pound on for the evening. Also, thanks to our one-man, road crew, Oliver Gutierrez, for doing absolutely nothing but sleep during the whole trip. JP