Night Horse Bring Out the Headbangers at SXSW

While the fire marshal outside the bar was busy writing a citation for exceeding capacity on Friday evening (March 18), Night Horse was busy inside turning the packed Headhunters patio into a roiling sea of chaos at the Tee Pee Records showcase at SXSW in Austin, Texas.

There's no stage in the tiny bar, which meant the crowd was practically on top of the band to start with. Singer Sam James Velde ordered everyone to come even closer.

"I'm going to hit the f--- out of you," he acknowledged when someone right up front wondered aloud about the wisdom of standing in such close proximity to the Los Angeles stoner-rock band, steeped in the influence of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. "But it's going to feel good."

With half the crowd at considerable risk of getting cracked upside the skull with the bass, the show became the kind of shared experience where the line between band and audience blurred until it was almost indistinguishable. Velde was immersed in a sea of fans banging their heads and pumping their fists along to unison guitar leads and deep, sludgy riffs, and fans were literally part of the band by virtue of thrashing around in the midst of the musicians.

Night Horse played a mix of songs from the band's new album, 'Perdition Hymns,' and its predecessor, 'The Dark Won't Hide You,' including the title track. Although Velde was a few beers down by the end of the show, guitarist Justin Maranga summed up the evening.

"I thought this was going to be a total s---show, and it was," he said. "But in the best possible way."