I walked into Montage Music Hall Saturday night as Deviant was serving up a crushing, bottom-heavy metal groove as part of a multi-band build-up to Michael Graves' set. I say "bottom heavy" because the guitar was so loud, it wasn't put through the P.A. Now, fat-bottom bands do make this rockin' world go 'round, but as guitar players we all must remember that turning down the volume on stage can actually make us louder. And after all, isn't that what we all want?

Bitter Flesh Thing followed and worked the crowd into its initial frenzy. The band's "The New Infection" has obviously gotten around into some hot little hands, as there were smatterings of singing along throughout the room. Though the band's show wasn't as visually intense as when I saw the outfit a few months back at Water Street Music Hall, Bitter Flesh Thing was musically tight and intense. The band sounds like it has taken up permanent residency in the netherworld between man and machine, where robots bleed and humans rust. And it seems that adding a bullhorn to your delivery increases its urgency. I think I'll try it at the post office tomorrow.

Graves' association with The Misfits - he was the singer of one of its later incarnations - brought out droves of fans that spanned punk, metal, and gothic strains (yet another netherworld). The band was extremely loud and, frankly, tighter than The Misfits. Other than the pedigree and the song selection drawing fans, The Misfits association might have done this band a slight disservice. It's hard to judge a band when forced to compare it to something else, or expect something different out of it. I thought Graves' voice was powerful and angry, and the band rocked hard. But when held up to the legacy of The Misfits, it fell a little short.

Slipped over to Vertex to catch a bit of DJ Darkwave's set as he pumped electronic heat into music that strolls the same stem as Bitter Flesh Thing. The vibe on the dance floor was sexed up to the max in vinyl and leather, and in my blue jeans and shop jacket I fit in like a hooker at a garden party. I had fun, though.