The 'Wrath' of Silent Civilian

	Jonny Santos of Silent Civilian

SILENT CIVILIAN
ANKLA

Firestation 8 Bar & Cue
Gaithersburg, MD
September 11, 2006

By GREG MAKI

It was a Monday night, but not just another day. Week one of the NFL season was wrapping up with a doubleheader and, more important, the day marked the fifth anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. So the crowd was small at the Firestation 8 Bar & Cue, which, strangely, is not—and never has been—a fire station. (It’s actually a renovated granary warehouse named for a fire museum located down the street.) Those who came out on such a solemn day were treated to a rare (for now) headlining set by the year’s most exciting new band, Silent Civilian.

Filling an off-day on their tour supporting Nonpoint, Silent Civilian showed that, musically, they are more than capable of carrying a show on their own. The current lineup—vocalist/guitarist Jonny Santos, drummer Chris Mora, guitarist Marcus Rafferty and bassist Stan Derby—has now been together on the road for several months and is growing tighter by the day. This band has all it needs to be a major force in metal, from Santos’ aggressive screaming and melodic singing to Santos’ and Rafferty’s blistering guitar work to Mora’s rapid-fire drumming to Derby’s thunderous bass. A slot on a big-time tour to expose them to a wide audience is all they need to explode.

The hour-long set featured nine songs from their debut album, Rebirth of the Temple, including the six performed in their standard opening set, plus “Divided,” “Falling Down” and the rarely played “Force Fed.” The extended set also allowed more time for crowd interaction and the entire band seemed to have blast on stage and hanging out with fans and friends before and after their performance.

SILENT CIVILIAN SET LIST: Funeral, The Song Remains Un-Named, Dead to Me 2006, Rebirth of the Temple, Wrath, Divided, Falling Down, Force Fed, Lies in the House of Shame

Silent Civilian’s touring partner with Nonpoint, Ankla, took the stage before them. This was my third time seeing them live in the span of a month. I don’t know if the band has improved greatly during that time or if I’m just warming up to their percussion-heavy, Latino metal sound, but I have enjoyed their performance more each time. Three local acts—Gorman Prophecy, Bullistic and Mekalum Mezar—opened the show.

I can understand why the turnout was low on this day. Those who decided not to stay home enjoyed quite a night of metal. Silent Civilian has recently dropped off the Nonpoint tour and is booking headlining shows through early October. They are a must-see.