Metal scene gets fresh foundation

The place would be heaven, if it weren't for the dudes onstage attempting to conjure up so much hell.

There are no celestial choirs at the 4 Aces tavern on a recent weekday night, just acres of denim checkered with Tankard and Destruction patches, some high-velocity thrash bands whose tunes whiz by like a series of .40 caliber bullets and a longhaired crowd with limbs loosened by $10 all-you-can-drink beer specials.

Like I said, heaven.

Tonight, the "Masters of Disaster" tour is in town, and blackened California metallers Exmortus are putting the small but rabid crowd through the paces, headbanging with such fury that the stage is turned into a windmill of dark hair.

They play but a foot above the floor, their features barely illuminated by the glow of neon Budweiser and Bud Light signs, as heavily tattooed types in sleeveless Death T-shirts shoot pool, play Elvis pinball and bellow along in boozy approval.

Most people here tend to know one another, and a friendly vibe hangs about the place in stark contrast to the decidedly hostile sounds tearing through the PA.

Since last August, 4 Aces has become a locus of the Vegas underground metal scene, one of the few places where local extreme metallers and small touring national bands can play shows and build a fan base on a D.I.Y., grass-roots level, getting paid mostly in free beer.

Of course, it was too good to last.

"Unfortunately, we have to move," says Pat Kaedy, head of Clovenhoof Productions, one of the local promotion outlets that books shows at 4 Aces, a club whose future is uncertain. "We knew in Vegas that these things happen. Places shut down. And it's hard to find a bar that's willing to take the metal music."

Still, Kaedy and 4 Aces bartender Tarae Rivera, who first brought metal shows to the club, have found a new venue for their shows, the High Maintenance bar on the corner of Sahara Avenue and Lamb Boulevard, which Rivera discovered after checking out a dozen other spots.

Concerts will continue at 4 Aces through the end of the month, then relocate beginning with an April 3 gig with Cannibal Holocaust.

Like 4 Aces, High Maintenance is a small, homey joint, well-suited for underground shows that draw, on average, between 100 and 175 fans. Most events will cost $5, with all-locals lineups offered for no cover much of the time.

Every scene needs its foundation, and now the local metal circuit has a new brick-heavy base.

"It's really not about the building, it's about the people," Kaedy says. "If those people continue to follow us over to the new place, then you can't ask for anything more. If we have to do it under a circus tent, we will."

Contact reporter Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476.