August 1, 2015 - Show Review Beachland Ballroom
MourningWagon show review for 7/31/2013 at the Beachland Ballroom Tavern
By: Jeremy Schindorff
MourningWagon is a groove metal band which hails from the nether regions of Zimbabwe… Ohio. With their chipper sound and “boy next door” rugged good looks, these fine young gentlemen would be a perfect fit to play your “Spring Fling” or a real happening “Sock Hop” at the local high school! Ok, ok, enough bullshit….. MourningWagon is pretty much the polar opposite of the previous paragraph except for the “Groove Metal” part; they do that shit VERY well!
“An interesting fact about these cats would be that there is no actual frontman, rather they all partake in the lead role through different points during their set.”
Shannon Henkel (MourningWagon)
First off we’ve got Shannon Henkel on guitar. He is affectionately referred to as “Drinkie McGlugGlug” by the rest of his band mates. When not frantically molesting the neck of his guitar on stage, he would appear to take pride in being the “hydration specialist” of this foursome.
Stephen Homan (MourningWagon)
Next up you have Stephen “The Abominable” Homan on bass guitar. When he’s not on stage plucking & slapping with precision, he enjoys walking around the Rock N’ Roll Hall of fame and telling folks “Why yes, yes I am indeed Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins.
Michael Strong (MourningWagon)
To the rear of his brethren is the human tattoo, Michael “Deathstar” Strong on the pots and pans keeping shit real “steady like” and making sure that the three hooligans in the front are keep’n their shit on time.
Dom Rini
This leaves us with the obvious “Faceman” of the group, Domonic “Dom” Rini on the second guitar. One look at Dom’s “Ron Jeremy” like sex appeal and you realize that his excellent guitar skills are being far over shadowed by the fact that he is “MournigWagons” gimmick to draw the ladies in the door. But this band is a group of marketing geniuses that realize you have to utilize every tool in the shed……..and from what I hear…. Domonic is one BIG tool!
All kidding aside though, MourningWagon is no joke! They do interject some sharp witted humor into the show, but make no mistake, they can bring the heavy. A very hefty groove/sludge vibe with solid players on all four corners and a very tight knit comradely that many bands struggle to find. If you see their name on a bill…check out that show, you’ll be glad ya did. Oh yeah, and buy some merch & support the scene!
Video courtesy of Jeremy Schindorff
