An raucous crowd of 400-plus left Slim’s nightclub in San Francisco last Saturday with more than just ringing ears. Many, including this closet banger, felt they may have just witnessed a torchbearer in hard rock’s resurgent march. The Sword was sharp and delivered a classic axe-grinding performance that had me wanting more.

The Austin, TX based foursome opened with a couple enjoyable screamers from their newly released album, Gods of the Earth. The band played fast and crisp all night and had many in the packed venue howling by their third song by unleashing their classic ‘Winters Wolves’ (from the Age of Winters album). The mosh pit reached a fevered pitch and spilled out into the far corners of the venue during pounding takes of ‘To Take the Black’ and ‘The Black River’.

The crowd got primed for The Sword with impressive showings by opening bands Children and the Bay Area’s own Slough Feg. For $14, the show was a steal. Something tells me if The Sword continues to sharpen their blade, those days may be over.

The Sword - Fire Lances Of The Ancient Hyperzephyrians