Concert Review: Contagin (Lucky's Saloon)

BY SKYLAR BLACKMAN

Burlington, North Carolina, my do you have some astounding talent amongst you! I recently had the pleasure of visiting Lucky’s Saloon one Friday night and hearing Contagin perform that evening and man, all I have to say is they were fantastic and you definitely need to give them a listen and maybe even catch them at another show across the state. With a 28-year history and many moments of growth, they’re out to bring stellar “mood metal” to the hearts of North Carolina music enthusiasts. When I tell you that I haven’t heard anything like this in person in a very long time, I’m dead serious and these guys truly have something impressive brewing in Alamance county.

Hailing from a dream started in the 90s doing covers of famed songs for the time, Contagin already had a vision of what they wanted to be from the start and they were determined to make it happen. To this day, with roots and inspiration deep in their origin, their deep, hard-hitting riffs and vocals alongside atmospheric melodies with enough grit to address life’s challenges and hardships, listening to Contagin live is an experience that truly transported me somewhere else. For this one period of time, I listened and felt like the difficulties I had faced and the frustrations that tried to drag me down were understood and that I now had this space where my emotions could run rampant and free and I could allow everything to come out. A slower, deeper, reflective branch of the metal genre really has your emotions seeping out and allows space to sit with them even if you don’t realize that you are. Even still, I couldn’t help but bop along to the melodies Contagin created that night and enjoy the otherworldly atmosphere seeing from floor to ceiling at Lucky’s that night. Fans of Black Sabbath, Alice in Chains, Type O Negative, Deftones, and so many more, if you want to support local musicians off to do great things, a Contagin show is where you need to be.

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SKYLAR BLACKMAN

Skylar Blackman is a daydreaming writer and traveler seeking the moments and spaces that harvest joy and connection among others. Originally from Connecticut, she now lives in Burlington, NC where she geeks out about music and books, and works on her writing alongside her full time job. When she’s not working, she’s getting all the Corgi cuddles, soaking up inspiration from the locals, reviewing and sharing books, and finding the nearest spot to explore or music event.

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