Audio Kombat Arsenal

Niener’s is gone, but for those who made their names at the self-proclaimed true home of rock, the stigma associated with the venue dies hard. There were plenty of nights when that club hosted bad haircuts and worse music, but it wasn’t all mullets and moron metal, especially once rap-rock’s evil influence started to slip. One of the most promising bands to emerge from the Neiner’s and Club Wars circuit is Audio Kombat Arsenal, a smartly symphonic outfit that incorporates swirling keyboards into its tunes without sacrificing its aggressive edge. AKA nabbed the Club Wars III title (the Club Wars IV winner will be crowned November 14 at the Beaumont Club) using snarled vocals, quick-driving drumbeats, rugged riffs and relatively concise song structures. The band thus keeps the heavy-stuff crowd comfortable while pleasing the prog set with its compositions’ daunting difficulty. Traditionally, this particular hybrid style strikes out with the ladies, but perhaps the women-attend-free policy at this CD-release party will lure an unprecedented number of female fans.