GIG REVIEW: Thunder in Ahoghill - Stormzone and Donum Dei roar in County Antrim

WHEN technical difficulties strike, a band has two choices - suck it up and get on, or let it stop the show. Stormzone and Donum Dei both had technical gremlins strike, but they chose the former optiob and rose above and smashed the gremlins into the ground and delivered a feast of  metal.

That feast comprised Stormzone, playing a request set ahead of their Bloodstock Open Air appearance, while Donum Dei were making their Diamond Rock Club début.

For such a relatively youthful band they have evolved quickly, with a contemporary metal crushing sound, all delivered with a passion many more seasoned veterans would do well to emulate.

Thomas Marshall and Stuart McLoughlin were locked in tight in both riffs and heavy harmony guitar sections, and Stuart lashed through solos, wringing notes from the neck of his Les Paul with venom and precision.

Part of that precision within Donum Dei is the drums of Alastair Marshall, who maintains the tempo whether a full on assault with double bass runs, or beating the toms into submission. Buried... and Restless were impressive, but Restless had a couple of issues. The bass intro was lost and the harmony sections were off kilter.

Having said that they quickly recovered, and by the time Justice Fails flayed the audience Donum Dei proved themselves as worthy stand-ins for Maverick (whose guitarist Ryan has suffered an injury, forcing the band into an eight-week hiatus). But that didn't stop the Maverick team racking up at the Diamond to show their support for Donum Dei.

A deserved mention in dispatches must also go to  DD's bassist Dean Kane. While Thomas is the fulcrum as frontman, Dean is his manic side-kick, contorting both body and bass in a whirl of movement, loving every second on stage.

Make no mistake, Donum Dei are ambitious, confident but not cocky, precise, and that rarest of beasts - a really heavy band that can bring along both the rock fans and the metal heads in true appreciation.

Appreciation is something that Stormzone will never be lacking in the Diamond Rock Club. To call them local heroes is something of an understatement to those who travel far and wide to see the Stormzone lightning strike.

Just a few short weeks after attracting an impressive several hundred to their tent show as part of Sonisphere, Stormzone were on stage enjoying a trawl through back catalogue material and songs off their most recent release, Three Kings.

Setting something of a Diamond Rock Club record with more than 20 original tracks delivered in a two-hour set, Stormzone were both relaxed and rampant with twin guitars of Moore and Shields shredding the venue, while Harv was the jester cajoling all to enjoy and participate.

Moore and Shields make it their mission to just let their six-stings do the talking for them. Both are extremely accomplished, and at times astonishingly good, players: trading licks, runs and riffs to the Stormzone sound.

A trio of songs that have become 'Zone classics, kicked off the set as Final Journey, Spectre and Secret Gateway rolled like a clap of thunder to the sweltering audience. The two hours were concluded with another trio of Hail the Brave, Death Dealer and the Legend Carries On.

In between was a smorgasbord of classic metal. From the Celtic metal stomp of the Pass Loning, the balladic Beware in Time, the harmonies of Tugging at Heartstrings and Crying In The Rain, and the full on metal of Three Kings and Night of the Storm this was a set showcasing the range and talent of the band.

Having become the band that more and more people from across Europe are eagerly eating up all their shows, those who go along to see them at Bloodstock Open Air are in for a classy metallic assault.

And, Harv confessed that they may be changing their planned setlist after seeing the response to Bang Your Head, a track that hasn't been played live in two years.

That Graham has bass problems with his rig, did not fluster the band, carrying on while he made the running repairs, is a testament to a band sure of what they are doing and confident that they can deliver, and will deliver no matter what.

In a few short minutes Graham was back, locked in with drummer Davy 'Basher' Bates, who put in a A+ performance. From the complicated rolls and rhythms of the likes of Cuchulain through the steady showcasing of Never Trust, and standing atop his drum stool urging the audience - who really needed no urging - to clap along, wave their arms and show the horns Davy was on the money throughout.

Basher is the anchor that stops the flamboyant talent of the front four from flying away from their exuberance and their talent.

And right in front Harv deploys his voice as an instrument of intent, from high notes threatening glass to smash within a one-mile radius, to deep lines that have the throaty terror of classic metal.

There are those who could accuse Stormzone of playing music that is a throwback to the eighties, but that is to miss the point. The members have absorbed the metal they grew up with, placed a huge Stormzone stamp on it, and brought a touch of 21st Century class.

This isn't retro rock, this a storm front of  sheer metal enjoyment: where what could have become clichés in lesser hands have become a 21st Century live phenomenon, marrying the metal of our youth to the 2014 mindset. Yes, for all who may have stood at gigs, po-faced and reserved, Stormzone leaves each and everyone smiling.

Fans at Bloodstock are in for a treat when the weather brings a Storm(zone) through the Derby countryside, raising hell, raising fists and raising the semi-conscious to partake in another brew.

There is no magic formula to rock and metal, but there are secret ingredients that can raise it above the mundane...

Every member of Donum Dei and Stormzone has not only the talent, but the fact that they can rely and trust each other, they are a band of brothers, who make their individual skills part of team, part of a collective dedicated to metal. They are from Northern Ireland, they are metal, and we like it - what more can be said?

Low down and lovely dirty hard rockin' from Bonafide at the Diamond

WHEN it comes to hard rock you have to put all into it to gain the maximum pleasure - and that applies to whether you're a member of a band, or a member of the audience. And, Bonafide brought it in abundance for a night of sheer hard rockin' pleasure on March 29th at the Diamond Rock Club.

The Swedish band were making a return visit to the Diamond in Ahoghill (Rock City) and they produced a relaxed performance that also managed to maintain maximum commitment to rock at its finest.

Opening for Bonafide were local act Tric, making a return to live performances after a year in hiatus.

Now a four-piece Tric laid down a solid set, with the emphasis on blues tinged hard rock. The influences of DC and even Quo on their songs were neither slavish nor where they simply going through a 12-bar homage. Tric were back to plant a flag for rock.

Bonafide are a mystery band. They should be much more widely known given their songwriting, live performances and set of excellent recorded material. However, most present on March 29th knew the songs well.

Opening with the storming Bombo, Pontus Snibb is an engaging front man, obviously comfortable as the focal point of the band, his vocals and guitar playing a masterclass for those who want to follow the rock path.

While Pontus was the focus it would be a mistake to ignore the tight-knit unit of Bonafide. Bassist Martin Ekelund is the joker in the pack, climbing around the side of the stage and egging the audience on during the likes of Peg Legged Pete.

Niklas Masston's drums stay consistent and add flurries that give the edge to Suburb Baby Blues, which is a tune the audience apparently relate to judging by the number of people singing along.

As aide de camp Mikael Fassberg's guitar playing fills out the sound with solid rhythm, and when the opportunity arises playing some tight and entertaining lead solos.

Bonafide wrapped up with a duo of songs that reflect their ethos and the ethos of fans who are prepared to travel to see low down and lovely dirty hard rockin'.

Fill Yer Head With Rock and Hard Livin' Man were perfect closers, with the band rising up to meet the audience's enthusiasm.

Well-rehearsed and confident on stage Bonafide played it hard and played it well at the Diamond Rock Club - a well spent Saturday night for all present.

Jizzy's back rockin the Love/Hate way before heading off to pastures new

TO describe Jizzy Pearl's career as varied in terms of the acts he's been involved with is an understatement - but he is wrapping off the Love/Hate phase of his career with a mini-album and UK tour, which includes the Diamond Rock Club this coming Friday (March 7th).

The mini-album, Crucified, which for legal reasons is released under the title, Jizzy Pearl's Love/Hate, is a mixture of the elements that made Pearl's Love/Hate career so successful, if often under-rated.

This summer Pearl will be taking over the vocal duties for Quiet Riot, but this is a suitable statement of what can be achieved by the man in terms of singing and song-writing.

Friday night's date at the Diamond will be the second date on the tour, which will see him through to a March 22nd date at Hard Rock Hell.

While many will harken after the days of Blackout in the Red Room and Wasted in America, they would be foolish to overlook Crucified.

From the off-set this incorporates the 80s snarl of Love/Hate with Hanging You Out To Dry, which in Pearl's own words is: "A song about the infamous Hollywood Sign stunt from the viewpoint of the Crucifee himself.

"The vibe is simple, I tried to get back to the start, a bunch of young kids banging out loud musical joy in a little room and the singer in the middle, one microphone, testifying to the World.”

It is a kick-ass, punkish slam that really is about "loud musical joy" before Sunny Day takes a different turn, with Pearls current partner. This has a really LA strip feel to it, an ode to love told with a shout of passion and subtle interludes to the full-on noise.

From good 'dates' to bad ones You're Making Me Nervous is all about when fantasy romance's go wrong, apparently told in the first person from experience. Clocking in at under three minutes, this is a sure fire favourite for those who revelled in the Love/Hate 90s style.

But the largely acoustic I Don't Want Your Baby - if given the proper time is a grower of an ironic ballad.

"“This is a twist on the traditional Power Ballad where the guy not only doesn’t get the girl, he doesn’t want the girl!" said Pearl. For all that this is still a strong song with tasty lead guitar lines and swirling organ sounds that would have been sure of MTV rotation had it been released in 1987.

Penultimate track Love Is All is perhaps one of the weakest tracks on the mini-album: while it is not a bad track per se, it nevertheless sits askance in this collection with its hippy-ish feel.

But it is the last song Too Late on Crucified that is the stand-out on the mini-album. Slow, swaggering, with a lead line wending its way around the vocals in the verses and building to a chorus, which sees Pearl use his experience to lend it the right amount of emphasis without spilling over the top.

Overall Crucified is an appropriate coda to Pearl's Love/Hate track record. Friday night is set to be a show not to be missed, even if only to lay to rest the Pearl incarnation of this iconic band for many who kept the hard rock flame alive in the dark days of grunge and synth filled 90s.