NEWS: Hate, Martyrium, Sisters of Suffocation and more added to Heavy Scotland line-up

HEAVY SCOTLAND will return with a bang in 2018 with a new date, extending the festival to three days from Friday 31 August to Sunday 02 September, returning to Edinburgh's Corn Exchange.

Announced today and all exclusively playing in Scotland 2018 are: Hate, Martyrium, Sisters of Suffocation, Whorion and OST+FRONT.

These names add to an already thrilling lineup including Carcas, Gama Bomb and more.

Line-up currently:
CARCASS
GAMA BOMB
NERVOSA
PERPETUA
WHORION
OST+FRONT
MARTRYIUM
SISTERS OF SUFFOCATION
HATE

Purchase tickets from: http://www.heavyscotland.com/

Under-18 tickets are available now and student Weekend tickets at just £50.

The news follows a highly impressive first year from Heavy Scotland, placing Edinburgh on the international metal map. Headliners Behemoth and Arch Enemy topped a stellar bill, which also included the likes of Fleshgod Apocalypse, Destruction, Finntroll, Havok and more. Garnering local and international acclaim,

Heavy Scotland is fast becoming Scotland's national heavy metal festival, and is the largest of its kind in the country's capital of Edinburgh. Borne from a love of all things loud and with a passion for the local scene, Heavy Scotland is an event deserving of the attention so far received. Stay tuned for more information as it comes.

  

COMIN' ATCHA: Four feardome, mad, loud days of rock and metal

RIGHT rockers, ready yourselves because over the next four days your lugholes are gonna get a battering, your necks will be snapped and when Monday 26th October rolls around you'll be heading into work for a rest.

Starting tonight (Thursday, October 22nd) legendary - and yes he really is a rock legend - Glenn Hughes is at Limelight 1. The man who lent bass lines and vocals to Deep Purple, Sabs and a host of super groups will be on a Belfast stage with axe man Doug Aldrich and on the sticks is Pontus Snibb.

Then on Friday it's another feast, when NWOBHM legends Raven appear at Limelight2, with support from local noisenicks Rabid Bitch of the North. Then you have a choice of heading to see tribute act 101% Pantera with support from Donum Dei and Cursed Sun in Voodoo or stay in the Limelight complex for country rocker Steve Earle.

Saturday (October 24th) sees Screaming Eagles, Gasoline Outlaws and Baleful Creed in Limelight2. After that it is a quick race round to the Voodoo for cross over madness with English Dogs, By Any Means and Acid Age.

And all of that was just to get your pulse racing before the utter destruction of every ounce of your being when Deathcrusher 2015 decimates Limelight1. Yep, five acts that will mash your very soul.

Carcass, Napalm Death, Obituary, VoiVod and Herod...five acts to round up four days of rock and metal that proves, once and for all that there is a scene that is not for scenesters, hipsters or floppy fringed wannabes; it's a scene where rockers and metalheads rejoice in glorious insanity...well as Suicidal Tendencies said "Pledge Your Allegiance".

LIVE REVIEW: Febrile fury as Coldwar and Carcass create chaos in cacophony of bile in Belfast's Limelight

EXTREME music in all its forms is challenging to the performers and the audience alike - musically and lyrically the subjects are not for the faint-hearted, but the flip side of this can induce a manic devotion; and with that an intensity that sees both sides in the live experience amply rewarded.

Thus, when a packed Limelight1 in Belfast's Ormeau Avenue came to The Distortion Project's presentation of Coldwar and Carcass there could be no doubt that only the performance could seek to match the febrile crowd on Friday (September 19th).

Carcass were making their appearance on these isles for the first time in two decades; but before the vileness could be unleashed in a musical maelstrom, Dublin's agri-metal act Coldwar carved a path through a world where anger and hate are focussed against oppressive forces including church and state.

While a few were familiar with Coldwar following their show at Monsters of Rot and their recent release of the furious 'Pantheist' it was a night when they gained new fans.

As Paul and Dave (guitars) and Andy and Marty (bass and drums respectively) built the atmosphere, Trevor stalked on to the stage to deliver polemics and power, hymns of hardcore and a meld of punk and extreme metal. Equally as the set ended Trevor stalked away, his compatriots wrapping up proceedings with a stylish outro.

With the venue packing out nicely, beer taps running at maximum an amalgam of awe was palpable as the strains of 1985 rang out, as the surge of roars rolled acclaim for the four-piece well into a tour that has seen them trek the length and breadth of Europe on festival line-ups and headline slots.

When Carcass last appeared in Northern Ireland it was a significant year for this small country. After years of bloodshed and tension the Provisional IRA and six weeks later Loyalist paramilitaries announced ceasefires.

Metal crowds had been on the wane - and worse those purveyors of mediocrity and morose music Snow Patrol was formed by remnants of Satan's stale cum by people claiming to be Northern Irish while studying at the University of Dundee.

But, the much foretold demise of metal spat back into the face of adversity and despite wrangles with labels 'Heartwork' was emerging filled with venom and discontent.

The 2014 version of Carcass comes on stage balanced and brutal; and strangely happy with their lot as Jeff Walker alternates between ferocious growls and beaming behind his bass. The front man seems to be at ease and both he and Bill Steer - as the two originals who emerged from Liverpool many years ago - are wielding the putrefied remains of the mainstream around the heads of the crowd its decaying corpse a weapon of extremity.

With Daniel Wilding (drums) and Ben Ash (guitars) now permanent fixtures for some time Carcass created an awesome meld of older material and Surgical Steel songs.

Beneath the veneer of vomit inducing titles such as 'Genital Grinder' and 'Reek of Putrefaction' is a heartfelt challenge to the norm, to the status quo, to suits and faceless bastards who try to control our tastes.

What makes the show - and the devotion of fans - is remarkable given that there were those not born in '94 or barely out of short trousers joined in acclaim with those who were there (even if memories are hazy).

From 'Buried Dreams'  to 'Ruptured/Heartwork' this was a tour de force of fury, delivered with a sneer and a smile. But, while the classic Carcass tracks stood out, the material from Surgical Steel shone.

With the 'Granulating Dark Satanic Mills' and the mystifying 'Noncompliance to ASTM F 899-12 Standard' * Carcass claimed the souls of those there, mauling with a 'Captive Bolt Pistol' and delivering them on the 'Cadaver Pouch Conveyor System'.

But despite the power and precision of the live show the question has to be asked: Are Carcass still pertinent to metal in 2014?

With a back catalogue showcasing youthful exuberance and turbulent times of their lives, and with an album filled with depth and measured depravity on their Friday Belfast showed that not only are they still relevant, but they are at the very leading edge of development in extreme music; not re-treading what went before, but tossing back a greying mane and spitting back against any who stand in their way.

'Keep on Rotting In The Free World' -  fuck yes!

Review by Jonny Additional notes from Zakk Photography by MetalPlanetBelfast Carcass's Surgical Steel is now available on Nuclear Blast Coldwar's Pantheist is now available on Candlelight   * ASTM F 899-12 is the standard for surgical implements, including their metallurgical components.

NEWS - Triple dose of metal for Indian Summer - Anathema, Carcass and Dragonforce. Neck snapping time!

REGULAR readers will know that earlier this year we dubbed it the "Summer of Metal" given the plethora of appearances in Norn Iron by international and national acts - a big debt of appreciation owed by fans to all the promoters is due.


But as temperatures reach unfeasibly high levels for mid-September the 'Summer of Metal' rolls on...


Tonight [Thursday, 19th September] Anathema and Mother's Cake descend upon Limelight2 in a Distortion Project show sure to intrigue and batter at the same time. Unfortunately, owing to circumstances beyond our control we can't be there....but that doesn't stop you shipping your sorry metal asses to this gig!"


Tomorrow night prepare to be pummeled. Carcass return to these shores for the first time. Following reports from our reporters Zakk & Nadz at Sonisphere it's set to be one hell of a show with a nice balance of Carcass classics and newer works. Tracks of Surgical Steel fit right into the set.


Some weeks ago we saw support act Coldwar at the excellent Monsters of Rot....broken wrists aside, suffice to say they were great and you have to check out their excellent Pantheist album.


Now, after all that things change pace on Saturday night as the metal gears are shifted into hyperdrive as Dragonforce bring their Maximum Overload tour to town. Dear metallic gods this is one band that are loyal to this town - they keep coming back. Something in the water we think...


Their Limelight2 appearance is notable for a few reasons, not just their loyalty to Belfast. They are one of the few bands that have survived a disastrous tour and re-emerged energized and a little more 'daring.'


Yes, Dragonforce daring? What we hear you cry! Thin on this...the first trance of Dragonforce releases were all about fast as fuck solos, big choruses and strange Nintendo sounds.


With Marc Hudson now handling vocal duties they seem to have emerged re-born as a pure Power Metal act - albeit with the back catalogue still on show for guitar histrionics.


On Maximum Overload they have reined back some of their excesses with a couple of mid-tempo tracks, and a better balance overall.


Of course we'll see the usual solo trade offs between Tottman and Li, but we are most pleased to get to see them up close and personal.


Support comes from the totally excellent Conjuring Fate. Be warned that the Fate are on stage at 7.30. Do not miss them!


A few tickets still remain for all the above shows...just a few.

NEWS: Three months to shake 2014

THE Summer of Metal has passed and now we enter the aural assault of autumn, when metal, punk and hard rock ravage the passing days until we toast Saturnalia and bid goodbye to one of the heaviest years in Belfast.

Already autumn has had a metallic welcome with Karma to Burn, Desert Storm and the might of Armagh - Astralnaut levelling the first day of September.

It would be impossible to list all that is happening (well it isn't impossible but we can't be arsed...) over the next three months, but suffice to say it will be loud!

You can always kick things off at the Menagerie on Thursday with Thee Dreadfuls, Tusks and THVA, before heading to the Voodoo on Friday for Maverick.

Nicely warmed up by then Saturday has a plethora of choices...

Mike Tramp is up at the Diamond Rock Bar with Matt Fitzsimons in support, and Stop, Stop, Start Again are playing with The Lee Harveys and Mohican Jack in The Pavilion.

It's also a day of celebrations as Sinocence have a 13th Birthday party...helping them with this anniversary are English band Collapse, By Any Means, Cutter and Donum Dei. Who's bringing the birthday cake?

Oh we could go on about Freebase, By Any Means, Defyed playing the Voodoo, Steamroller at the Diamond and many, many more, but we think you should DO YOUR OWN research!

You can check out gig listings here and here.

But there are some essential things you need to know....

Anathema and Mothers Cake are at Limelight2 on the 18th September, on Friday 19th September Carcass and Coldwar are at Limelight1 and Dragonforce are at Limelight1 on 20th September - the same night Million$Reload are at the Diamond.

We also are keeping diary dates free for Tim 'Ripper' Owens, Sandstone and Rabid Bitch of the North on Thursday 25th September in the Voodoo and Overoth and Ceaseless Blight on the following night at Limelight2.

Fresh from their support slots with Amon Amarth Darkest Era are at Limelight2 on 4th October...

Oh there are also gigs from Alestorm, Ricky Warwick, Gallus Cooper, Black Stone Cherry, Asking Alexandria and many more.

But Hallowe'en night looks to be a messy one...Focus are at the Empire, Orange Goblin and St Vitus have an early show in Limelight2, and you can then run up to QUBSU to see Gama Bomb headline a four-band show.

There's many, many more shows coming up to like Black Sherriff, Gilby Clarke, Y&T, Tyketto, War Iron, Eluvite, Mastodon, Therapy?, The Quireboys, Dan Baird and Homemade Sin, Saxon, the Cockney Rejects, Sabaton, Joe Elliott's Down N Outz, The Answer, The Pat McManus Band, and already many announcements being made for 2015...

We, your editorial team have placed orders for new livers, a Lottery win, beer tokens and pit passes!