LIVE REVIEW: Dutch death descends on Voodoo as Pestilence lay waste

THE announcement of Pestilence's Belfast show created a palpable sense of excitement that was exceeded when the Dutch veterans emerged onto the Voodoo stage on Friday (February 23rd).

It was a night of intense technical death metal with just the right smatterings of thrash and death to flavour the mixture exuding from the PA.

Northern Ireland's own Drakonis devoured the early attendees, providing their usual visual spectacle to accompany their deathly precise set. Using their time wisely the five-piece packed a punch.

Having a selection of songs, especially from their recent EP 'The Great Miasma' that are concept driven can be a challenge when delivered live.

However, the atmosphere and the playing enabled them to convey the horrors, aided by some sublime guitar interplay and black metal touches

And, the skull of course...

Limerick's Zealot Cult have garnered significant interest since the release of 'Karmenian Crypt' amongst the death metal intelligentsia, and such interest is obviously well-deserved on the strength of this display.

Adorning the set in banners - in case anyone should forget who they were witnessing - there was obvious intent to show the Belfast audience their talent. A powerful rhythm section accentuated the menace of their music.

Definitely deserving of more listens as they have an inherent understanding of their art.

Pestilence - emerging from the Netherlands in the late 80s - have been on and off for decades, but their first four albums have always had a special place in certain a generation of fans.

Nevermind that there it's not the original line-up the fact that they were playing songs from those seminal releases was sure to have the stage front crammed with fans.

And, each and every one of those fans young and old were given a treat to treasure for some time.

From the opener of Malleus/Antropomorphia to Mind Reflections this was masterclass, and the evidence well remembered of their raw thrash evolution into even rawer, nasty death metal.]

But that rawness never once over-shadowed the playing. Patrick Mameli punished his guitar to wring every last bit of energy from it.

When the crowd chanted "Pestilence" over and over in between songs he appeared genuinely delighted. Then again with tracks like 'Dehydrated' and 'Chronic Infection' flaying the Voodoo the crowd was right to shower their adoration on the band.

The work rate of Mameli and co was impressive, and perhaps it is unfair to pick one track from the set, but 'Land of Tears' was sublime.

With new album 'Hadeon' the next phase of the tour cycle for Pestilence, the Belfast audience are hoping for an early return of these Dutch masters.

Review by Jonathan Traynor
Pictures by Darren McVeigh

EP REVIEW: Drakonis development continues apace with the epic tales on The Great Miasma

LEAVING aside the definition of miasma regarding odours, the remaining definition refers to a dark, oppressive atmosphere and that is a worthy ambition for any black metal act to strive for.

To title their EP 'The Geat Miasma' is an ambitious thing for Drakonis to take on - the sound must echo the sense...

Thankfully they achieve that on this three-track release. The ambitious promise of 'As They Rot' is surpassed with better arrangements, execution and darkness.

The seven-minute plus track 'Queen Of Sorrows' feels like their best track so far from Drakonis, brimming with oppressiveness allied with some sublime playing.

But to isolate this song is to do the EP a disservice. Despite the fact that there is a mere three songs this is a story driven collection. Even from a musical sense all the tracks are bound together.

Sucking up their influences and absorbing them into an attitude that draws from the past and brings a (dark) refreshing twist.

The band promise to reveal much more of the story of ancient gods and sacrifice as each accompanying video is released but the sense of coherence on each track.

While stylistically bound together the songs are well constructed individually but fit together. Opener 'The Great Miasma' is atmospheric and brooding before 'Let Us Pray' (see below) kicks the listener in between the eyes at the same time that it rolls around the inside of your skull.

As mentioned the closer is an outstanding conglomeration of ideas and will be a treat to hear on stage. There are clever elements, but not overblown or musically verbose.

In resisting the temptation to release an album Drakonis have managed to showcase their development and their ambition. Given the fact that this is their third EP and their ongoing development 2018 is a year to look forward for the band.

Review by Jonathan Traynor

The Great Miasma is released on 1st December on Hostile Media

LIVE REVIEW: DP fundraiser fills the Belfast evening with METAL!

Saturday evening in Belfast  - the air filled with metal in Belfast's Limelight. And with a host of metal bands - you can't go wrong with. Top tier metal to be had and maybe a beer too.

The first band of the night was Ketos and their breed of melodic thrash metal started the night, and set the tone for the night. This was only their second gig together as well. Some really impressive stuff and incredible talent. Can't wait to see what these guys have planned for the future.

Next up to the chopping block was S.L.U.T.S with their first gig back since the last Metal2TheMasses. With a few line-up changes they managed to keep their sound intact and the same intensity they've had in previous shows.

At times though the vocals where slightly off but other than that a great set. Very good drumming and guitars as always.

Zlatanera played extremely well with some heavy satanic rock. Satan is our pal after all. Good  vocals, riffs, bass and drums. What else would you expect! As this was their first gig since Halloween they played a very good show.

What a way to lighten up the night with some extreme black metal with Drakonis who played an incredible set blasting us to hell. Some complex riffing with chilling vocals.

This was a great set from a great band. With their new EP out it seems that Drakonis are becoming bigger and better. The corpse paint and black metal seems to bring out the evil in people! Seems there hasn’t been a bad set tonight.

Now to the mighty Sinocence. They are as heavy as always. Haven't changed one bit. That isn't a bad thing though as they play with same intensity, same breed of metal that keeps them a staple of Belfast metal.

Good set and by this point the night was well underway and with Vol3 of No Gods, No Masters out soon, anticipation is high for the next move from the Sinners.

The final bad Two Tales of Woe round off a great night with some heavy raw metal that really impressed. Coming from Dublin and playing after Sinocence they played a killer set and brought us some heavy guitars and riffs. On the night of the mighty Black Sabbath’s last ever gig, Belfast was lighting its own fire and it burned bright. A great night all round and a great set of bands.

No better way to spend a Saturday night and as always a doff of the cap to James Loveday for keeping the metal dream alive in Northern Ireland

Review by Zakk Traynor

Photographs by Darren McVeigh

LIVE REVIEW: A day of triumphs for many reasons - Cursed Sun, Rival Sons, Neamhni, Drakonis and Scimitar

SUCCESS and triumph comes in many shapes and forms in hard rock and metal - be it the size of the crowd, releasing recorded material, or simply mounting the stage.

In an evening of contrasts the, at times, inevitable clash of bands was once again at the fore as the Cursed Sun official launch of 'The Amygdala' EP in Limelight2 was almost in direct opposition to Rival Sons first appearance on Saturday, January 21st.

Thus, two different sets of audiences assembled, with only limited commonality, but with a similar alienation from the mainstream of what passes for popular music and culture: proponents of that would gather in the same venues later when the rockers and metalheads dissipated into the Belfast night.

Whether any of those who packed out Limelight1 for Rival Sons would have under other circumstances have been to The Distortion Project show is debatable - maybe another five or six.

As it was a healthy number for early Saturday evening were there when the double black metal introductory acts for the night were on stage.

Neamhni's stuttering start a few months back has solidified and tightened with the work of Martin and Gilliland much more in synch. Rosso is a commanding presence, if at times needing to develop some more stagecraft than just headbanging.

With just a few loose ends to knock off Neamhni's bleak visions are becoming more and more solidified.

Alike in genre only, Drakonis come replete, like Neamhni, in corpse paint. They also adorn the LL2 stage with various mic stands of demonic imagery. But that doesn't detract from these Lisburn blackened metallers.

With their EP 'As They Rot' as a firm foundation there is a solid set of songs that have been allowed to evolve in the live environment with Cass as commanding as ever centre stage. McMichael and Hewitt have a telepathic understanding of when to hit off each other's lead work and with new releases being planned their growth is assured.

Thrash metal to the fore, blades held high (not literally this time!) Scimitar bang out a range of songs that are familiar but also delving back to their earlier material. Jonny's glint in the eye delivery has the thrash tropes down to a 't' in the same way that Chris and Ryan have the rhythm section nailed down.

Allowing Jonny free reign for ever more explosive solo runs the structures of each Scimitar track remains solid, with just enough fluidity to avoid rigidity.

Cursed Sun have always taken the traditional metal, thrash and contemporary edges of metal and melded them into a full-on assault that live combines with the charisma of Mr Cassidy to bring already excellent music to a vibrant pulsation of all that is good about metal.

But, with the Sun clashing with the start of Rival Sons the shuffling between venues began - take in the first couple of Cursed Sun, nip into Limelight11 for a few Rival Sons, then back to LL2 to catch another couple of Cursed Sun.

As was expected the metal might of Cursed Sun was in full flow, with seemingly renewed depth and confidence from the release of the impressive 'The Amygdala'. Whether the release has given them renewed vigour, or just that there is a real coherence to the sound is a moot point; from a sampling of their show further attention will come their way.

The contrast in audience sizes was immediate upon going into Limelight1. Rival Sons had the place packed and pulsating. There was even more present than when Meshuggah had the venue rammed the previous Tuesday.

There was an almost religious devotion to the crowd's response by the time the first few songs had been hammered out, something the band seemed knocked out by, especially at the end of 'Torture' when the audience kept on with the refrain long after the band were about to end the song.

Jay Buchanan seemed almost overwhelmed by the response, as the rest of the band had grins almost as wide as the stage.

Fresh from a night supporting Sabbath this felt as much like an impromptu jam as it did a headlining show. The band took on the challenge of the set as if it was just another night in Long Beach, but one doubts if they have ever had such a warm response in California.

While the momentum had been building throughout the set, by the time 'Belle Star' was aired there was a palpable sense of occasion building, which continued throughout, and by the time they closed with 'Hollow Bones pt2' and 'Keep on Swinging' they had accomplished what they had set out to do: warn up the full set for their headlining shows across Europe and have a good time while at it.

On such an evening of musical contrasts it is hard to draw any real conclusions. All five bands have tremendous sets of songs, albeit across a range of genres, and all have talented musicians.

The main difference, of course, is that Rival Sons have label backing and PR support that draws airplay and sales. However, there is one nagging thought. If the fans of metal who can ram venues for the likes of Meshuggah remain largely absent for the likes of the DP shows. Rightly many will not be able to travel, and are maybe only fans of some types, but if even a few per cent more would part with a fiver, then the opportunity to grow would be afforded to bands, along with those in attendance having something to do on a Saturday other than watch TV and play old songs again. Okay, that is something of a controversial thing to note after such a good evening of rock and metal, but...ponder on that and wonder "what if..." should you ever want to step out of a weekend evening and have some fun without expectations.

Review by Jonathan Traynor
Pictures by Darren McVeigh

EP REVIEW: Drakonis have a whiff of excellence on 'As They Rot'

AMBITIOUS live, with a full-on sensory experience Drakonis take the stage environment as a theatrical front for their dark, extreme music, corpse paint, skulls, chain mail et at.

However, translating the drama of such a full-on experience into the studio can be a challenge, with their black metal sound, echoing the death metal is something that can daunt even the most experienced performers.

Thus when they unveiled their 'As They Rot' three-track ep it was a certain sense of trepidation that was almost necessary when approaching the listening experience.

Thankfully they have not only captured the drama, but enhanced the aural assault. Stripped from the props the music stands true, unveiling a complexity and a sensibility required to deliver extreme music without muddying the waters with a dense sound.

No doubt the experience of Saul and Lee (Waylander) has helped them recreate the live sound's, but there is a sense of suitability in the arrangement and production of the tracks.

From the off 'All Is Still' manages to be propelled along with an excellent standard of musicianship, as well as the good sense to allow moments for breath, moments that accentuate the track. Throughout the six minutes plus each element of the song is carefully managed.

Similarly on 'Abundance off Sin' there is no sense that this is being extreme for the sake of being extreme. Yes, they doff their caps to their predecessors and contemporaries in metal, but the riffs, pace and overall feel is clearly of their own design. Indeed, there is purpose in the mid-section that grabs the listener.

It is on the title track 'As They Rot' that they take excellence to a new level. Cass broods with malevolence as it open, and maintains it as a riff that buzzes and batters rolls into play. The tale unfolds and you are going to a very dark place..

The production and mix is well separated; whether it be the bass, guitar lines, drums or vocals are all allowed their moment.

Given they have previously focusses on free distro of their material, and this is their first physical release, Drakonis deserve to take this further and develop a full-length release.

Review by Jonathan Traynor

LIVE REVIEW: Blackening skies as Vulperga, Drakonis and The Crawling land in Limelight

IF you like your metal dark, grimy and dangerous, then the Limelight was well and truly the place to be on Saturday night, with not one, but three blackened metal bands displaying their malevolent wares.

Up first was Valpurga, who are coming up to their twentieth year as a band. Consisting of just three people (and a drum track), they ascend the stage steps clad in all black, with vocalist Ruby Black wearing a sort of clingy black cowled dress with pentacle-link belt.

Despite their longevity they often seem a bit hesitant, particularly frontwoman Black, who seems ill at ease during the instrumental sections. No matter; her snarling scream is simply perfect for the band's atmospheric black metal, filled as it is with tales of darkness, soul stealing and Satan.

The fact that they stay 'in character' throughout their forty five minute set and don't interact at all with the crowd is a tiny bit disconcerting, but admittedly it does add to the sense of menace and glowering intensity of their music.

Beginning their set with a thunderous blast of noise, blackened death metallers Drakonis certainly get everyone's attention right away. Cleverly combining the icy atmosphere of black metal with the fiery roar of death metal, they are the sonic equivalent of a chainsaw, with songs that ripple and roil with menace – and when they pick up the pace mid-song, the result threatens to blow the bloody doors off the place.

Frontman 'Cass' Cassidy possesses an equally impressive voice, with a scream like the hounds of Hell leading tracks such as 'Ravens Fill the Sky' and 'Fear of the Wretched'. New track 'The Abundance of Sin', with its battering ram beat, also receives copious applause.

They, too, have the blackened metal look down pat, with corpse painted faces and Cassidy's chain mail vest (not to mention the skull hanging off his mike stand and his cat o' nine tails whip, which he occasionally uses to self flagellate).

Watching them perform, it's hard to believe they are still a fledgling band, having only played a handful of gigs with this line-up; impressive, indeed.

A smoky and atmospheric intro heralds the arrival of doom/death metal headliners The Crawling,
who – once the smoke clears – are instantly engaging, particularly vocalist/guitarist Andy Clarke, who is all intense glares and  mesmerising charisma, with a voice straight from the bowels of Hell.

Their richly textured songs combine both slow and fast sections – doom and death – with the faster sections simply commanding the crowd to headbang, which they do, ecstatically.

They play a mix of both current songs such as 'Catatonic' and, excitingly, new tracks from their upcoming, as yet untitled album, such as 'Violence, Vanity and Neglect', which has a thick groove and an almost stoner metal feel.

There's a real symbiotic relationship between the crowd and the band, with Clarke in particular feeding of the waves of applause and relish washing over the stage. And when they close their set with the magnificently creepy 'The Right to Crawl', with its buzzing fly intro and masterful use of pace changes, the flailing hair in the room could power a wind turbine.

Once again, it's a visceral and thrilling set from this talented bunch.

The black/death metal scene in Northern Ireland is in gloriously rude health right now, as was made abundantly clear tonight by the three bands who played so convincingly and so ardently. Menacing, bloody and murky: the kind of music that punches you in the gut and gleefully eviscerates you. Oh yes.

Review by Melanie Black

Pictures by Darren McVeigh and Dave Kerr
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