LIVE REVIEW: Day Two Hard Rock Hell Doom vs Stoner bringing back the noise

THE very concept of loading a venue with doom metal and stoner rock proved to be correct after the elation and excitement of the first day's noisy, resounding success.

However, with the amount of beer quaffed and shots downed there was a question mark over whether weary rockers and metallers could drag their hungover frames back into Sheffield's O2 Academy for the first band's appearance at 1pm. After all Sunday is the day of rest...

 Fear not, for the attendees are a hardier breed: around the hostelries of Steel City before doors opened there were positive sightings of rockers and metallers downing a pint or three over brunch.

True, there were not quite as many in the arena when the opening act Kroh hit the stage, but within minutes there was a distinctive movement from the bar to the front.

With a distinct vibe of Cathedral, without being slavish, the mixture of doom and stoner reflecting the title of the event and engaging the audience.

Oliwia is an arresting talent, both with her movement and range of vocals, while Paul Kenny keeps the riffs and pace rolling along.

Any signs of hangovers had been well and truly dispelled by that stage of the event, even if some did claim to be "broken" from Day One.

Certainly Sergeant Thunderhoof weren't broken when they delivered a solid set of sludge, doom and groove.

Dan, Darren, Mark and Jim add a twist with some psychedelic touches, and altering the pace in both the arrangement of the set and individual songs. And we thought that Bath was only famous for architecture.

On the other hand Regulus are very much Sheffield's own and they do receive a worthy hometown reception. And, by the time they left the stage they had won over many more fans.

Regulus may or may not be named after the brightest star in the constellation of Leo, but they shone bright on the HRH stage. Reviewers and photographers alike nodded in approval - great presence and great tunes.

Luke is an engaging front man, but all the band are individual bundles of energy as Thomas traded licks and Martyn and Joe keep the whole thing from teetering overboard. There is groove in their sound, with edges of doom and a flavouring of psych. No wonder Off Yer Rocka Recordings signed this act.

Psychedelic sounds and doom were the order of the day for enigmatic Canterbury act OHHMS. Their take on genre was pretty much a different interpretation, and dare we say it, there was the weird phase 'post-metal' wafting around their set.

With a front man who resembles a metal version of Joe Cocker in his hand and arm movements the entire band is a blur of movement, reflecting the energy of the music.

The vagaries of reviewing a festival meant we only caught half the Trippy Wicked set, but what we saw was more than worth the effort of rushing from one point to the other across the O2 Academy. Very Trippy, very Wicked.

Witchsorrow are not trippy, but they are wicked. Necroskull's avowed hatred of almost everything (don't ask him about traffic jams...) is reflected in a heartfelt nastiness in the doom they deliver.

Bathed in red light throughout the relative static nature of Necroskull and Emily compared to some other acts on the line-up did not detract from the performance - rather it served to emphasise the evil nature of the songs.

There is no doubt, however, that Raging Speedhorn are going to incite movement in the audience - from the get go there are mosh pits and fists pumping. Whether it was the tracks from last release Lost Ritual, or delving into the depths of their back catalogue the packed front reacted with sheer adulation.

Unlike many bands across the world you would expect the newer tracks to be unfamiliar to the crowd but 'Dog Shit Blues' and 'Motorhead' received screams of delight and chanting along to the choruses.

John and Frank combine like a two-headed terror machine, as Jamie and Jim rode the riff rollercoaster, propelling the band and audience to even higher levels of metal ecstasy.

'Knives In Faces' and 'Thumper' were outstanding - and security were on hand to help the crowd surfers safely on hand. Rage, speed and giving some the horn: adored by all; Raging Speedhorn.

Before turning to the headliners one must give an honourable mention in dispatches to Druganaut. If you have never seen them before may we humbly suggest you do so, unless you are of a nervous disposition...

Candlemass - making their only UK appearance of the year - suffered some travel difficulties getting to Sheffield, but the grandees of doom do not let such minor things upset what they bring to the stage.

Assured and confident, this was a set filled with so many 'hit' tunes and a range of songs that almost evacuated all the bars to bear witness.

It may more than 30 years since 'Epicus Doomicus Metallicus' was released but the likes of 'Demon's Gate' and 'Solitude' sounding still fresh.

Mats commands the stage, from flag waving through to extracting the last ounce of energy from those assembled in the Academy.

Lars guitar solo was a brief respite from the constant demand that compelled all to reflect what was going on.

By the time 'A Sorcerer's Pledge' concluded proceedings Candlemass had once again cemented their pre-eminent status as doom maestros.

Stumbling out into Sheffield's Sunday night air Stoner and Doom supporters could not hide the fact that this had been a weekend that pushed the boundaries of what can be done by tapping into a scene so long confined to the underground.

Gratified to see it raised to a higher echelon to see the bands in a larger venue it is no wonder that HRH were able to announce the second HRH Doom vs Stoner Chapter II is already set for 2017...any doubts that this was not going to be a winner was cast aside.

Strange that doom and stoner can make so many happy...

Review by Jonny
Photographs by Lizzie Torbitt
Reproduction by written permission only

LIVE REVIEW: Day One - Hard Rock Hell Doom vs Stoner - bringing the groove and the (good) terror

DOOM vs Stoner. Had the people behind Hard Rock Hell gone mad? Slowed down Sabbath riffs, more sludge than anyone can cope with outside a mudslide and grooving to challenge NOLA.

Surely a recipe for disaster! But within minutes of the doors opening it was clear that not only was there demand for this, but that there was eagerness and excitement for this event at Sheffield's O2 Academy.

Whether it was the people who are HRH regulars or those just there for the stoner and doom metal groove the anticipation of seeing something different from the usual run of the mill weekend gigs across the UK was in the air.

Bars were already doing a brisk trade when Slabdragger shook everyone's pints. Whether it was the backline or the PA this was loud. The doom and sludge sound was loud. Very loud.

It may have been a chance to set the tone for the day, but immediately the bar was set high. Holy Satanic Metal this was an experience to behold for an opener. These guys may only have two albums and an ep under their belt in the past eight years or so, but this was a live performance par excellence.

Even non-smokers crowded the smoking area to express their delight at the opening act.

Many would have been deterred following such an opening but Limb took the venue by the scruff of the neck and demanded all should get their groove on.

The fact that they like Slabdragger could get so many people down the front so early in proceedings was testament to what they delivered on stage - this was stoner with attitude.

Electric Citizen - all the way from Cincinnati, Ohio - brought every Sabbath riff to the Academy table. Laura Dolan has not only a great voice but has an enigmatic stage presence.

In lesser hands presenting a set so steeped in the Sabs sounds could have gone awry, but they took every intonation of Iommi and Butler and gave it all a fresh take.

The rock n roll of fame is also in Ohio. Electric Citizen seem to have went from Cincinnati to Cleveland and raided all the best riffs.

Along way from Ohio is Merseyside, where Conan hail from. In Sheffield they delivered all the doom, all the way down, all the intensity of a funeral on downers. This was not happy clappy music.

But, unlike a lot of so-called doom bands Conan are not one-dimensional. Given how far they are down-tuned this could have been boring, but instead this was menacing.

Hooded Chris on bass peered out at the packed crowd, while Jon ranted and riffed.

This was a set that demanded attention and cajoled many into the depths of despair only to lift their eyes to the skies when the pace changed. Doom? Grins amongst the acolytes.

Hometown heroes Black Spiders announced two days after HRH that they are calling it a halt. This really is a shame after they destroyed the O2 in a joyous set.

As they went on stage the band must have known that they were about to call it quits. Perhaps that was why there was such exuberance from the band. Older tracks melded with newer ones from 'This Savage Land'.

The traditional one-fingered salute and chant of "Fuck You Black Spiders" and the general bonhomie from the audience at such exchanged abuse now seems somewhat flat upon reflection.

Angel Witch seemed, on the surface a strange band to throw into the Doom vs Stoner mix, but that is to ignore the cult status they have earned, to ignore the influence they have on thrash, death, stoner and doom metal bands.

Sure they have had 23 past members, but that mattered not a whit to the O2 crowd. While Jimmy Palmer might be a relatively new addition to the line up he gelled superbly with founder Kevin Heybourne: some of the melody playing traded off between the two was mesmerising.

A fair few assembled down the front weren't born when Angel Witch achieved the dubious accolade of recording the 'worst' ever UK chart entry (charting at #75 for one week only) but that didn't mean they were not familiar with the band.

'Dead Sea Scrolls' and 'White Witch' were superbly delivered, but once 'Baphomet' was played there was a feeling of some really special when the crowd joined in on 'Angel Witch' . Darling Angel Witch -  yes you were metal darlings.

While all this was going on Stage Two was rocking. Desert Storm had the smaller venue, but it was packed to the point of being uncomfortable - not that anyone was complaining as they tore apart the senses. They really deserved to play the main stage. Unfortunately clashes meant Desert Storm was the only real chunk of a set able to be checked out, apart from a confounding few songs from Poseidon

But there were no clashes when Orange Goblin took to the stage. Headlining slots can sometimes mean a band deliver a perfunctory performance, knowing they will receive adulation no matter what they do on stage.

Not so Orange Goblin. They delivered a set that was a metal tour de force, sheer class and sheer power. Never mind the title of the event, this was metal at its most glorious.

Sure, many focus on Ben Ward as the immense (in stature and conduct) frontman, but the Goblins are a unit; united in their desire to always impress, and always deliver a set that is varied and interesting.

Joe Hoare and Martyn Millard prowl aside Ben, while Chris Turner seems the happiest man in Sheffield behind his kit.

By the time the second track - 'The Devil's Whip' - landed like a sledgehammer on the audience the venue was in awe.

This was a set from start to finish that ranged far and wide across the band's catalogue of superb songs. Whether it was 'Saruman's Wish' or 'They Come Back' there was not a low-point in this performance.

'The Filthy and The Few' was a rabble rousing track. It's lyrical intent was reflected upon the hundreds gathered in adulation. Outside the walls of the O2 we are regarded as the filthy, denim and leather oddities; inside we are defiant and delighted.

A three-track encore opened with 'The Fog', and ended with 'Red Tide Rising' and while the moniker of the day may have been Doom vs Stoner there sure as hell were a lot of people smiling.

Review by Jonny
Pictures by Lizzie Torbitt
Reproduction by written permission only

HARD ROCK HEL: Doom Vs Stoner - Vol1: An overview

HARD Rock Hell -  a name familiar to all in the UK and further afield for putting on fantastic festivals across the UK and Europe. But when they decided to branch out to host a two-day festival in Sheffield's O2 Academy entitled 'HRH: Doom vs Stoner' no-one really knew if it would be a success.

It was. A resounding success.

Down-tuned instruments blasted the venue, registering on the Richter Scale. There were more grooves than a warehouse of vinyl records. The volume was set to pulverise internal organs. And beer flowed like a flash flood after a thunderstorm.

A total of 23 bands, across two stages performed with aplomb. The audience roared, applauded, drank and on occasion moshed.

From openers Slabdragger through to the closers, the mighty Candlemass it was a rapturous celebration of not just Doom or Stoner: it was a celebration of metal.

The bastard sons of Sabbath assembled and played hour after hour of glorious musical excess. Whether it was slab like groove of Orange Goblin, or the strangeness of Drugunaut; the classic sound of Angelwitch or the force of Raging Speedhorn; or the American sound of Electric Citizen there was not a foot put wrong by any act.

All the interpretations of the doom and stoner vibes were on display. For many the only downside was the fact that some acts over-lapped with others, but such is the travails of any festival goer, one that cannot be avoided.

While reviews of Day One and Day Two will follow, you only need to know one thing about October 1st and 2nd - when the fact that the same event is taking place next year tickets were already being bought in fistfuls before a single act has been announced.

That was not just because fans of the genre, it is because it was well organised, friendly for all the ferocity on stage, and with no incidents to speak of that would mar other festivals. And, they even had vendors selling food...the burgers, chips, wraps and bags of cocktail sausages kept many sustained as they prepared for more aural ravaging.  But above all, the sense of community was palpable and something to be savoured.

Overview by Jonny
Pictures by Lizzie Torbitt