COMIN' ATCHA: A busy weekend with Quo, Distortionfest, Ghoulstock, Saxon and Killing Joke on Monday too

WELL, this coming weekend you could doll yourself up in some nice fancy dress, go out and get half cut celebrating Samhain with a crowd of numpties, or you could get your head well and truly mangled with a four days of rock and metal mayhem.

It is a four days of gigs with spectacular bands and all-out frenzy - and if you want to get warmed up Lo Mejor, Sweet Taste (plus two others) are at The Empire tonight (Thursday, 27th October) and Lord Volture and Rabid Bitch of the North are down in Banbridge's O'Reilly's.

And then it all gets serious...

Friday sees Status Quo play Belfast's SSE Arena, with Uriah Heep on support duties. The same night is the first part of Ghoulstock in the Warzone Centre with Warpath, The Crawling, Zombified, Drakonis, Owlcrusher, Shrouded, Neamhni and Deathgrip.

But there's no way you'll be planning a quiet Saturday...You'll need to be up fresh and early (or get up for a 'cure') as Distortionfest's doors open at noon, for nine hours of wonderful chaos.

What is Distortionfest we hear you cry? Have you been asleep forever? This is The Distortion Project's annual birthday bash. The DP has been going for 16 years now, and never mind the cake because there are a clatter of bands playing that will have you baying...

Hold yer breath and read who is on stages in Katy's and Limelight2:
Warrior Soul, Stormzone, Sinocence, Lord Volture, Rabid Bitch of the North, Zlatanera, Bloodway, Valborg, Bloodthread, Erosion, Drakonis, War Iron and one more to be confirmed. All that for £10. Yes, £10 for nine hours of lovely chaos.
Saturday also sees day two of Ghoulfest with 1,000 Drunken Nights (Editor's Note: this is a band not a lifestyle choice), Grudge, Hollow Truth., Okus, Takers & Users, Deathbus, Acid Age, Lawfucker, and No Great Loss.

Should your liver and sanity still be in one piece come Saturday then its time to celebrate the denim and leather heyday of the NWOBHM as Saxon, Fastway and Girlschool come to town for a show in Limelight1.

Phew, that's the weekend, but y'all may as well round it off with a return trip to the Limelight1 for a wee listen to Killing Joke...

And, then the gig scene just gets busier.

Erre three days of hard rockin' mayhem!

Hold tight if you have the cash and liver tolerance...cuz over the next three days there's a veritable feast of hardcore, hard rock and thrash - though not necessarily in that order!.

Kicking off on Thursday is RSJ at the Limelight with By Any Means leading the supporting charge!

Recover from that and you can limber up the neck muscles when classic Brit thrashers Onslaught get set to slay the Spring & Airbrake on Friday night, ably supported by Devil Makes Three, Overoth and Cursed Sun.

For those of you still fixated with the new wave of thrashers - excellent though the likes of Municipal Waste, Evile et al are - Onslaught still kill the old way. Despite wallowing through disbandment, reformation and line-up changes they have re-emerged revitalised in recent years.

Old codgers alert! Zimmer frames at the ready for grandad rock on Saturday...Status Quo play at Carrick Castle, which is only marginally older than the Quo. Sorry, but it is really easy to have a pop at the Quo, but fair is fair they have kept their 12-bar blues boogie rock going for an eternity and deserve plaudits a plenty.

Here at metal mansions we first experienced the Quo live in '82 on what was titled the 'End of the Road Tour'. Then came some years later, the 'In The Army Now Tour' etc etc etc.

No matter what their collective ages and infirmity they always get heads a nodding and entertain!

Also with the Quo on Saturday at the Castle are Hayseed Dixie with their sawgrass take on rock. And, Speedo would not forgive me if I didn't mention Tinn Lizzy!