Gig Reviews

Damnation Festival - Saturday, 5th November 2011.

Leeds University

By Gary Lukes

Photos by Antony Roberts

When vocalist Som was unable to make her plane from the Netherlands, death metal miscreants Cerebral Bore were faced with two of the most primeval reactions known to man; fight or flight. Like true Glaswegians, they chose the former.

Unable to shift their set to a later slot, the ‘Bore opted instead to play a short instrumental set, offering their apologies and bounding straight into the brutality of “The Bald Cadaver”. Credit where credit’s due; lesser bands would have taken the easy route and pulled out of the event. But Cerebral Bore have rightly earned their status as one of the hardest working bands in the underground today, managing to incite a bigger pit than most bands could muster all day.

Words: Antony Roberts

Photos: Antony Roberts (Monarch/Pagan Altar), Neil Shaw (Sea Bastard)

It was Halloween and this always means there is a slew of Metal gigs around the UK.

Brighton had a night of doom in the form of Pagan Altar and Sea Bastard with a free after show featuring France's Monarch.

We headed over to the Green Door Store, a fairly recently opened venue conveniently situated directly underneath Brighton train Station.  Much like Camden's Unicorn this venue

Day 2 of Live Evil was a mix of running between Live Evil itself, and Doom Over London II at the Purple Turtle, missing more bands than we wanted to, trying to cover both festivals, and bumping into friends.  Rather than try and put together an unfair review on bands we didn't fully see, here's a selection of photo's taken.  Every band we did get to witness at both festivals were amazing.

Photos by Antony Roberts.

Words: Gary Lukes

Photos: Antony Roberts

Yob/Dark Castle/Kongh/Dead Existence

London Purple Turtle - Monday, 10th October 2011

Despite establishing themselves as scene stalwarts of late, this was actually the first time I’d been exposed to Dead Existence in a live setting.  Opening with an elongated, spacious instrumental section, the band gradually build the tension; slowly turning the screw before hammering it into more familiar territory and nose-diving deep into raging sludge.

Live Evil Festival 2011 Day 1 review

Words: Antony Roberts
Photos: Antony Roberts

SETLISTS are taken from setlist photos and may not be 100% accurate due to changes

We headed to the second annual Live Evil Festival this weekend at the Camden Underworld.  For those who've been living under a rock this festival started last year under the idea of selecting the line up using the Darkthrone Band Of The Week blog handpicked by the legend that is Fenriz.

Described by the organisers Mark Lewis from Mythology Agency and Marek Steven (aka Skill Wizard) as "presenting underground Black metal, Thrash, Speed, Death, Heavy Metal, Metal Punk and Doom bands from around the world" it sounds like every real metal heads wet dream.  Having missed it last year due to

Gigs...you wait ages for a decent one then all of a sudden 2 come along at once.  Ufomammut were playing London and they slay live, but having already seen them several times before I wasn't left much choice.  I've wanted to see Trial since the mid 90's when someone did me a tape of

Bloodstock, Day 3

Words: Gary Lukes

Photos: Antony Roberts

WE SLEPT TOO LONG! Having made the most of the magnificent metal disco and spending the night cajoled by the deviant influence of two certain band members, we found ourselves waking, literally, to the sounds of Hell rumbling in the distance.

Although we had unfortunately missed Andy Sneap and the second-coming of the NWOBHM Hell-horde, we arrive in the main arena, bleary eyed and furry of tongue, shortly before 1349 were due to start their set. We consoled ourselves with the fact that there’s surely no more effective a wake-up call than Norway‘s pestilent sons. Unless, of course, they play a set consisting completely of the ambient tracks on “Demonoir“. As it turned out, ambient filler material was the least of our worries as the Norwegian’s

Bloodstock, Day 2.

Words: Gary Lukes

Photos: Antony Roberts

And so Saturday came, and what better way to herald the arrival of the weekend than Ohio’s very own wretched spawn, Skeletonwitch. The band bolted onstage at eleven o‘clock, despite apparently having only arrived ten minutes earlier. Not that they’ll let that deter them; as they point out “it‘s never too early to drink some fucking beer and have a good time“. And who am I to argue, as the band erupted straight into “Upon the Wings of Black”. The Crowd responded in turn, proving that it’s also never too early for a circle pit.

Skeletonwitch’s set of black-splattered thrash metal was a great way to shake off those morning cobwebs, cramming plenty of compositions into their runtime and even finding t

Bloodstock Open Air 2011. Day One.

Words: Gary Lukes
Photos: Antony Roberts

In these fractious times, amongst scenes of urban turbulence, Metalgigs made our pilgrimage from the south coast to a field in Walton-Upon-Trent; looking for an escape from all the chaos of the preceding week and eager for our first taste of the Utopian Bloodstock Open Air.

For the uninitiated, Bloodstock began indoors in 2001, before moving outdoors to the relatively spacious surrounds of Catton Hall in 2005 and taking up an annual residency there ever since. The line-ups seem to fluctuate mainly between the pomp and pageantry of power and folk metal to the furious flame, fire and smoke of thrash, death and black metal. Past headliners range from Europe, Lacuna Coil, Nightwish and Stratovarius to Carcass, Cradle of Filth, In Flames and Opeth.

Far more modestly sized than UK rivals such as Download and Sonisphere, it is this very intimacy, coupled with a friendly atmosphere that makes this festival so inviting and appealing. And that’s before we even get to the stellar line-up. As Kreator would later put it, “this is a metal festival by metal heads, for metal heads”. I’m not one that usually likes to give away endings, but let’s put it this way; we wind up liking this festival. A lot.

Oh, and Bruce Willis is a ghost.

Words and Photos: Antony Roberts

Arriving at Concorde 2 it was a seriously, seriously hot day.  Brighton seafront was rammed with daytrippers and parking was somewhat fraught with difficulty.  After finally finding a parking place I arrived late and had missed the first support band.  For those who haven't been to the Concorde 2 it was previously a victorian tearoom built in the 1800's directly facing the seafront.  What this means with all the windows is it acts like a giant greenhouse and summer gigs can get ohhh so hot.  It's like going to a gig in a greenhouse that has been, well, in the sun all day.