This was the best show I've gotten seriously injured at on this continent. Actually, the seriousness is debatable, because it was only a finger that got broken, and just the end of it, really, but the awesomeness of the performance was not.
I plugged along at work a little too late, at least as I thought, got stuck in traffic due to large portions of 93 being closed, and then managed to hike over to the venue with time to spare regardless. Once inside, I drank some beer, got shit from Raphael and others for cutting off the Sodom backpatch in favor of a DIYed Revocation badge (pics of assembly sequence maybe coming), and waited around a bit occasionally getting quizzed on Euro-festival stuff; pretty much the usual.
After some grousing about "punk rock standard time" (also pretty much the usual), the bands got rolling, and the result was a pretty epic time only a little dinged up by injury.
Deathgod Messiah [5.5/7]
I hadn't seen these guys together before (but, of course, all of the members separately in various local black/thrash bands such as CNV, Deathamphetamine, and Witch Tomb), and the first three bands were backlined with the Martyrvore/Panzerbastard kit, so I was a little confused that it wasn't Martyrvore opening. Once the band actually started, though, the confusion was gone, blown away by a roiling tide of primitive first-wave black metal. Best comparisons are probably to Sarcofago and Hellhammer, but angrier and more focused. Though this was a good set, it also felt kind of short, which is par for the course when a new band shows up (not much material written, and as discussed on Bone Ritual's debut a while back, a general disinclination to play covers), but still hurts. In truth, all the sets this night felt a little short, even Summoning Hate at the end when I was waiting for them to finish so I could go to the doctor; maybe it's just not enough shows lately. Good stuff, and if they had demos I missed them, but a band this good and aggressive is going to show up again on DIY shows, and I'll get another chance.
Witch Tomb [7/7]
You never know with Witch Tomb; some nights you just get a great show, and others you get something completely awesome. This was one of the latter; the band has an excellent history, but this was one of the real true highlights, at least as I've seen so far. They did a lot of stuff old and new, and all with that complete conquering presence that you really only get from a good black metal band at the top of their game. There are a lot of good black metal bands in this area, enough that it's realistic to talk about NEBM as largely or completely independent of USBM as it is today, but when they're putting up a performance like this, it's hard to think of Witch Tomb as anything but the top of that heap. The environment at that '07 outing supporting Watain was maybe a little more special, but the music here was definitely better.
Martyrvore [6/7]
Before these guys started, Seth (Anal Cunt, duh) Putnam had a couple words into the mic lauding the fact that the Boston underground is still going, still producing quality extreme metal and still putting up quality shows like this gig and these bands. Martyrvore basically took it from there, putting out an intense barrage of violent blackened death metal in their expected no-prisoners fashion. I was able to hear more of their set than the last time I caught them -- potentially one of the last times they've played out, but that's really neither here nor there -- due to generally better sound, and the result was a solidly better impression. If you're looking for a quick look into NEBM, you won't do much better than their split with Witch Tomb. As noted, there are a lot of bands from here, but this sort of raw, dirty violence is the dominant strain, and these two bands do it pretty goddamned well.
This show was the end of the line for the cowskull that Martyrvore has had for a while, and brought out corpsepainted. It got slammed into the stage rather hard on numerous occasions, and by the end of their set, Paul had carpeted the stage and front of the floor in bone shrapnel. OH SNAP FORESHADOWING. Another attendee took this Symbolfoto of it sometime before it became completely destroyed; that's no a half-bad desktop background for anyone into DIY metal. I managed to pick up a tooth from it that so far has not been successful as a ritual focus for the Merseburg Charm, but expecting effectiveness out of old Germanic magic is probably asking too much.
Summoning Hate [6/7]
Though I spent about half the set distracted by violent pains in the middle of my right hand, this was still an intense and awesome set from the least black metal band on the bill. Summoning Hate turned in, like usual lately, a nice thick set of pounding thrash-death that sounded a little crisper than the last few times I've seen them, maybe due to the good venue sound. They also got people moving with this music, which is the reason that this score ought to come with that infamous "includes adjustments for injury" tag.
About halfway through Summoning Hate's set, one of their guys got pitched backward in the pit. I stretched out a hand to try and keep him from busting his head open on the edge of one of Martyrvore's cabs, which they'd cleared off the stage after their set but not yet out to their van/truck. This was a partial success; the guy wasn't injured, but his head caught the last digit on my right middle finger right on the fucking edge of the cab, and as it turned out, neatly broke the bone. This hurt like a fucking bastard, but I've gotten banged up before, so with the help of a couple trips to the O'B's bathroom sink to ice it down, I got through the end of the show.
The finger was swelling up and looking bad, and I didn't do any favors on the long walk back to Cambridge by not elevating it and also jimmying the digit around to see if it would bend in a way that wasn't consistent with a single piece of bone between the nail and the first knuckle. I got one of those results, and by the time I got back to my town, the finger was large and purple and worth a trip to the ER rather than just going to the pharmacy next door to my apartment buying some athletic tape.
Since this was kind of a pussy injury as ER cases go -- even in a small town like this, there are issues, like the patient brought in euphemistically described by the EMTs as "significant lower GI bleed" and more candidly by the nursing staff as "gouts of blood pouring from the anus" -- I got to sit around with an icepack for three hours while the doctors took care of the people with real problems, and contemplate the staff, the sounds of other people under heavier treatment, and the bed in the waiting room, and with it the reality that I, like some of the heavier cases, would likely find myself on a similar contraption sometime in the next fifty years, at which point I would stop being an alive human being and turn into a corpse. Pussy injury or no pussy injury, medical gore and forced contemplation of your own mortality is pretty fucking death metal.
In the end, I got what I was after -- a splint and confirmation that the damn finger was broken and I hadn't wasted three hours -- then went home and went to sleep instead of going to work. An outbreak of egregious drunkenness kind of killed off the rest of the weekend, but I'm on the mend now, in fine condition apart from that one damn digit, and will be in prime shape for Revocation's CD release this week.
Showing posts with label martyrvore. Show all posts
Showing posts with label martyrvore. Show all posts
Friday, September 25, 2009
Monday, January 22, 2007
two nights, two shows
Fortunately, it's only snowing now, not over the weekend, and it's not enough that the snow ban lights are on. This means I can stay in and collate two show reviews here instead of having to go drive somewhere, or be worried about moving my car off the street.
Revocation and Deadlikedeath
Caralilly's, Quincy, 1/19/2007
--
Technically, the bill should be flipped, but Revocation did put this show up, and the two bands here were about equally supported. Two bands on a DIY bill, the order basically doesn't matter.
I got down roughly on time, though before most of the band members got there, despite the usual 93 shenanigans and a couple blocks of walking to get over from the North Quincy T. The venue in question is a nice place, normally a piano bar, but it converts well into a DIY venue. It's a decent place for a local show, and proof that we do have the technical capabilities on the North Shore to host 18+ and 21+ shows...provided that someone gets off their ass and does it. Someone who isn't subject to randomly getting shuttled off to the ends of the earth, just so we're clear on this.
Before the bands got going, I unwittingly provided some opening entertainment by ordering a beer that had to come out of the wrong cooler. Said beer was partially frozen, and detonated on opening, covering the bartender and a fair stretch of the bar in an explosion of beer slush. She was a good sport about it, though, and it gave everyone something to laugh about while the bands were setting up.
Revocation [6/7]
Another show, another casually awesome performance from Revocation. This performance presented more of a relaxed, Bay-Area feel around the more technical or death-influenced parts of their sound, but the set was still unmistakeably in their usual style. Dave brought out some new guitar tricks, Anthony didn't take his shirt off, and a large number of people bought CDs when they finished; I wasn't anticipating this last, because their disc's been out for a while, and Revocation doesn't exactly hide in the forests building their kvlt credits as opposed to doing shows. This band is so good and performs so relatively often that you'd think most people who go to local shows in the Boston area would have Summon The Spawn by now. Regardless, a bunch more people have it now, and well they should.
Deadlikedeath [5/7]
Midway through their set, Murph likened following Revocation to pissing into a wind tunnel, but it wasn't as bad as all that. DLD gave a good performance, more grind than last time I was them either because that's how they're developing, or more likely because I've been listening to more grind lately and know what to listen to. They didn't seem any more or less comfortable in this venue than at the Middle East, but they were definitely a little looser. There were some stops and starts, but mostly just a kickass set. Unfortunately, I couldn't -- or more accurately, didn't -- stick to the end of it for the car-related reasons mentioned above, so I missed probably about 15 or 20 minutes of rockin' and a light fixture getting whacked. Next time, next time; this one, even just what I was able to stay for, was still a cool show and a pretty sweet Friday night.
Hell's Infinite 6 with Baphomet's Horns, Hekseri, Martyrvore, and Witch Tomb
DeeDee's, Quincy, 1/20/2007
--
After talking a good game about not parking at the T station like last night, I turned around and did it again. This of course was enabled by the fact that this venue is located directly behind the Wollaston Red Line stop (which I know of old), and there was no easier option. It also helped that it shortened the walk in sub-freezing temperatures in a non-insulated kutte. I can do this grim-and-frostbitten-north thing, but it's physically draining to do for too long at a time.
I didn't get in that early, but still got time to sit and regenerate before the bands started. I wouldn't sit down much the rest of the night, not only because there was a minimum of latency between bands, but also because the place filled up gradually throughout the night, to a level that most people probably wouldn't expect for a local black metal show -- provided that people can get over the idea of a local black metal show even happening.
Witch Tomb [5/7]
I was very impressed by this band, despite not hearing much about them going in. Their mix of drone and aggression was the closest that this night would offer to the 'typical' sound of USBM, but different enough to announce how the rest of the show was going to sound. They had a good long set for an opener, which the first three bands would all benefit from, showing off their abilities well.
Martyrvore [5/7]
Another good set, though more pointed and driven, despite being the first of the 40 percent of bands on this bill not to employ a bass player. Black metal by nature is treble-heavy, and the sound worked for both these guys and Hell's Infinite 6, but srsly, we may need to get a union going or something. The singer of this band, at least, is in Cold Northern Vengeance, but unfortunately I haven't listened to the CD I got off him yet, so I can't point to any differences or similarities in sound. Still a good set, plenty abrasive, and the rest of the audience was also into it.
The first two bands here are doing a split sometime in the near future, so something to watch out for.
Hekseri [6/7]
This slot on the bill was about right, and does credit to Megan for putting her own act in the right place while also putting up the show. However, the real story here is the performance that the band put on, a solid set of raw and dirty black metal highlighted by some excellent guitar work. Megan's solo style is clearly rooted in Slayer, but it blends well with the rest of the band's attack, which was at a comparably high level. This was a performance that built up rather than immediately starting and staying awesome, but this shouldn't diminish the quality of the music or its delivery. Very cool, and of course as gimmick-free as expected.
Baphomet's Horns [5/7]
There seemed to be a crowd surge for this band, with more people packing into the floor immediately in front of the stage to see them, then fading back when they finished. They were definitely worth everyone's full attention, providing a cool and fully developed set of nice brutal black metal, though it's always better, from a general scene standpoint, when fans of one band stick around for everyone on the bill. This is of course nothing on the band themselves, who gave a great performance that managed to feel cut off at the end; I'd gladly have watched them go on for another 15 or 20 minutes, but maybe next time. Next time, definitely, I'll get a shirt off them, as their designs are pretty killer, but all I got from them merchwise was their split with Amputator.
I also missed out on Hekseri stuff, but I'm definitely seeing them in like 2 weeks opening for Destruction, so I should be able to make it up at that time.
Hell's Infinite 6 [6/7]
Another ultimately killer set from a cool band, but also one that didn't employ a bassist. The dual guitar sound worked well, and the blending of riffs and feedback/general noise definitely enhanced the experience. Despite two guitarists and one of them wearing a Dissection shirt and a Dissection-derived arm tat, they held mainly to the brutal line that hs dominated the show so far, and did turn out a cool performance that also felt cut off. I'm not sure whether my internal clock starts going off after 23:00 or if it's just different expectations for headliners, but for whatever reason, this band also overcame a slow start to a point where I could have gone for another 15 to 20 once they finally closed up.
I probably could have hung around for a little after, but that would probably mean at least one more beer, and then more time off before driving, and I was again concerned about the Quincy PD booting or absconding with my car. I've got to plan better and/or find different places to park, but these Quincy venues are so convenient to the mass parking lots of our mass transit system that it's difficult to not be lazy and just use them. There's been some post-facto comments about the sound at this show from the bands, but I didn't notice much wrong with it; necro sound is something I've grown accustomed to from black metal, and all of the bands on this bill sounded fine with the sound as it was. Of course, that does mean that they'd all probably come off better with a good sound system, but that's something to look forward to; this show, now in the past, was pretty cool and a definite good experience to look back on.
In other news, I got my ticket for Enslaved off CNV, and several people, including one of the guys from Hirudinea (who was one of several with a better-built kutte than mine there), were rumoring about Rotten Sound playing at some Elks lodge in the area. No idea on the timeline for that one, but if it's north of the MA southern border, I ought to try and get to it; probably going to see them at MDF anyway, but that's pending how much vacation I have to take for Metal Winter Break.
Next show is hopefully going to be on Wednesday -- Godless Rising, Goreality, Downfall, and Mortis Dev down in Somerville -- but I'm fighting a cold right now and don't want to be fucking sneezing all over people. If that fails, I might go up to Metal Church at Mark's on the weekend, but I really don't want to go to a P2P show without getting a ticket off one of the bands. Sure, if I went I'd grout through everyone's merch table, but it'd still feel like I was picking Ravage or RAOV's pocket. Of course, the better step is to simply get rid of P2P shows, but as long as good nationals keep getting booked into them and good locals keep knuckling and playing them, it's going to be a devil's choice. Most likely I'll do the Wednesday show, then take the weekend off to regain my health (there's no way I'll see a better set from Metal Church than I got from the first row at Wacken this year) and hope to corral Ravage's CD releases later.
Revocation and Deadlikedeath
Caralilly's, Quincy, 1/19/2007
--
Technically, the bill should be flipped, but Revocation did put this show up, and the two bands here were about equally supported. Two bands on a DIY bill, the order basically doesn't matter.
I got down roughly on time, though before most of the band members got there, despite the usual 93 shenanigans and a couple blocks of walking to get over from the North Quincy T. The venue in question is a nice place, normally a piano bar, but it converts well into a DIY venue. It's a decent place for a local show, and proof that we do have the technical capabilities on the North Shore to host 18+ and 21+ shows...provided that someone gets off their ass and does it. Someone who isn't subject to randomly getting shuttled off to the ends of the earth, just so we're clear on this.
Before the bands got going, I unwittingly provided some opening entertainment by ordering a beer that had to come out of the wrong cooler. Said beer was partially frozen, and detonated on opening, covering the bartender and a fair stretch of the bar in an explosion of beer slush. She was a good sport about it, though, and it gave everyone something to laugh about while the bands were setting up.
Revocation [6/7]
Another show, another casually awesome performance from Revocation. This performance presented more of a relaxed, Bay-Area feel around the more technical or death-influenced parts of their sound, but the set was still unmistakeably in their usual style. Dave brought out some new guitar tricks, Anthony didn't take his shirt off, and a large number of people bought CDs when they finished; I wasn't anticipating this last, because their disc's been out for a while, and Revocation doesn't exactly hide in the forests building their kvlt credits as opposed to doing shows. This band is so good and performs so relatively often that you'd think most people who go to local shows in the Boston area would have Summon The Spawn by now. Regardless, a bunch more people have it now, and well they should.
Deadlikedeath [5/7]
Midway through their set, Murph likened following Revocation to pissing into a wind tunnel, but it wasn't as bad as all that. DLD gave a good performance, more grind than last time I was them either because that's how they're developing, or more likely because I've been listening to more grind lately and know what to listen to. They didn't seem any more or less comfortable in this venue than at the Middle East, but they were definitely a little looser. There were some stops and starts, but mostly just a kickass set. Unfortunately, I couldn't -- or more accurately, didn't -- stick to the end of it for the car-related reasons mentioned above, so I missed probably about 15 or 20 minutes of rockin' and a light fixture getting whacked. Next time, next time; this one, even just what I was able to stay for, was still a cool show and a pretty sweet Friday night.
Hell's Infinite 6 with Baphomet's Horns, Hekseri, Martyrvore, and Witch Tomb
DeeDee's, Quincy, 1/20/2007
--
After talking a good game about not parking at the T station like last night, I turned around and did it again. This of course was enabled by the fact that this venue is located directly behind the Wollaston Red Line stop (which I know of old), and there was no easier option. It also helped that it shortened the walk in sub-freezing temperatures in a non-insulated kutte. I can do this grim-and-frostbitten-north thing, but it's physically draining to do for too long at a time.
I didn't get in that early, but still got time to sit and regenerate before the bands started. I wouldn't sit down much the rest of the night, not only because there was a minimum of latency between bands, but also because the place filled up gradually throughout the night, to a level that most people probably wouldn't expect for a local black metal show -- provided that people can get over the idea of a local black metal show even happening.
Witch Tomb [5/7]
I was very impressed by this band, despite not hearing much about them going in. Their mix of drone and aggression was the closest that this night would offer to the 'typical' sound of USBM, but different enough to announce how the rest of the show was going to sound. They had a good long set for an opener, which the first three bands would all benefit from, showing off their abilities well.
Martyrvore [5/7]
Another good set, though more pointed and driven, despite being the first of the 40 percent of bands on this bill not to employ a bass player. Black metal by nature is treble-heavy, and the sound worked for both these guys and Hell's Infinite 6, but srsly, we may need to get a union going or something. The singer of this band, at least, is in Cold Northern Vengeance, but unfortunately I haven't listened to the CD I got off him yet, so I can't point to any differences or similarities in sound. Still a good set, plenty abrasive, and the rest of the audience was also into it.
The first two bands here are doing a split sometime in the near future, so something to watch out for.
Hekseri [6/7]
This slot on the bill was about right, and does credit to Megan for putting her own act in the right place while also putting up the show. However, the real story here is the performance that the band put on, a solid set of raw and dirty black metal highlighted by some excellent guitar work. Megan's solo style is clearly rooted in Slayer, but it blends well with the rest of the band's attack, which was at a comparably high level. This was a performance that built up rather than immediately starting and staying awesome, but this shouldn't diminish the quality of the music or its delivery. Very cool, and of course as gimmick-free as expected.
Baphomet's Horns [5/7]
There seemed to be a crowd surge for this band, with more people packing into the floor immediately in front of the stage to see them, then fading back when they finished. They were definitely worth everyone's full attention, providing a cool and fully developed set of nice brutal black metal, though it's always better, from a general scene standpoint, when fans of one band stick around for everyone on the bill. This is of course nothing on the band themselves, who gave a great performance that managed to feel cut off at the end; I'd gladly have watched them go on for another 15 or 20 minutes, but maybe next time. Next time, definitely, I'll get a shirt off them, as their designs are pretty killer, but all I got from them merchwise was their split with Amputator.
I also missed out on Hekseri stuff, but I'm definitely seeing them in like 2 weeks opening for Destruction, so I should be able to make it up at that time.
Hell's Infinite 6 [6/7]
Another ultimately killer set from a cool band, but also one that didn't employ a bassist. The dual guitar sound worked well, and the blending of riffs and feedback/general noise definitely enhanced the experience. Despite two guitarists and one of them wearing a Dissection shirt and a Dissection-derived arm tat, they held mainly to the brutal line that hs dominated the show so far, and did turn out a cool performance that also felt cut off. I'm not sure whether my internal clock starts going off after 23:00 or if it's just different expectations for headliners, but for whatever reason, this band also overcame a slow start to a point where I could have gone for another 15 to 20 once they finally closed up.
I probably could have hung around for a little after, but that would probably mean at least one more beer, and then more time off before driving, and I was again concerned about the Quincy PD booting or absconding with my car. I've got to plan better and/or find different places to park, but these Quincy venues are so convenient to the mass parking lots of our mass transit system that it's difficult to not be lazy and just use them. There's been some post-facto comments about the sound at this show from the bands, but I didn't notice much wrong with it; necro sound is something I've grown accustomed to from black metal, and all of the bands on this bill sounded fine with the sound as it was. Of course, that does mean that they'd all probably come off better with a good sound system, but that's something to look forward to; this show, now in the past, was pretty cool and a definite good experience to look back on.
In other news, I got my ticket for Enslaved off CNV, and several people, including one of the guys from Hirudinea (who was one of several with a better-built kutte than mine there), were rumoring about Rotten Sound playing at some Elks lodge in the area. No idea on the timeline for that one, but if it's north of the MA southern border, I ought to try and get to it; probably going to see them at MDF anyway, but that's pending how much vacation I have to take for Metal Winter Break.
Next show is hopefully going to be on Wednesday -- Godless Rising, Goreality, Downfall, and Mortis Dev down in Somerville -- but I'm fighting a cold right now and don't want to be fucking sneezing all over people. If that fails, I might go up to Metal Church at Mark's on the weekend, but I really don't want to go to a P2P show without getting a ticket off one of the bands. Sure, if I went I'd grout through everyone's merch table, but it'd still feel like I was picking Ravage or RAOV's pocket. Of course, the better step is to simply get rid of P2P shows, but as long as good nationals keep getting booked into them and good locals keep knuckling and playing them, it's going to be a devil's choice. Most likely I'll do the Wednesday show, then take the weekend off to regain my health (there's no way I'll see a better set from Metal Church than I got from the first row at Wacken this year) and hope to corral Ravage's CD releases later.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)