ANGELCORPSE, ARKHON INFAUSTUS, REVENGE, NECROSADISTIC GOAT TORTURE & FLESHROT
LONDON ELEKTROWERKZ, 26/04/08
This was a crazy weekend for gigs with at least seven metal events happening in London town (and we are covering five of them). This was without doubt the most extreme of them all and also the baldest and baddest Thanks again to organizers StrataNael fror bringing another killer line-up to our shores. Not only that but they had also added 2 local bands and no extra expense to the audience and opened doors early to accommodate them, ensuring that they did not eat into the main bands times. Cannot really say fairer than that can you?
This was the first time I had caught the openers from sunny (yeah right) Croydon. You wouldn’t really want to get Fleshrot normally, things start falling off and you might want them in the future. Standing next to the speaker during this tsunami was downright dangerous. The velocity of the delivery and the distorted loudness of it was flattening. In fact the levels were up a bit too much as at times things sounded like they were approaching white noise. I guess tracks were aired from new EP ‘Decomposition Of Humanity’, one was called ‘Submerged’ but it should have been called deluged as that’s exactly what it did to us. As far as brutal death fucking metal is concerned this lot surely delivered the goods and they provided a good wake up call to get us in the mood for further blasphemy.
Necrosadistic Goat Torture have one of those names impossible to forget and their brand of ‘alcoholic war metal’ was one I was happy to drink to. Never really thought of it before but front-woman ‘Goat throat’ kind of reminded a bit of Sabina tonight, well she is originally from Germany and hope she will take this as a compliment. Again the sound was way loud and it pretty much throttled the goat and impaled us on its gnarly horns. The audience seemed divided with many packed at the front going mental, a no mans land in the middle where it smelt like someone had dropped their guts and the arm folders further back with looks of disapproval. What the fuck, this lot deserve some goatworshipping and the skinheads at the front played skittles with each other and beer flew everyone. New and debut album on the way and if ‘Embrace The Wolves’ which they played is anything to go by, its going to huff and puff and….well you know the rest.
Revenge came on to the tones of Charlie coming out the speaker (and we ain’t talking bout no chocolate factory here) he wanted something cult or should that be kvlt to fuck us up and that’s exactly whet we got! Perversely at first they were too quiet but the levels were sorted and they were blazing away nicely by ‘Destiny Mastery’ so the barbarity levels were now flying out at warp speed. This was the first of two sets from Pete Helmkamp tonight and in my opinion it was Revenge who stole the show. The utter ferocity of tracks such as ‘Traitor Crucifixion’ had the audience standing there either head-banging or locked in position like statues, there is no chance of moshing to something this fast. Guitar solos shot out like arrows impaling us as they vortexed from the speakers and this absolute perfection of musical misanthropy simply owned by its downright extremity. I found myself locked in position by the speaker feeling like demons were coming out of my head for most the set (probably explaining deafness today). The audience had been simmering like peas in a pot and waited till towards the end of the set to boil over and a sudden eruption in the pit ended a triumphant set. Revenge is a dish best served just like fucking this!
Showing the fact that there were people from all over the place here tonight I saw a group of people with a flag from Ecuador nicely signed by the likes of Death Angel and Suffocation. Now they were having a proper \\\metal/// holiday and a half. If you happen to read this get in touch for the photos.
As for us, we were off to French shores for the Gallic onslaught of Arkhon Infaustus We were dealt perdition courtesy of opener ‘Saturn Motion Theology’ which was nasty as the fetid pits of hell. I admit it was stuff from latest album the excellent Orthodoxyn that I particularly wanted to hear and was not disappointed to get ‘When They Have Called’ up next with its spiralling guitar scythes and gruff vocal bark. This grated away whilst the audience found themselves drawn further into the maddening maelstrom (read I saw fists and beer flying). The atmospheric slow interlude just added unease rather than allowing breath to be gathered, before again, the song leapt out and bit with a rabid ferocity. There was some older stuff aired including no doubt the rudest song title played by any band in London this weekend ‘Dead Cunt Maniac’ slashing its way on a killing spree of unrelenting violence. Being given a pass I was able to appreciate just what a part drummer AZK6 was playing in this dismemberment and managed to get a few quick photos of him in action. At the end of this a beer or six were needed before the final act.
We were lucky enough to catch Angelcorpse with I believe Marduk, just before they disbanded in 2000. The news that they were getting back together and releasing album ‘Of Lucifer And Lightning’ was one met with a lot of approval. Many were catching them for the first time now I expect and there was a sense of anticipation in the drunken air as their apocalyptic intro sounded like a death knell before Armageddon. Although Pete Helmkamp was able to slow down a bit from Revenge, vocally things were delivered sounding as fast as fuck, pretty much like he had the devil on his tail. The instrumentation literally raped the hell out of the audience who had now responded by really belting shit out of each other. Cymbals clattered and the guitars were precisely flailing away like the sound of Christ being whipped. I was busy smacking my head against the speaker and downing cider like my life depended on it during Wartorn’ and newer numbers such as ‘Antichrist Vanguard’ had people falling all over the place. Angelcorpse did pretty much Exterminate tonight and the last thing I appear to have scrawled are the words ‘Saints Of Blasphemy’ so guessing they did that towards the end.
So another great night but can I have my hearing back please?
Pete Woods
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