ANTI XMAS FEST
LONDON, PURPLE TURTLE 28/12/07
If you think I’m joking when I say that this made my Xmas, then I can assure you that the thought of this line-up pulverising the Turtle during the break had me salivating for weeks! And it was well worth it! The six bands on display here tonight tore their way through their respective sets, and frequently turned the Turtle’s innards into a blurred melee. Sure, the Turtle’s sound system and mix were on the horrible side of not very good, but this did not ruin any of the enjoyment.
First up were Introrectal Gestation, who pretty much set the tone for the night. Good use of dual vocal styles and fast, brutal rhythm work interspersed with the head-noddingly good mid-paced stuff meant that the band were well received. Beautifully titled tracks such as “Knee deep in Uterus”, “Suffocated by Semen”, and “Gaped and Reamed” all went down well (erm...) with the swelling crowd (or should I have used the term burgeoning members?) IRG’s strong point is without a doubt the ability to hit the crowd where it hurts when they slow it down, and I’m sure in years to come that this lot will have more finely blended guts and gore for the masses to lap up.
Next up were Glasgow’s very own Cerebral Bore. A great bunch of guys and committed. (Ask them about the journey and the coffee shop?!) With new vocalist in tow, I was very much looking forward to their performance. Cerebral Bore didn’t disappoint. The guitar sound that this band has is original for the scene and allows the bass to drive some parts of the songs. And the energy that they have on stage is for all to see tonight; especially when they have a wrestling contest! “Entombed in Butchered Bodies” hits the nail on the head and gets the pit going, and the tightness with which “Flesh Reflects the Madness”, and “The Thirteenth Vile Vortice” show that these guys are getting better and better. I’m sure there is even more to come from them!!
Infected Disarray grace the Turtle next, and I’ll have to say that I didn’t note down some of the titles as they were so long I bloody missed them!! All I know is that the opener was the delightful “Viscous Dermal Tissues Necroticising in Venereal Quagmire” (yummy). Now these guys just practise sheer aural mayhem. Energetic, twisted arrangements infused with the occasional groove, and topped off with great, guttural vocals – Infected Disarray impressed. A nice little pit erupted for second song “Gestated Human Slurry”, and the boys played music which walks that fine line of total brutality without veering into the overload category. “Propagation of Infected Innards” goes down well (not literally) with the slow groove that kicks in, and the guys finish their set off strong with a track about excavating somebody prenatally (something which I will be asking the band about over a pint some time!!).
After only hearing Manchester’s Ingested on Myspace, I was excited to see them in the live arena. After tonight’s performance, I’d queue up to see them again and again. Awesome power throughout all of their music, and some superb slam-death breakdowns meant that Ingested were always going to be popular. It also meant that the pit was going to become more animated! These guys’ songwriting skills and sense of dynamics are way above par, and on this showing, they are a bunch that will continually turn heads and garner attention. Ingested tear through tonight’s set and I only wish that they could have had a longer stage time, such is their impressive display of brutal death. Finishing off with “Anal Evisceration”, the crowd bay for more but alas………I WILL be seeing these guys again!
Ahh…….Amputated. Always good to see these guys. You know the music is going to give you no let up, and you also know that you are probably going to be entertained with some of Mark’s onstage banter during the set at some point (not disappointing here with some cracking comments!!). Amputated are a feral force. Blistering tracks such as “Love Em and Cleave Em”, “Anally Disembowelled” and “Lesbian Coprophagia” are played with a consummate professionalism, and the band enjoy themselves during an impressive display. Newer tracks like “Uterus Swollen with Festering Tumours” are absolute killer and show that Amputated are just getting better and better in their gory field of brutal metal. Note perfect throughout the night, and with the one of the best live performances I have seen from them, I was baying for more as they brought closure on things with “Raped With a Jackhammer”. Always controversial, but similarly always a force on stage, Amputated entertained, pulverised and generally kicked backside tonight. An awesome performance and I can’t wait until I see them back down in London for more goresplattered entertainment.
Headlining band Desecration NEVER disappoint. I mean…….EVER. The assuredness of their performances and the quality of songwriting has always meant that Desecration have been the cream of the British crop in my opinion. Another confident and blistering display at the Turtle just underlines that feeling. Insane drumming, grooves that kill and mid-paced breakdown that get a psychotic level of adrenaline flowing are enough to leave you drooling. ”Dig Up, Dig In” almost removes skin from bone, such is the power, and even the wonderful zombiefied, no vocal chug of “Let’s Have a Hanging” is played to a rabid crowd in attendance. “Bacterial Breakdown” unfortunately ends my night, and my experience of the awesome Welsh machine due to the nocturnally deficient London Underground system. But in all honesty, it was enough to see that Desecration rule. Next time, I’ll sleep rough as their live displays deserve to be seen to completion!
Overall, this was a brutal, enjoyable and thoroughly successful showcasing of some of the talent on display in the art of gore, slam, and brutal death metal. I’m already looking forward to Christmas 08 and hope in the mean time that more shows with the calibre of these guys can be put together to sate my desire for the extreme!!
Andy Duke
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