DEATH ANGEL, MERCENARY, DEMOLITION & EXTREMA
CAMDEN UNDERWORLD - LONDON 15/04/08
Upon arriving at the venue on a Tuesday evening, it was worryingly empty in terms of pre-gig pub numbers and queue numbers outside. Luckily, this would pick up during the course of the evening. Most of the crowd were doing their civic duty by drinking their alcoholic tipple outside the venue (I also joined in), plus it also prolonged the need to enter the sewerage smelling bar area of the underworld venue.
Opening band ‘Extrema’ from Milan, Italy are a strange bunch of folks. Starting life in 1986 as a thrash band, they have now morphed into a typical Nu Metal/Industrial band with associated drumbeat. It is not very busy at all down by the stage, in fact tumbleweed can be seen! The vocal delivery is trying very hard to be ‘Pantera’, unfortunately the band are not as musically talented as their would-be mentors. At some points during their set the bassist looks really bored whilst he occasionally slaps the bass strings. A comical attempt of a roundhouse/spinning kick goes slightly wrong when the vocalist is caught, not well planned.
Thankfully, we get some quality up next in the form of ‘Demolition’ from Austria, who are visiting the UK for a second time in 3 years. Their first visit to these shores was as support to Testament at their reunion show in 2005 at the Koko club. These modern thrash metal warriors open up with a pro-intro and perfect sound (the benefits of using their own sound engineer) initially to a sparse crowd. For those who have not heard this band before, they can be compared to ‘Legion of the Damned’ / ‘Occult’ with their own brand of modern thrash with raspy, almost death metal vocal, courtesy of Wolfgang Süssenbeck, who makes a subtle nod of appreciatation to the females at the front of the stage. ‘Third of Nine’ from their previous studio effort ‘Existence’ kicks out the cobwebs, but it was disappointing that nothing from their ‘Out of Noland’ album was aired. We are treated to tracks such as ‘Deconstructed World’ and ‘Reborn/Re-Failed’ from their awesome new album ‘Relict IV’. It was good to see the floor area quite busy by the third track their set (‘The Fortress’), with a queue forming at the merchandise stand when they had come off stage. This speaks volumes in itself, a good enjoyable set.
‘Mercenary’ are on stage with not a lot of space left when you take into account the keyboard position. This would be my first live experience of the band, having heard their studio output; it was going to be interesting to see if they could pull things off live. Vocalist Mikkel Sandager struggles initially with a weak higher pitched vocal. But once a couple of tracks have passed, he finally warms up and starts to perform well. From the opening track ‘New Desire’ (from their new album ‘Architect of Lies’) there is a distinct air of quality. Proficient guitar solos and good overall sound are good starting point, but after a while, my attention seems to wander. The keyboard player (Morten Sandager) looks slightly bored whilst emphasising the fact that he is pressing one button on the keyboard on one track. If lead vocalist Mikkel leant over the crowd any further, the red tie he was wearing would become a potential instrument of torture for him! This Danish crew do put on a good show and bring across the emotion and feeling as shown on their studio output, especially on their excellent new release ‘Architect of Lies’, even if they did look a little cramped on the Underworld stage.
After a short break and roadie sound check, check, check, yeah, yeah (you know the drill). The incense sticks are lit and things are ready to go. ‘Death Angel’ open with ‘Lord of Hate’ from their new album (‘Killing Season’) to a packed crowd, you could hardly move around the floor area. These guys have never disappointed live, and tonight was by no means any different. ‘Buried Alive’ blasts out, and frontman Mark Osegueda has a smile from ear to ear, clearly enjoying himself (although the smiles do get larger during the set whilst he’s drinking his bottle of Bombay Sapphire!). ‘Dethroned’ (and soon to be music video release) is a particular highlight. The newer tunes sit perfectly along older classics such as ‘3rd Floor’, ‘A Seemingly Endless Time’ as well as out and out stompers from the ‘Ultra violence’ album. In particular, ‘Evil Priest’ and ‘Voracious Souls’. Once again, the band shows their gratitude for everyone supporting them and reminisces about having their first gig in 1987 outside of the USA in London, and it is hard to believe it has been nearly 5 years since they last played on this very stage. As the evening progresses, there are more fans trying to cram into the pit down the front. Once the stage diving and crowd surfing starts, that’s it, over the top everyone goes, great fun, no malice involved at all. This is the good thing about this venue, the security do let the crowd have fun! A loud chant for an encore ends the night perfectly.
‘Death Angel’ are always very good live, and tonight is no exception, it was truly one of the most enjoyable performances of the year so far.
Note: -
The band ‘Textures’ were meant to be a support act tonight, but as per the notice on the doors “due to technical difficulties, they will not be on stage until 22.45”. By this time I’d had enough, and left to get the tube home with the knowledge that no one could top ‘Death Angel’s’ set this evening.
Paul Maddison
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