CUTTING EDGE SHOWCASE: BEHOLDER, ZOCALO, SILAS, SIZEN & AVENGE THEE + NAIME
CAMDEN UNDERWORLD 20/9/10
The guys and gals from Unified Sounds have been doing a sterling job in recent years in championing the cause of some of the best new Rock & Metal acts in the South East and Essex areas, and tonight’s show is a validation of all the hard work put in. A line up of some of the hottest names to watch over the next few years had been put together, and with healthy support for all bands on show, it was time to see what the fuss had been about.
Proceedings were opened in energetic fashion by Avenge Thee + Naime with their anarchic hardcore/thrash/grind stylings. Basically these guys just chuck everything into the mix and the end result seems to be a fusion of Black Flag, Lawnmower Deth and some of Mike Patton’s more eclectic work. Frontman Adam Wesgate dominates the stage, bouncing around all over the place whilst promising us a show full of ‘Titties and male nudity’, neither of which arrived (quite thankfully in the 2nd case). In their short but very tight set, they tore through songs such as ‘Ear of the Horse’, ‘Broken Hand’ and ‘Grimey Rabbits Margate’, whipping the growing crowd into a right old lather by the time they left the stage.
With a lot to fit in over the course of the evening, turnaround times were tight, so there was barely time to grab a quick pint before Sizen took the stage with their early 90s influenced hard rock. There was very little mucking about from these guys and hardly any banter at all, which emphasised in a way just how high Avenge Thee + Naime had set the bar for the evening with their set. That’s not to say that Sizen were disappointing however, just that they put on less of a ‘show’. Singer Max has a powerful voice that was reminding me at times of Sebastian Bach and done a great job of creating a bit of stage presence for them, seeing as the guitarist and bassist, whilst tight musically, just did not seem to have any energy on stage. With songs like ‘I Rise’, ‘Done To Death’ and the excellent ‘Agrofist’, and a style that covers everything from Skid Row to Drowning Pool via the Electric Boys, Sizen are primed and ready for the inevitable 90s rock revival.
The arrival of Silas, fresh from their recent Bloodstock performance, really brought the crowd to life with their energetic boozy Rock and Roll. Looking and sounding like the children of Pantera and Orange Goblin, they blitzed through a powerhouse set including ‘Flip the Script’ and ‘To the Ground’. Singer Dave Runham seems to spend the entire time with one foot up on a monitor, windmilling the hair, inciting the crowd into a Cockney Wall of Death and to ‘show him some bollocks’. By the time they wrapped things up with ‘In the Grind’, it was clear to me that with another couple of years playing shows like this, Silas could, and should end up huge.
On the strength of the crowd reaction, it looks like Zocalo could make it huge too, clearly drawing the biggest crowd of the night, more so than even headliners Beholder, but I can’t see why. Like Silas, they are also fresh from being blooded at Bloodstock, and by all accounts were one of the better supported new bands. There’s certainly nothing actually wrong with Zocalo. They perform quite ordinary groovy, even slightly funky heavy rock, but that’s about it. It’s really quite bland. They may indeed be one of the few female fronted bands in the genre, but that’s not enough on its own to make them a success. Despite some very reasonable songs, albeit sung with little gusto by Sarah Humphries quite characterless voice, I saw nothing here to elevate them above the status of ‘decent pub band’.
So it was left to the mighty Beholder to bring things to their conclusion, and as you would expect of them by now, they did not disappoint. The massive Simon Hall controlled the stage with an electrifying intensity whilst looking like Dimebag’s big bad cousin. Quickly storming through ‘Snake Eyes’ and ‘Razorline’, they showed why they have gained such a following over the last few years. Through Spartan war cries, incitements to knock ten bells of shit out of each other, and the assertation that anyone who has not bought their album is a c**t, Beholder provided a masterclass in crowd interaction. With a soaring vocal that at times could be compared to Halford or Dickinson, they tore through the title track of latest album ‘The Awakening’ with an intensity not unlike Onslaught. Finishing with a cover of the recently departed Dio’s ‘Holy Diver’, the crowd left exhausted but satisfied after a tight and professional show. As Simon Hall said, “Shows like tonight, it’s about the little venues and bands and the people with a real passion for it keeping metal going”. I couldn’t agree more.
Lee Kimber
MTUK HOME
