The Metal/Punk/Rock Thread

[Merzbow]

Pupil Slicer and Mastiff on the Sophie Lancaster stage should be fun, great modern hardcore acts.

[King Mal the Glorious]

For me, Mercyful Fate would be the only "must watch" on the Saturday. I'd probably watch Dimmu Borgir for old times sake but otherwise that's a very weak lineup for the day.

[WyattSheepMask]

As @Merzbow mentioned both Pupil Slicer and Mastiff will be worth watching, Malevolence who are headlining the Sophie stage that night also seem to be qgaining some traction.

Over on the main stage, Lorna Shore have got a new vocalist so might be worth a go, while Sacred Reich will bring some old school vibes.

The last time Dimmu Borgir played they were plagued with sound problems to the point that they were practically unwatchable. If I were going it would be a toss up between watching them or Samael.

Mercyful Fate though are the must see of the day 

[The Gaffer]

Avatar put on a great live show, too, if you're into the goofier Scandinavian stylings that don't take themselves too seriously. 

I'd check out Sleep Token if you didn't at Download, as well. They didn't strike me as all that on record but seeing them in the tent last week they sounded really fresh and hypnotic. 

Four day Download next year, then? The general thinking is that it's going to be two nights of Metallica, a new headliner (Bring Me The Horizon, perhaps) and a recent headliner. It was loads of fun this year. 

[WyattSheepMask]

 

Volbeat, Skindred and Napalm Death a week before Christmas? Yes please

[Egg Shen]

Hopefully get to that Cardiff date, I wouldn't have minded seeing Bad Wolves on the bill as well.

[WyattSheepMask]

Also announced today, Mastiff are heading on their first headline tour. I’ve just picked up a ticket for the Hull date for £8!

[cobra_gordo]

Mastiff are quality live, we've played with them a couple of times and they're great lads too. That Star & Grater show should be fucking vicious. Played with Battalions in there recently and the floor felt like it was going to give way so fuck knows what it'll be like with those boys stomping around.

 

[Merzbow]

I'll see them at Dead Wax although I don't like the venue, it used to be a great little working class pub that'd put on a tonne of antifascist gigs but then got gentrified like most of Digbeth.

Thank fuck Centrala is still around there and getting even more shows these days, I think I've been to six in the past month or so.

[wordsfromlee]

1 hour ago, Merzbow said:

I'll see them at Dead Wax although I don't like the venue, it used to be a great little working class pub that'd put on a tonne of antifascist gigs but then got gentrified like most of Digbeth.

Thank fuck Centrala is still around there and getting even more shows these days, I think I've been to six in the past month or so.

I like Dead Wax. Good little pub. 

[SuperBacon]

Is the Star & Garter an old peoples home? Or have I got that massively wrong. 

That would be wicked if it is. 

[Keith Houchen]

36 minutes ago, SuperBacon said:

Is the Star & Garter an old peoples home? Or have I got that massively wrong. 

That would be wicked if it is. 

You have that wrong. 

[SuperBacon]

3 hours ago, Keith Houchen said:

You have that wrong. 

Think I'm confusing it with the Royal Star and Garter which was a convalescence hospital in Richmond, sort of like the kind they had for the Chelsea pensioners. Thought it might be a chain.

[WyattSheepMask]

Saw VLTIMAS at Corporation in Sheffield last night.

I head down there to get there for about 15 minutes before the doors opened, thinking a queue will have formed but it’s not a huge place so it won’t be a massive queue. 
I get there, no-one is outside the venue. Has it been moved? Cancelled entirely? A quick on the band’s socials show nothing of the sort so I figure I’ll just have a sit down opposite and see what happens. 
Some do turn up as the doors open on time to let in all 9 of us. As we show our tickets we’re informed that the show “will be happening in the smaller room tonight”. Now granted I haven’t been to Corporation for nearly 11 years, but I didn’t even know it had a smaller room as what is apparently the main isn’t exactly massive.

Two local support acts. Terminal Sun, who aren’t bad but nothing spectacular either, but the other was a band named Ba’al. They were fucking phenomenal. Being a local band and me from out of town I had no idea what they were going to be, but to look at them I never expected them to come out with what they did, which is apparently classed as ‘Post Blackened Metal’. I’m not usually one for buzzwords or just plain making up entire sub genes, but whatever you want to classify them as, go check them out. If anyone has heard Hidden Mothers, it’s a similar sound to that.

Then it was VLTIMAS. By the time they come on, there can’t be anymore than 50 in attendance, a shockingly low turnout considering it’s David Vincent doing death metal. He isn’t doing Morbid Angel material (he does that when touring I Am Morbid), but it’s David fucking Vincent, and the VLTIMAS album is really fucking good, how are there only this many people here.

The crowd that did turn up were really weird all night as well. I’d gone on my own and don’t tend to make noise anyway, I just like to listen and applaud what I like, but this crowd were giving nothing when David was doing bits between songs. Absolute silence at times. Even when the band did the ‘leave before coming back for the encore’ bit, nothing. The band eventually come back after what felt like a lengthy gap, and played one last song. They’ve been playing a two song song encore for the rest of the tour (throwing in an Alice Cooper cover before the last song), but that got dropped as David left almost instantly when it finished, he’d clearly had enough and just wanted to get out of there.

Having said all of that (and sorry if I’ve rambled) the band sounded great and played really well, but the few people that had turned up gave them absolutely nothing. Such a strange night in hindsight 

[wordsfromlee]

11 years since they last performed together and they haven't skipped a beat.