The underground grind movement is flourishing in North East Britain. Many well-known names like Wormrot, Eviscorax, Laceration etc. have played gigs here. However, some of the small places, in which these bands play, are not suitable. This is what happened at this show as well. Kings Manor is a nice pub next to the Manors station in Newcastle. When I walked in I was glad that the gig was going to take place in such a wide area. But my hopes collapsed, when we walked down to the basement. The stage was placed in a small room, which has the dimensions of a student flat and was full with only 15-16 people. As you clearly understand, it was a nightmare for me and my crew to record a video or even take some photos.

Speaking about the gig, the first 2 bands cancelled at the last moment and as a result, Nick ”Blastonbury Festival”, the organizer, and his band opened the gig. The sound was so bad you couldn’t distinguish the noise from the music, but sometimes, a discerning listener could recognize the vocals. Only three songs were played in about 10 minutes.

Anal Penetration, are a one man band just like Cemetery Rapist and were ready to spill our guts on the floor. With a fully informed play list, he played 18 songs, including ”Freedom of Lust”, ”Cumcloth, Bitch Ass Cock, Eyes Shut & Sticky”, ”The Flood” and 3 new songs for about 45-50 minutes. Having a great communication with the fans and the other bands, he created a nice, familiar atmosphere like the old times of the underground scene. Due to the computerized percussion, the sound was perfect. But it lacked the excitement of having a fully formed band ahead of you. But to be fair, it was awesome. Much respect.

The headliner of this event, the vegan, as he informed us, Cemetery Rapist, are another one man band and unleashed the gore grind horror in the limited area of the basement, driving the audience nuts. For the next hour or so, chaos was reigning. People were moshing, head banging on the tables and chairs, shattering glass everywhere on the floor. Total annihilation. But this fact shows that Cemetery Rapist gave an excellent performance, no matter the equipment or the limited space. An opinion, which I adopt, not only for the excellent performance, but for the fact, that we had the chance to speak with him, talk about his music and his opinion about the world: ” Everything in America turns from bad to worse. Everything is controlled by our government, even the music. It’s very difficult to be promoted when you are a musician of my societal class.”. As for the place, he continues: ” You have no idea in how many shitholes I’ve played over the past years. I know, it’s not the perfect place, but I only came here for the ticket. I wouldn’t miss a chance to play abroad. Other bands act like idiots when they demand money. I am not getting paid by any of this. I’m young; no one can be like Metallica these days. I came for the show and for the people.” The band gave their (his) best for the show having a play list of about 20 songs, including ”Herpes Injection” and ”Blunts” are never enough”.

Great performance from both of the headliners even if this was an incomplete concert. Maybe next time, bands from Leeds should reconsider of demanding money to play in such a small place. If they do not accept this, maybe they should not book a gig in the future.

 

Review and photos Dionysios Mantis