First night out in Camden since pre-plague and despite the normal seething madness of the place things are strangely different around the market areas. Although not having the time to explore as beer was calling and more important it is obvious that gentrification has truly arrived in all its facile, glass-fronted glory. I guess it won’t be catching fire as easily and will still be a mecca for visiting tourists. Thankfully there are places for the scuzz to still gather and watering holes like The Dev and The Black Heart have survived through it all as has tonight’s eventual destination The Underworld. Luckily all that has changed there is that it is now cashless or would be if the cash machine on the door was working and after a quick temperature check we descend for the night’s entertainment.

This show has suffered various trials and was originally meant to be The Doomsday Deathfest with bands such as Cancer, Twitch Of The Death Nerve and Tyrannos on the bill, naturally things, as they are all too prone at the moment, did not pan out that way but at least the three scheduled bands for the night had made it without testing positive and just as we all gathered an electrically charged and virulent Vehement hit the stage in style. Having never seen them but heard good things about this Sussex based act I wasn’t sure what to expect but got a flattening and energetic display from a quintet who seemed as though they had been unleashed from a bottle to act like possessed demons.

Ah black metal in all its savagery, it’s been a while and at first this strikes as suitably vile and nasty stuff. However, as things developed and nuances crept out their craft proved very expressive and atmospheric too, the intricate glistening guitar work particularly hitting the mark. ‘Burdens Root’ from last 2017 album ‘Ashes’ saw two vocalists and scything guitar going for it as well as some particularly brutal blasting. It’s lifted to lofty heights by both vocalists adopting some clean parts and there’s even a sudden snatch of the operatic injected into it all. It might be partly due to the smoking cloaked attire worn by one band member and the theatrical aspects of the set as well as the music itself but I was reminded a bit of a cross of bands such as Dodheimsgard and Code here which is certainly a good thing and this was a really enjoyable introduction to the band. I’m not sure why the bassist suddenly landed flat on his back just prior to the end and he seemed as surprised as the rest of us, still a quick recovery was made allowing them to gallop to the end with panache.

Blackened buccaneers Necronautical are another band who don’t instantly unveil their full scope. Their set starts off pretty barbarically with clattering drums and hoary vocals but hold up, what is going on stage left? Scarlet Soprano Sorcery behind an alter of candles and skulls is an addition courtesy of Victoria Harley who has joined the band tonight to add something a bit special to their battery. Spooky keyboard sound and rafter hitting opera sees some Gothic drama is added to the group’s otherwise punishing tumult and it certainly elevates things from the normal. The band also have a new album ‘Slain In The Spirit’ and unveil some material from it, a blackened thrasher which morphs into grand-guignol terror at the opera no less.

We hadn’t quite got the full effect of Victoria’s vocals as the band are on the loud and abrasive side but they down tools momentarily and move into an ambient flow allowing us to hear the full scope of her parts which are quite sublime and soaring. Still the essence of black metal is proffered next and it’s lashed out in a fast and furious fashion. There’s certainly quite a lot to explore as far as this lot are concerned and the short set was not enough to take it all in. Perhaps a revisit when they headline the Black Heart next February is in order. Although very fresh sounding there’s a strong element of nostalgia about Necronautical and if they had been around a couple of decades ago, they would have fitted incredibly well with others on the roster of Peaceville or Cacophonous Records.

A week ago Esoteric headlined The Cult Never Dies stage at Damnation Festival. They had the unenvious task of playing the same time as Carcass and I have no idea how many saw them due to this. Tonight, is somewhat thinner on the ground than it deserves to be although that made those of us still concerned about social distancing all the more comfortable. The band lined up on stage and one cannot help but notice the huge array of effects pedals that feet are going to be working during the set. With Esoteric, time, relativity and dimensions in space go out the window and as we await the heady miasma to come one of their shortest tracks ever ‘Antrim Yatra’ from latest album ‘A Pyrrhic Existence’ proves an effective synthesised intro piece for the madness about to come. This it does with a crunch and snarl from the drums, psychedelic bat like guitar work and Greg Chandler’s throaty roars and elongated yells. The band are bathed in cold blue lighting which has been particularly effective atmospherically all night and we shiver as the doom wraps itself around us like tentacles. Caught in the grip of it all it’s an enveloping cloak and some of the stranger sounds coming out the speakers have an experimental weirdness taking back to the Kraut Rock era as they mess with our heads. Seriously no drugs are needed, drink may well have been welcomed but we are truly led down tunnels and rabbit holes by the music itself.

Naturally songs are massive in length and titles are surplus to requirements (well that’s my excuse) as it is the mood and varying motions that are intrinsic to this performance which no doubt sees the band caught up and lost in it as much as the audience. At times its like they are jamming as a vortex opens into a black hole, it can be frightening to experience as a windy sound expands and threatens to swallow us whole. After 15 minutes or so this first labyrinthine track allows us to find our way out, the lights turn to green and the band pause to power up their machine for the next number, providing slight pause for breath. It lumbers out like a dinosaur, slowly exploring its space and discovering the world around it. It’s a mournful slow sermon, I recognise the synth tones running through it from new number ‘Rotting In Dereliction’ and that sense of familiarity is enough to ground as we sway along and things gradually build and guitar lines unspool. It’s really heady as they do and the death is delivered to the doom in a momentary contusion of jazz like drumming and dissonance but at heart this is a slow monolithic beast, consuming us from the inside out.

Live music still in many ways seems like a bit of a novelty especially for those of us still rarely venturing out. Esoteric are a band I have seen around 20 times over the years, each experience is different and the 5 or so numbers the band delivered in their allotted 75 minutes tonight seemed to have a greater meaning due to sharing them with others rather than in isolation and solitude tonight. Their uniqueness here was just the strange tonic needed and being transfixed for the duration it was easy to forget there is a world outside until we ventured back out somewhat bamboozled knowing all too well, we had witnessed something special this evening.

(Review and Photos Pete Woods)