Sunday Day 3

The final day and nine more cool bands to watch started with Thy Dying Light on a much cooler day than the previous two.

Their stripped back primal black metal possessed a dirty dissonant feel as they opened with ‘Under The Horns’ and followed it with ‘Cold In Death’ with the latter harnessing a dread like ethos and a very catchy riff. Decked out in corpse paint suited their brand of black metal as they blasted into ‘Impaler’ continuing the songs from the self-titled album.

Noticeably I felt the band was the first to play this kind of lofi black metal as ‘Fist Of Satan’ possessed some Hellhammer like toning and riffing I really appreciated.

Their namesake tune was linked with the closing Bathory cover of ‘Satan My Master’, which was a pretty obscure tune to cover, but very welcome as people thoroughly enjoyed their set, as did I.

I’ve seen Trivax a few times now over the years and have always been impressed by their blackened death bludgeoning and here was no different as they bellowed we are Trivax and blasted any signs of a hangover into the stratosphere.

At times the speed was unbelievable, but highly controlled as their blurring tirade terrorized the crowd as it appeared one of the Andracca guys was assisting the band with the set.

‘Into The Void’ created some interaction with the crowd as they asked for some fist pumps which they did of course and even if their songs had a similarity about them there was no denying the inexorable assault they subjected us to.

It has been some years since I had seen Old Corpse Road but have always appreciated their live shows due to the unique style of black metal they play. It was noticeable that the main vocalist and bassist looked to be different to the norm as the band started on time.

The sound was poor if I’m honest, it lacked depth, with the guitar work barely permeating the mix above a low key piercing which was a pity since the small number of songs they played suffered as a result though the performance itself was fine.

OCR have always had a piercing shrillness you either love or loathe as their gradations were executed with assurance especially with multipronged vocal attack the band always uses, but particularly the harmony styling they deployed in the latter half of their short set.

Due to unforeseen circumstances the last time I tried to see Tableau Mort was thwarted so I was looking forward to seeing the band here for the first time.

Decked out in vestments, cassocks or whatever type of religious regalia it was the band was very visual as an intro of a baby crying started their set. As the intro dissolved we were left with an opener that focused on atmosphere utilising a build-up feel with periodic blast phases.

‘Visio In Somniis’ followed the opener and there was a distinct increase in aggression due to the blasting but meshed with some twisted vocals I found enthralling. A doublet of ‘Mother’s Promise’ and ‘Blood Echoes’ mingled with some chat I couldn’t work out as the former was extremely catchy and the latter returned to a more atmospheric foundation.

We got some interaction after they had played ‘Fall Of Man’ with a request for some shouts of hey which the crowd did and carved out a new set of admirers after playing their set.

For some reason the gaps between the bands was longer than the other two days overall and I couldn’t pin down why as the gap was now 30 minutes giving Abduction plenty of time to set up. Like all the times I’ve seen this UK black metal act they slayed the crowd with their minimal acerbic assault bathed in that constant red light that bands or the lighting person favoured.

They were colossally intense and relentlessly hostile as the band was suitably garbed up and proceeded to annihilate the crowd with savage black metal. They retained an impetus that few bands had as the epic ‘Plutonian Gate’ had some ambient backing before the slower far creepier aura spliced with riff breaks and the expected blasting segments.

Interaction was minimal, as it always is with Abduction preferring a passionless ethos as their set was peppered with a dense obliteration few matched over the weekend.

Most French black metal bands are unique in their own way above and beyond the rest of the world so I was looking forward to Cenotaphe very much. The band started on time and with very little if any fanfare kicked their set off with ‘Ce Qui Souffre, Ce Qui Suinte’ which had plenty of the primal rawness I appreciated and was similar to acts such as Sinmara or Svartidauði due to the sheer inhumanity of their primitive onslaught.

What the French band did lack over those two bands was atmosphere which may have been the purpose but it made their set seem soulless and lacking individuality despite the embittered darkness of songs like ‘Aspic’ and ‘Centaures’.

However they were an absolute hurricane of brutality, blasting through their set with remorseless power that had me thinking about all the very early black metal of the late 80s and early 90s. The crowd certainly enjoyed them but I was left a little indifferent though I do intend to listen to their stuff later at some point as I enjoyed what I heard.

Like other UK black metal bands such as Abduction or Ante-Inferno, Ninkharsag play regularly and this gig was my sixth time seeing the band and during that time they too have gone from strength to strength becoming a tour de force in the UK scene.

They started a bit late, due to technical issues I assume, which I forgave once the intro started up and they aired ‘Under The Dead Of Night’ with blue light raining down. Said tech issues were nullified by the time the tune finished and the pervasive riff to ‘The Dread March Of Solemn Gods’ blasted in with an accompanying scream.

A bridging piece was heard before ‘Lunar Hex; The Art Of Mighty Lycanthropy’ started as the drum work was enhancing the potency and toxicity of the vocals and riffs. Their 50 minute set was passing very quickly and soon the last couple of songs were upon us that began with ‘Spectres Of The Ancient World’ and ended with ‘Discipline Through Black Mastery’ with both tunes being warp speed assaults matched only by Abduction on the day.

I was very much looking forward to Czech Republic’s Inferno and their indecipherable logo or emblem that adorned the screens left and right of the stage. The band used videos to enhance their show and as the venue lights dimmed an intro started with nobody on stage as it had been announced earlier that day that next year’s festival will move to the much bigger room within the same complex. The constant imagery alongside the droning intro seemed to go nowhere and when the band appeared on stage amidst some tribal like rhythms I couldn’t really tell if it was backing track or being played.

I knew the band was pretty avant-garde within black metal but I honestly expected something a bit more feral than the soundscaping we were subjected to, so much so clearly people weren’t that impressed and started walking away. I stuck it out, for a while anyway, as the band had some similarities to Wyrdstæf or Heilung minus any distinct tunes you could identify with as one of my companions said it was very arty farty which I agreed with as their blurring noise produced a cacophonic dissonance that was uncomfortable to listen to. Their ritualistic approach was very different for the festival as a whole and I am certainly glad I got to see the band for the first time on their UK debut.

With chants and repeating sections I would certainly like this to listen to at home but here it felt a little flat and too nondescript to stand up to what had preceded it as people clearly weren’t impressed and I too had itchy feet.

With a fairly long drive back home and work the next day it was time for me to venture off into darkness and drive home which took a lot less time than coming to the festival and kindly Giz reviewed Swiss headliners Bølzer (since 2019 they have changed from Bölzer it appears). The first Fortress was a resounding success for all that attended, in a great venue with a very friendly knowledgeable set of fans in attendance as the festival will be a two day event next year and not three in the bigger room as I have mentioned. (MH)

So, with logistics requiring an early exit by my esteemed colleague, it is down to me to chronicle the closing act. I have to apologise up front as my musical relationship with Bølzer is in its very early stages so you are not going to get a set list song by song review here. I was, however, very intrigued to see how their continued evolution of their sound on record was translated live. It wasn’t initially what I was expecting. What happened has to be mentioned. After failing to get a sound KzR was remotely content with within their allotted 30 minutes change over, they spent an additional 30 minutes setting up. An hour with that interminable tape throbbing was difficult for the crowd, as was the wait. Some left. The crowd was getting distinctly antsy, understandably, and there were mutters and shuffling. I will draw a veil over that as nothing should distract from the fact this debut Fortress was an unmitigated, glorious success on all fronts.

Bølzer finally hit the stage to a nice reception and still a very good crowd. The hazy blue lighting was sublime and the barely controlled chaos and brutal riffs that hit like a storm cloud was breath-taking. To a first time listener this is almost like an intense, esoteric black metal version of High On Fire; superbly channelled, gritty and massively heavy riffs with a hint of groove behind the fire. KzR was clearly channelling fury and the sound followed. It was a flawless opening.

And then they walked off and the shout from the crowd of “Oh dear…” clearly was not well received. Still it was actually a brief pause, a few minor minutes no more and they came back and hit the ground running like a grizzly on cocaine. This was blistering. Excellent sound, a huge beatdown of drums from HzR and the notion that this was just two men wrestling this primal beast was quite mind blowing. As the melody rose, the clean vocals and cleaner guitar touches blossoming out of the blast it became more focussed for me and even more impressive. The version of ‘Hero’ was just a great blend of blind rage and razor sharp strikes. There is something almost, dare I say it, brutal rock and roll beneath this howling beast and black metal blast; a grip on the guitar that wrangles the chaos with a deep well of talent and influences. The drumming was ferocious throughout and so solid, so anchored. And the vocals? The roar was bearlike but the cleaner ones just tore through your spirit at times. Amazing.

The audience were warm, respectful and appreciative; some, probably long-time fans, clearly were loving it, fists raised high and shouting, and the rhythmic nodding of the rest in the teeth of this tempest was nice to see. Bølzer are very difficult to penetrate with little experience but their ferocity certainly is not, nor is the virtuosity of their musicianship. Yes, I flagged badly, I could see some others did too but again that core audience were in their element. After 50 odd minutes the storm abated. The applause was again appreciative whilst never reaching the heights of, say, the violent waves of the response to Abduction, they got a good send off.

Lights up, and we wandered out to trek up the hill to wherever and wondered how to adjust to the world outside after three immense days at a staggeringly good first Fortress.

Thank you Reaper, bands and fans for being so bloody awesome, and so friendly. I will be back, absolutely. (Giz)

Review: Martin Harris & Giz
Photos: Andy Pountney (@shot_in_the_dark_photography2)

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