OneMetal.com LIVE REVIEW:
Malefice, No Consequence + support live in Birmingham

The gig I’m writing about today marks the first time that I’ve frequented the new and improved Eddie’s venue in Birmingham (the original Edward’s No. 8 burned down a few years ago) – and I must say, I’m pretty impressed. The live sound was punchy and clear, the venue of a decent size, and the bartender didn’t need to be told what I wanted to drink after my first visit to the bar. So, suitably impressed by the locale, I settled in and waited for the bands to take the stage, hoping the performances would live up to the surroundings.

Hate The Faith

As much as it pains me to trash a young, new band, Hate The Faith were the undoubted weak link on this bill. The Birmingham-based metalcore quintet certainly had a lot of energy onstage, the vocalist using every inch of space and, a couple of times, jumping over the barricade and getting on the dance floor with the audience. Sadly, though, instrumentally the band was sloppy, frequently slipping out of time – something I wouldn’t have expected from a band who has played live as much as their MySpace page suggests. The music, too, was unremarkable – generic sub-Killswitch Engage riffage punctuated with stuttering breakdowns. Add to this the fact that their onstage patter betrayed a lack of confidence and a less-than-professional demeanour – whether it was vocalist Martyn’s near-apologetic song introductions or guitarist/vocalist Mike’s randomly-shouted ‘witticisms’, the group just came off as under-rehearsed, under-confident and out of place. There’s potential for growth here, to be sure – the band’s enthusiasm for playing live and energy onstage is undeniable – but if the band are to grow, I’d suggest they spend some time in the rehearsal space focusing less on attention-grabbing stage antics and more on writing more interesting material and playing it tightly.

Morgue Orgy

Next up were Birmingham-based sextet Morgue Orgy, a band who I had heard good things about from a few friends, but had never caught live personally. After the showing the band put on tonight, I’m going to be paying a lot more attention to them. The band play a blend of 80s thrash metal, 90s death metal and symphonic black metal with the occasional touch of hardcore punk, all wrapped up in a deliciously tongue-in-cheek, horror-obsessed vibe – kind of like Send More Paramedics crossed with Cradle of Filth, with Mortician’s lyrical bias thrown into the mix. The band are a joy to behold onstage – constantly gurning amusingly, flipping one another the bird between nimble-fingered riffs and solos, kicking one another up the arse, and generally looking like they’re having a ball playing, whilst seemingly never missing a note. And that’s not hyperbole – these guys are really, really tight. Whether they’re playing lightspeed solos, frantic black metal-esque blastbeat-laden tremolo picking or Unleashed-like classic death metal riffage, all the band are on stellar form. Special props to the diverse talents of the main vocalist, too – his seamless switches from guttural roars, blackened shrieks and forceful, near-operatic clean singing were particularly impressive.

Shirukume

Following Morgue Orgy were Shirukume, a progressive/hardcore quintet from Malvern – another unknown quantity to this reviewer, but again, an act that I’m going to be paying more attention to in future. The band recently signed to Lockjaw Records offshoot Mother Should Know, and on the basis of the show they gave, I can see why MSK wanted to snap them up – their angular, aggressive, Alexisonfire/Protest The Hero-inspired take on hardcore delivers a head-spinning array of jagged, lethal riffage balanced with a keen sense of dynamics. One moment the band are lunging for the jugular with screams, rapid-fire drumming and dissonant chords, the next they’re aurally massaging the listener with Isis-esque washes of melodic ambience, building to the next crescendo of shattered-glass aggression. Despite being exhausted from a long day of recording a video to promote their upcoming EP, the band managed to put on a commanding stage show, keeping the level of intensity high from beginning to end.

No Consequence

Basick Records seem to have a keen eye for the most promising technical/progressive UK metal bands, so it’s perhaps little surprise that No Consequence manage to put on such an electrifying show. Even before you take into consideration the fact that the drummer for this show isn’t their regular drummer (university duties meant he couldn’t make these dates) the band put on a stupendously tight performance. Given the challenging nature of their material, it would be easy to forgive a few note-flubs here and there – but no such thing happens. The band rampages through material from their critically-acclaimed debut ‘In The Shadow Of Gods’, tearing into frenetically-finger-tapped riffage, groove-laden breakdowns, throat-searing screams and more melodic interludes with equal aplomb. An excellent showing.

Malefice

Metal Blade Records signings Malefice are last to take the stage, and pretty much the only band of the night to manage to encourage the middling-sized crowd to actually come right in front of the stage. The Reading-based quintet launch into muscular, weighty renditions of their recorded material (including several cuts from their most recent release, Dawn Of Reprisal), pummelling the crowd with their tightness and in-your-face intensity. In comparison to the rest of this bill, while Malefice may not be as technically adept as No Consequence, or as musically diverse as Morgue Orgy, what they have in spades is a forceful physicality to their sound – a combination of groove, down-tuned aggression and skillful songcraft that really comes alive in the live environment, resulting in a hugely cathartic gig experience. After Malefice leave the stage, I gather my stuff and begin to massage my already-sore neck, pleased to have witnessed such a diverse, yet largely consistent-in-quality bill.

Hate The Faith’s MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/hatethefaith
Morgue Orgy’s MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/morgueorgy
Shirukume’s MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/shirukume
No Consequence’s MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/noconsequence
Malefice’s MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/malefice