Hammerfest III

So, here's my first review and I'm going off at the deep end, Hammerfest III in Prestatyn, North Wales. We'd been looking forward to this for months even though the line up was, well, a bit uneven shall we say. Anyhow, this is how it panned out for us.............

THURSDAY


So, we roll up on the Thursday for the pre-fest party, what with us having gone VIP and all, (ahem...). So crappy dinner scoffed we make our way to stage two for MORDECAI. Now, I wasn't familiar with this lot before I clapped eyes on them, but was more than pleasantly surprised. Mordecai are a South London 4 piece holding ground somewhere between Kyuss and Swervedriver but are a good deal more than the product of their influences and their sun blanched brand of psychedelics gets proceedings off to a storming start. We approve.

Next up are JAGUAR, yes that Jaguar. Unbelievably they are still going, they were crap in 1979 and they haven't improved with age. We didn't last more than two songs of out of tune, sub Spinal Tap wailing before we headed to the pub. Quite why these old NWOBHM bands keep going is beyond me, but there still seems to be an audience for them, (apparently the equally turgid BLITZKRIEG managed a full room at 1.30am the next day!)

ATTICA RAGE are up next, in the form of Attica Uncovered and deliver a set of classic covers. All good fun, but more on the Atticas later.

We wander over and watch tribute act METALICA UK for three songs until we remember that Metalica are shit and go to bed instead.

FRIDAY


After a quick trip into the mean streets of Prestatyn for food, booze and, er, ballet pumps, we head to Stage 2 to catch IDIOM. The obvious reference point here are Rage Against the Machine and I got the impression that Idiom would take that as a compliment. The band are closely associated with Hammerfest favourites Skindred and share their funk tinged take on the whole rap-metal malarkey. Not the most original thing I've ever seen, but they get the small crowd bouncing if nothing else. Anyway, it's always a good laugh to watch nerdy white boy metallers trying to do rap dancing!

And so the Queen Vic pub for ARCEYE. Arceye describe themselves as a Death/Thrash crossover, but that hardly does them justice. True, there's no shortage of crushing riffs, but there's a degree of subtlety in Arceye's attack with plentiful use of interesting harmonics and, dare I say it, an element of progression in the song structures? Anyway, one to watch for sure.

Next up, the stupidly named FEED THE RHINO. With a name like that I was expecting a novelty act, which Feed The Rhino are most certainly not, with a thundering barrage of guitar cut through with atmospherics they play a well received set which is difficult to pigeonhole. As much Big Black as Black Sabbath, one of the more interesting acts of the weekend. Need to change that name though.

BREED 77 take the stage next and things start to get seriously weird. Breed 77 are a Flamenco metal band based in Gibraltar. I'll say that again; Flamenco. Metal. Band. Fair play though, they do exactly what it says on the tin. They deliver a bruising set of melodic riffs intercut with traditional Spanish guitar. Sounds like it would never work, but by jingo it does! It's testament to their quality that although they started with a small crowd, by the time they got round to their cover of The Cranberries 'Zombie', (told you it was weird), the entire room is packed and bouncing like crazy. So good Emma bought the hoodie, high praise indeed.

Time for tea and we return for the hotly tipped SYLOSIS fronting their new  'Edge of the Earth' LP. Sylosis have been through some changes of late, losing vocalist Jamie Graham with guitarist  Josh Middleton stepping up to the mic to replace him. Sadly, they never really got going on the night, serving up solid slabs of melodeath, which although interesting in parts never really grab the crowd, or me for that matter. Onwards........

Oh shit, it's WOLF. Now, I don't mind a bit of power metal, as long as it's BIG and STUPID, (I'm looking at you Rhapsody of Fire and Sonata Artica), but Wolf are just stupid. I've never understood the enduring popularity of this lot, but to me it's just dull, albeit delivered with enormous enthusiasm. The crowd goes wild. We go for a pint.

Huzzah! It's TURISAS, who sadly are a couple of members light for this show, not that you would have noticed as they play a blinder. The thing is with Turisas is that you know exactly what you are going to get, it's booze fueled roaralongs all the way and their folk metal stomp is eaten up by the red painted masses. Oh, and they did 'Rasputin' so I went off happy.

Dear MY RUIN, don't play a festival date at the end of a UK tour and wonder why you are playing to an empty room. Still, there was no no stopping Tairrie B, who despite struggling with her voice, (the band were forced to cancel a date earlier in the week), spent the set perched on the rail spitting venom. I had high hopes for My Ruin and wasn't disappointed with the self styled 'Coldest bitch in metal'. We retire to our lodgings with ringing ears and happy hearts.

SATURDAY


French Black Metallers SVART CROWN kick off Saturday's proceedings and defy the unseasonably sunny afternoon with a punishing set of deep Satanic unpleasantness, which makes us all jolly happy indeed. Shame that not many got to see them really as they were well worth the effort, although not an easy listen by any measure. Further investigation is ongoing......................

We'd been looking forward to seeing Taiwan's CHTHONIC but weren't prepared for what we got. Wave after wave of swirling Black Metal intertwined with Oriental flute and erhu (One stringed violin thingy). Chthonic were both menacing and delicate and for me, the band of the festival. I'm struggling to describe them actually, just go and buy 'Mirror of Retribution' Totally unique.

On the main stage ATTICA RAGE are celebrating the launch of their 'Road Dog' album. Attica are a biker band so they sound like Motorhead, so much so they actually play 'Motorhead' by, well by Hawkwind actually but you take my point. It's hard to dislike this bunch as the whole thing is delivered with a big dumb grin and it's all good clean fun. Fire breathing girls in their pants are also good too. Cheers.

I had high hopes for GRAND MAGUS and by and large they deliver, despite some highly irritating sound problems. We nearly didn't get to see them at all due to their drummer being seriously ill and it was only due to Entombed's Olle Dahlstedt stepping in that the gig went ahead. Anyhoo, GM's set of doomy metal brings to mind a more melodic Electric Wizard, it's just a shame that technical problems ballsed it up a bit.

Up next on the main stage were Swedish Death Metal legends ENTOMBED, playing exclusively from their seminal early albums. What struck me most is how fresh it all sounded, most of this stuff was 20 years old but sounded like it was written yesterday. This was classic death metal delivered at a stupidly high volume, which is just as it should be. Satan is real. Hooray!

SATYRICON have come a long way from their raw Black Metal origins and now peddle a grim version of melodic metal peppered with blastbeats. This is dark stuff indeed and the band whip through what was essentially a greatest hits set, "Diabolical, Now!" and "King" sending the crowd doolally in particular. For all their relentless blackness I always struggle with Satyricon live because the singer Satyr reminds me so much of Gavin out of Gavin and Stacey. 'Alright Lucifer? What's occurrin'?'

And so to SABATON. Ahh, Sabaton, we bloody love Sabaton and they don't let us down tonight despite having a drummer who only played the songs for the first time the day before and having a replacement guitarist, (Whatshisface out of Dragonforce). Sabaton bought the house down with song after song being roared to the rafters by a packed out main stage. It's noticeable that everytime we see this lot the crowd gets larger and I think 2011 holds far bigger and better things for Sabaton. Bloody great stuff.

So there you have it, make of it what you will, or not. Whatever.

Welcome!

Welcome to Raise Those Horns!, a blog that basically reviews metal gigs that me and my illustrious wife have got ourselves to. You probably don't care what I think, but I don't care that you don't care! It's my internet and I'll cry if I want to.....................