A warm but rainy Sunday evening sees some eager prog and tech metal fans queue up early, eagerly awaiting entry to the well established, 350 cap ‘Globe’ in Cardiff.
Malum Sky (7) start the evening off with their mix of classic and contemporary prog metal. With 100 people through the door at this point means at first, the crowd is a little still but as the band power through their riff catalogue, reminding me of Dream Theater, Gojira, Tool and Textures, all at the same time, the crowd warms up to them as their rather outgoing front man boogies through the powerful instrumental sections. They’re the kind of band a young metal fan could take their dad to and he’d also enjoy them.
There’s no denying the band are skilled musicians but at times, things seem a little forced and don’t always flow. The more mainstream members of the crowd struggle to follow some parts of songs but as more people flood in from the rain, the room warms up and starts to move in and out of time with the band. Their applause at the end of the set is more than any local metal band the venue has seen for a long time. Overall, Malum Sky perform a technically proficient set with an intriguing front man making up for the rest of the band’s static (at times) stage presence while they nail their hard parts.
Up next, Loathe (9) set up with a good portion of the crowd eager for them to start. Sound checking and tech-checking in the dark, the mysterious five piece prepare themselves. Then it starts. Eerie sounds and visuals, dense grooves and dark melodies. The room instantly begins to move to their perfect blend of hardcore, deathcore and metalcore. Grooves, tempos and time signatures change with ease and the band are clearly having fun, being able to play the difficult material almost album perfect. As the set continues, pits start and the frontman, Kadeem France, has the crowd in his hands as they obey his every word. The 4 piece rhythm section beside and behind him power through the thickest sounding riffs to emotional soundscapes in what can only be described as an attack on all the senses. But one that leaves you wondering how and wanting more. However, despite all of the above, the band are humble. Thankful to be in the room with us all and thankful to the opener and headliner for helping them put together a fantastic evening so far.
The room clears down for cool down and cigarette breaks as Loathe load out and Sikth (9) load in. There’s no air of mystery surrounding Sikth. The crowd start to come back in and know exactly what they’re about to get. The band don’t shy away from testing their gear as the drummer, Dan Foord, gives the OK and the house lights start to dim. However, as the band kick off with their first song, it’s apparent they’re a man down. Guitarist ‘Pin’ is not with them and at first, you can really tell.
Up next, Loathe (9) set up with a good portion of the crowd eager for them to start. Sound checking and tech-checking in the dark, the mysterious five piece prepare themselves. Then it starts. Eerie sounds and visuals, dense grooves and dark melodies. The room instantly begins to move to their perfect blend of hardcore, deathcore and metalcore. Grooves, tempos and time signatures change with ease and the band are clearly having fun, being able to play the difficult material almost album perfect. As the set continues, pits start and the frontman, Kadeem France, has the crowd in his hands as they obey his every word. The 4 piece rhythm section beside and behind him power through the thickest sounding riffs to emotional soundscapes in what can only be described as an attack on all the senses. But one that leaves you wondering how and wanting more. However, despite all of the above, the band are humble. Thankful to be in the room with us all and thankful to the opener and headliner for helping them put together a fantastic evening so far.
The room clears down for cool down and cigarette breaks as Loathe load out and Sikth (9) load in. There’s no air of mystery surrounding Sikth. The crowd start to come back in and know exactly what they’re about to get. The band don’t shy away from testing their gear as the drummer, Dan Foord, gives the OK and the house lights start to dim. However, as the band kick off with their first song, it’s apparent they’re a man down. Guitarist ‘Pin’ is not with them and at first, you can really tell.
The band muddle through their first song to an overwhelming response. Clearly happy to be back after such a long time the dual front man approach is one of the few that works well as they hype the crowd up for more of their back catalogue. By the 4th track, the band’s sound finally tears through you. You’re hearing it exactly as it’s intended. Bass through your chest, tapping and dissonance over the top of shrieks and shrills and crushing riffs emphasising just how heavy they are, and all this while a man down. The crowd enjoys the good mix of old and recent material moshing to almost every song, singing along where they can and headbanging, air guitaring or just smiling in disbelief at the tightness of the band.
The band were ahead of their time when they released their first album 15 years ago. Yet there were people there that would have only discovered them this year and as such the crowd varies from 16-45 but this doesn’t stop everyone in the room coming together and appreciating a band truly at the top of their game. The crowd were left in disbelief at the range of textures throughout their set, playing favourites and a couple we just didn’t expect but ultimately how they didn’t disappoint in performance, despite being one of the most technical bands out there.
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