Sunday, 8 December 2024

A View From The Back Of The Room: Goat Major (Live Review By Matt Bladen)

Goat Major, Thrakian & Risperidrone, Fuel Rock Club, 01.12.24

Another Sunday night of riffs at Fuel Rock Club and a case of déjà vu all over again with the opening act of the night.

7 days ago in the very same spot I'd seen Risperidrone (8) fight to be heard a little due to some technical hitches, it made them disjointed but still enjoyable. With a brilliant sound and real slickness to their set this Sunday sermon was night and day compared to the last.

The riffs had more biting, distorted clarity, that fat bass sound was booming, showcasing the little technical flourishes, the drums kicking a hole into your chest while the vocals were much higher in the mix showcasing Risperidrone as the band that wowed people during 2024's M2TM.

What a difference a week makes for this doom/sludge four piece, this is the Risperidrone that make it hard for any band to follow.

The band that did follow though was the primal force that is Thrakian (9), there's a mystical quality to what they do on stage, it's raw, aggressive almost caveman-esque, from throttling the guitar to the ear bleeding sludge riffs, Thrakian bring primeval rumbling to any show.

Imbued by perfect sound again, the cavernous rhythm guitars and bass lines created a wall of deafening sound behind the shifting drumbeats, moments of clarity and beauty coming from the clean guitar breaks and solos, beautiful though fleeting as we crash back to a volatile earth.

Thrakian made the M2TM final in 2024 despite being only a year old, since then every show they evolve into a more ferocious brooding beast.

No time for brooding with tonight's headliners though, West Wales Sabbath worship was on the menu when trio Goat Major (8) closed the evening. Again working with perfect sound, the stripped back fuzz heavy riffs from the Major rumbled through Fuel with a driving fury. Jammie Arnold (guitar), Simon Bonwick (drums) and Tom Shortt (bass/vocals) are a band well into their groove now, I've watched them grow and they've always hit the stage with a professionalism that's hidden behind a wild and louche approach.

Jammie's guitars grind with Iommi-esque, blues distortion as Simon's drums thunder at the back of Fuels stage, up front Tom not only plays a bass full of fuzz but his shouts are reverbed to make it part Electric Wizard, part Motorhead. Storming through a set of tracks from their Ripple Music debut album Ritual, this occult doom was the ideal way to say goodbye to the holiest of days, a pagan ritual.

The Goat Major marches to: The Gryphon, Helgi's, Radio City Social and Dark Horse Moseley. If it's anything like Fuel on Sunday, expect doom of the highest order.

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