This issue sees me chat with two of my favourite bands at the moment. The doom Lords AHAB and the devils house band UNDEATH. It was a joy to talk to both groups and I hope you enjoy reading it.
I was lucky enough to catch the mighty CARCASS a few weeks ago for the first time in years and wow was it worth the wait!
Finally we've got a feature about the future of festival headliners, particularly Download. The article was written by my good friend and regular contributor Alex Newman.
I hope you enjoy the magazine.
D. Gilmore Out of step UK
If you will, cast your minds back to the year of 2003, The Nu-Metal revolution was in full swing, The Rock was the hottest product in the attitude era and red caps were f*cking unavoidable (cheers, Fred) but more importantly a new event in UK rock & metal was beginning to take launch in the ashes of the decade long defunct Monsters Of Rock festival. Due to its connection to file sharing and piracy the term “Download” was considered a dirty word by the music industry and as such the term was adopted as the soon to be famous name. Headlined by Iron Maiden and Audioslave (after a pull out from Limp Bizkit) and bearing host too a secret Metallica set on Sunday, Doningtons new household name hit the ground running from day one. Expanding to it’s three day format in 2005 the Download we all now know has officially taken form.
The headliner question
Download was a force unto itself in the 00s, becoming the major name in rock/alternative across the spectrum from pop-punk too Metal. Unlike it’s contemporaries the now middle-class circle jerk Glastonbury and Reading/Leeds which although dabbling, sometimes heavily even, into the grebo trade always treated the scene as a kind of after thought in comparison too it’s indie and more recently pop crowd. It almost seemed crazy at the time that what is a relatively niche scene could compete against such huge dynasties in the festival world. But regardless, Download flourished as a major name in the festival industry.
It’s safe to say that things haven’t changed much in regards too it’s status as the leading name in UKs rock/alternative scene but throughout the 2010s cracks have begun too show and people are rightfully concerned.
Let’s get the first elephant in the room addressed right now, headliners or rather yet the very big problem of the lack of future potential. Download is a festival that thrives off it’s headliner bookings, so much as looking at the line up posters will tell you as much, while under-cards are treated with consideration and constructed with care they are ultimately second fiddle to the “Main Event”, A festival with niche audiences (A-la Damnation and Bloodstock) can use the edition of cult acts too an advantage, major players like Download however not so much.
Obviously major festivals with a headliner based business model needs huge acts that boarder on “I was there” moments and within the rock community there are very obvious household names, Iron Maiden, Metallica, System of a Down, Slipknot are despite their decades long tenure can still justify the ticket cost that for a full weekend that can cost in the excess of £200+. But herein lies the very problem, where’s the new blood coming from? Who’s next too carry the torch? The inevitable passage of time obviously means that beloved legends won’t be around forever, even what is considered “Modern” acts such as Slipknot have their headline residencies stretching back as far as the 2000’s.
Undisputed against no one
Sometimes competition is a healthy thing, even just out of the ability too push people and things to constantly be better. But with that being said, Who is it exactly giving Download a run for it’s money?
Between the years 2009 and 2014, away in the distant fields of Knebworth park featured a certain festival that toured across Europe, a little event called Sonisphere. Bringing in a capacity of 40’000 to 60’000 while not as big as Download was more than sizeable enough to be solid competitor. The run up too the summer within the respective years that Sonisphere was active was a question of watching the line ups come together and seeing who had the better choice too offer, even some years with download arguably being beaten out. Needless too say there was no room for complacency, or at least there was until 2015 when it became sadly apparent that Sonisphere won’t be returning too Knebworth. Ever since then, who exactly is the main competitor for Download? While alternatives are available, such as Bloodstock, 2000Trees and Arctangent etc are available, it is barely enough to be a concern for Download. There’s nothing currently available to sway it’s main fan-base from buying a ticket as per routine every year.
And where there’s no reason to push yourself, then comes complacency.
Now you might say that’s just a part of the rock scene and it’s inability to move past its sense of nostalgia but not necessarily. Throughout the 00’s (with the exception possibly 06) A new band was given the chance at a headline slot Feeder in 05, My Chemical Romance in 07 and the now legendary Slipknot set in 09. But ever since 2010 there have only been two new acts given a shot at the top spot, Avenged Sevenfold and Biffy Clyro. Bring Me The Horizon are finally being given the headline spot they have quite frankly deserved for a long time but even now it’s arguably too late, The iron has for a long time been white hot yet it was never struck. Why.
Download must, and I mean MUST, bring in the next wave of headliners who ever they may be and strike when the hype is at fever pitch like they used too….or else.
The dog and the ol’ Republic Let’s be real here, in the grand scheme of things regarding the modern music industry,Heavy music will always be an outlier. The shouty, noisy glitch in the system inhabited by outsiders and quite frankly people like it that way. And as such, the biggest highlight of the festival season should reflect that but the ever more apparent influence of Festival Republic puts that into question.
For those who aren’t in the know Festival Republic, founded as the mean fiddler group, are the division of Live nation behind most of the major festivals in the UK, Reading & Leeds, Latitude you name it. In all fairness, in the early days, Live Nation/FR for the lack of a better term left the dog the f*ck alone. Download still had the air and identity of a place for the alternative, from its aesthetic to how it conducted itself, Live Nations involvement was nothing more than an necessary evil too bank roll it’s operation but recently it’s influence has been more and more blatant. The first hint is how traders and vendors increasingly price gouged and pushed aside for sponsors and corporate partners (Co-Op ring any bells?) rendering them less and less of an option too already strapped punters, the presence is unavoidable in the arena where straight away you’re flanked by advertisements from major companies and promotions for Reading & Leeds. And then there’s the negligence for upholding the site, inconsistency with lay outs and a lack of weather proofing which has been practically a running joke for years on end, only a company with a major monopoly can consider this acceptable and not worry about the effects too its reputation.
Less and less Download feels like the rebellious home of rock founded on belligerency and more of just another competent in Festival Republics portfolio.
So where does that leave us exactly? The answer is undeniably uneasy but far from hopeless. While things are outside of control like an insane ass weather system that seems too deny the laws our bloody Biosphere there are things that can and should be fixed. Namely the sense of complacency when managing the festival (for Christ sake maintain the site properly at least) regardless of an obvious competitor and more than anything Bring. In. New. Headliners. The torch needs to be passed on too new blood and that will, just like in the 00’s, involve risks having to be made but ultimately necessary ones.
Most of us have a special place in our heart for the big dog of Donnington and want it too thrive for many more years. But as of 2023 it’s land mark 20th anniversary we can’t deny the issues, here’s too the Monster of Rock fighting onto 30 years and beyond!
Deep in the darkest depths of the ocean something sleeps, waiting to devour all of us. Something horribly ancient and something dreadfully hungry. Thankfully AHAB are on hand to keep us up to date on all things deep, dark and wet. Their oceanic doom metal has inspired fans for almost seventeen years now and the bands latest release delves even deeper into that dark abyss. Band founder Daniel Droste recently spoke to me about the bands journey.
The band is a pillar of the Doom scene now, are there any bands fans of AHAB should give a listen too?
- Well there are many great bands within doom-metal not only AHAB fans should give a listen to. There are three bands I’d always recommend and that are amongst my favourites since many years. Patrick Walkers band Warning for example is a must have if you’re into traditional and melancholic doom metal. If you’re looking for dark psychedelic and really unique funeral doom you have to check out our friends of Esoteric whose vocalist Greg Chandler did guest vocals on the final track of our new record. Last but not least I’d like to recommend the record “nothing remains” by a German band called Carrion Mother. We had the pleasure to share the stage twice with the guys, telling us back then that they decided to start this band after attending one of our live shows. Great live band, excellent record with a killer sound!
Going right back to the beginning of the band, what inspired you to form AHAB?
I’ve always been a fan of the extremer genres within metal and mainly listened to grindcore death- and black metal bands during the nineties. The discovery of extremer forms of doom-metal, funeral-doom in particular and the curiousness to compose with its stylistic devices finally made me record a first song on my own. The idea of Chris to found a funeraldoom band to compose Melville’s “Moby Dick” and our decision to join forces finally ended in the band AHAB ,which was only planned as studio project initially.
What is it about the ocean and its depths the attracted you so much to use it as a core concept of the band?
- I've always been interested in nature, and I also have a weakness for fantasy or science-fiction related stuff such as books, movies or toys. Our oceans meld both spheres perfectly for me, beeing a biotope on the one hand but also food for imagination with its unexplored depths..... This mostly unknown world is not located in middle-earth, it just surrounds us on our planet and everyone already got in touch with it or has a relation to it.
I remeber me and my familiy passing our holidays at the baltic sea several times. Friends of my grand parents owned a house near the beach, and i really enjoyed these days we passed up there. I wasn't interested in swimming at all,collecting mussles and fossiles was my favourite activity. I immediately get triggered when i return to the coast nowadays.Its sight, sounds and smell, all these impressions are soothing and making me feel nostalgic at the same time.
Listening to any of your records bring images of The works of H G Lovecraft and Jules Vern. Are there any oceanic follore or legends that you particularly enjoy?
- The old Disney movie of “20000 leagues under the sea“ was my first contact with fantasy and oceanic related stories,really loved that movie as a kid back then. But it's not only legends i'm interested in, Wolfgang Petersen’s “Das Boot“ for example is one of my alltime favourite movies. In contrast to Jules Vernes Story the ocean is noting but a hostile environment in Petersens story, and he did a great job in capturing this claustrophobic atmosphere of beeing trapped in the depths.
Damnation festival will be an exclusive set for us in the UK. Many other artists have had to cancel tours due to cost increases. Has this effected AHAB at all?
Almost all of us have families nowadays, so we don’t play longer tours with AHAB, we also don’t have to cause we all still have regular jobs besides being musicians. We tried to play weekenders besides single shows so the financial risk was quite manageable as well as predictable. We actually only had to shift one show originally dated on late December to march. The presales weren't that good, we suppose that the date was just to close before Christmas and people didn’t want to risk catching the virus before meeting their families few days later. We could have done that show nevertheless cause a certain amount of tickets was sold....but playing shows in Stuttgart almost is a home game for us, so we knew that shifting that show would be the best option.
It's been something like 9 years since you last played the festival. Both the festival and the band has changed alot since then! How would you compare the band you were then to the one you ve become?
Besides getting older as individuals our music has grown as well. We started this band to compose music with the stylistic devices of Funeral Doom,and we more and more left that path with every album that followed. Our intention still is composing nautical novels, but our tools and our approach is different. We developed our own sound with the years by incorporating new elements to our music,now beeing able to use a wider range of stylistic devices to realise our vision.
Can you remember any intesting stories about your last trip playing the festival? There were so many different impressions and memories I have to our last appearance at Damnation. We had a very warm welcome by the audience although we haven’t played that many shows in the UK before, with a big crowd attending our concert. I’m really looking forward entering the stage again after all these years. I also remember a guy from Ireland trying to get into a conversation with me, but he had a very strong accent and was quite drunk so I only understood 20% of what he was trying to tell at most. Unfortunately I missed Latitudes gig I was really forward looking to, but besides this little downer it's been a great weekend with a happy end. I've been to England before twice, but this journey to Leeds was my first trip to England without missing my flight home!
The track "Old Thunder" from your first record is one of my favourites will you be incorporating old material into the set?
We always try to include at least one song of every album to our setlist , that's what i'd expect as a fan as well, and with four albums out we always managed to realize that somehow. Especially on bigger festivals with slots around 45min it wasn't always easy to fill that time properly. „The coral tombs“ is our fifth studio album now and i have to admit that it won't be possible to picture every AHAB album on shorter live slots, but we'll try to keep our setlist as diverse as possible on forthcoming shows as well nevertheless.
The new record has not been out long, but seems to have been received really well, how does it feel to get it out and heard?
The feedback we got from the media and the fans was really good. We once again entered the German charts with our new record, even on a higher position than with its predecessor. It was a hard piece of work once again and it feels great that we again succeeded in producing an album that is at least at the standard of its predecessors and satisfies our claims. We know that the music we play is not for the masses and we won’t get rich as musicians in a doom band…. but we got so much attention and positive feedback after being silent for all these years, it feels just great to know it was absolutely worth investing so much time and effort in creating “the coral tombs”.
Do you have a favourite track on the album?
I usually don’t listen to our albums for a while after mixing is done. I had to listen to the tracks quite often during that time in the studio and I just couldn’t avoid focussing on details instead of just enjoying the music. I’d say that the title track of the album was the one I enjoyed most as a listener after we finished mixing, but that will change for sure by time. We only performed 4 tracks of “the coral tombs” live so far, but as a performing musician it was “mobilis in mobili” I enjoyed the most on stage.
With the New record out, what's next for the band?
We'll be on the road this year to promote the record, mainly playing several festivals across europe . Besides our first appearance in the US playing Maryland death fest ,2024will our 20th anniversary with AHAB and i hope we'll be able to organize a special event to celebrate that properly.
My current musical obsession, New York natives “Undeath” are one of the best up and coming Slam/death metal artists in the world right now. Vocalist Alexander Jones took some time out if his busy schedule to talk about the bands upcoming shows, his influences and working with the Black Dahlia Murders Trevor Strnad.
What are the bands main musical influences? Other than music what inspires the band?
Beyond the obvious stuff like Cannibal Corpse, Cryptopsy, Autopsy, etc.., we draw a lot of inspiration from more traditional heavy metal bands like Judas Priest and Manowar. Bands like that tend to write huge hooks and place a large emphasis on engaging and memorable songwriting, which is also very important to us. Besides music, we’re inspired by tons of other stuff, but it mainly boils down to getting incredibly inebriated or incredibly caffeinated (or sometimes both!) and just seeing what happens.
Was there much of a Death/Slam scene in Rochester NY when the band was formed?
Not really, but that’s no diss against Rochester. There have been older bands like Order of the Dead and Kryst that play around Rochester intermittently, and those guys are all sick, but there wasn’t really much of a new, young scene when we started. Much love to all the Western New York bands that paved the way!
I understand the band is playing this years sold out Download Festival here in the UK. Is it hard to connect with such a big crowd over say, an intimate club show?
You know, I definitely used to struggle with that a little bit. We played Psycho Las Vegas last summer to like 2,500 or so people and at the time that was definitely the biggest crowd we had ever played to. I think it still is, to be honest. But I was trying to do the same banter and crowd work stuff that I would typically do in a smaller club show and it just wasn’t hitting the same way. That was a big learning experience. After that set I kind of had Bruce Dickinson from the old MTV
Heavy Metal documentary from the 00s talking in the back of my head, saying that you have to perform to the back of the room when you’re playing for crowds that size. Ever since then I feel way more confident!
Other than Download, the band is playing Manchester’s Damnation festival later this year. The festival is home to a more extreme crowd, are you looking forward to it?
Absolutely! I can’t wait. Damnation is one of those fests I’ve always admired from afar as a fan so the fact that Undeath gets to play it alongside legends like Electric Wizard and Sigh is huge to all of us.
How you spend your time between shows on tour? Do you get to see much of the places you play?
It kind of depends on the tour. When we’re doing a support tour and we’re in a van chasing busses all day, because that’s who the tour was routed for, we tend to not really get a ton of time to explore. But when we’re touring more on our terms, say on a headliner or something that we’ve put together ourselves, we definitely get to be a little bit more comfortable and see more of the cities we play. We all tend to like to do different things, though. Some of the guys prefer just decompressing at the venue, others like finding a cool bar nearby, and personally I’m into just walking around aimlessly and taking in the sights.
Have you checked out the bill? If so are there any bands you ll be checking out on the day?
It’s so stacked. Besides the ones I listed above, I can’t wait to see Enslaved, Ahab, and Downfall of Gaia for the first time, as well as Amena and Rotten Sound for the first time in a long time!
Is there any news on when Undeath will be back in the studio?
Soon! Perhaps sooner than you’d think!
I understand in the past the band worked with the legendary Trevor Strnad of the Black Dahlia Murder. How was working with him? Do you have any memories of that experience you could share?
It was amazing. Trevor was the man. He was one of the first big public champions of our band and even came out to see us play in Brooklyn at like our third or fourth show ever. We just had a demo to our name and no real “buzz” to speak of but he was still there, front row, supporting us wholeheartedly. That meant the world to us. When we asked him if he’d feature on the title track to “Lesions of a Different Kind” we were totally expecting him to be too busy but he got back to us right away, said he’d love to do it, and laid down the part not too long after that. I remember I was getting pizza with my fiancé (then girlfriend) when he sent us the files and I almost choked haha. Rest in Peace, brother! We love you!
What can fans and newcomers alike expect from an Undeath show?
High energy, tons of crowd involvement, lots of stagediving/crowd surfing/moshing and a general party atmosphere that we try to bring to every single show.
CATTLE DECAPITATION – TERRASITE
This, is as straight forward a metal record as you will hear this year. The band have produced a record as blunt force as a sledgehammer to the skull and it leaves you feeling as you were at the bottom of a multi car pile up.
As always with this band, the musicianship is flawless as is the production with each song complimenting the next. Normally I'd try to think of something witty to say or an uncomfortable metaphor to drive my point home with but I find myself simply in love with this awesome album.
Album of the year contender without a doubt.
JESUS PIECE - ....SO UNKOWN
Sounding like a wasps nest that's been repeatedly hit with a metal pole and as abrasive as sandpaper being pulled along your ballsack “....So Unknown” is a fucking beast of a release.
The album mixes hardcore and deathcore with the tiniest hint of korns off key guitar work Woven into the mix. This adds another dimension to the otherwise rather weighty delivery on each of these great tracks. Think Malevolence with a sharper edge.
These songs will undoubtedly have moshpits circling venues for some time to come. I can't wait to witness it for myself.
OVERKILL - SCORCHED
If you look up the word "consistent" in the dictionary you ll find a picture of New Jersey's Overkill. Well, you won't but if there was any Justice in the world you would. The groups latest record is a guitar driven, old school metal monster. It delivers everything you would expect from a band a whopping thirty eight years into their career. To create an album featuring this much speed and drive at this point is astonishing if not wholly unexpected. Fans of the band have long known their heroes to excel and this latest offering is no different.
Frozen Soul- Glacial Domination
Frost worshipping Texans Frozen Soul have become an underground revolution in death metal over the last year or two. Fresh off supporting Dying Fetus on the UK leg of their tour the band have honed their skills to a fine point. This growth is evident throughout the eleven tracks that make up "Glacial Domination".
For those of you that are unaware, think Bolt Thrower playing on the set of John Carpenters "The Thing". This record also sees collaborations with Dying Fetus' John Gallagher and Triviums Matt Heafy both metal royalty in their own right. With friends like these the bands pedigree is assured. The future looks bright indeed for these glacial warrior's.
Ghost - Pantomime
Firstly let me say this, I love Ghost, I've been there since the first album was featured in Metal Hammers "subterranean" feature many years ago.
That being said the dick of inspiration is rather limp with this release. Leaving me just enough change for a cab home. The first track "See no Evil" seems like it was included for its title only, coming across as throw away and unnecessary. Next up "Jesus he knows me" could have easily been written by Tobias and Co. This is probably one of the highlights of this short EP. "Hangin Round" originally by the Stranglers is another nice if rather uninspired track. Second to last track Iron Maidens classic "Phantom of the Opera" makes me sad. The band have neglected to put their own stamp on the song and instead copied it note for note. What a shame. Finally Tina Turners "We don't need another hero" is a better effort and will work into Ghosts live show nicely.
Overall this whole EP is unnecessary and a little forced. Avoid unless you are a die hard fan.
FROGLORD – SONS OF FROGLORD
Ever Since Black Sabbath wrote a song about a wizard in 1970 those with one foot in the world of weird have craved more songs that will take you on a day trip from reality. One such group that worship at this particular altar are our amphibious overlords Froglord. The band are back and have brought us their latest glimpse into the void with new record, 'Sons of Froglord'.
This time around the band have considerably widened their musical reach and have incorporated a more streamlined bluesy guitar sound, more Sabbath and St Vitus than ever before. I, for one am most definitely here for it. Furthermore, the band are pushing the boundaries with our expectations on what a "Stoner" band should be. This is particularly evident on the catchy track "Hold on". Like an empty sealant gun, this record has no filler and is a joy throughout.
Froglord have always been an oddity and with this release they have further tapped into the weird and mystic sounds, druid mysteries and enigmatic lore of our froggy overlords. Long may it continue.
CARCASS with Unto Others and Conjurer
Wednesday 7th June 2023 Bristol Exchange
Carcass have been forging a path of death metal destruction for nearly thirty years. For the last few of those gore soaked years the band have enjoyed something of a resurgence in popularity. Their last few records have been well received within the community and the pioneers of death metal are arguably better now than they ever have been. For me tonight has been a long time coming having last seen the band back in 2015 and the anticipation is palpable.
Kicking the night off progressive metallers Conjurer start well with their Meshuggah esq riffs and bowel emptying Rhythm section. However before long one track bleeds into another and the merch table is calling.
Up next Unto Others provide a welcome change of pace. Their gothic metal is delightfully macabre and memorable. Looking like Joey Ramone and Peter Steel had a particularly hairy baby, frontman Gabriel Franco's voice is pitch perfect and somehow better live than on record.
Carcass perform songs from (almost) every album in their long history as a band. Each song is more pummelling than the last and even older material sounds like it could have been recorded yesterday. Set highlights are frequent including "Rotting in the free world" and opener "Buried Dreams". Carcass have once again cemented their place in history as one of Metals most important and influential bands. See you on the next tour lads.
