This is the most New York show I’ve been to in a long while. It felt like one big local show. That’s what happens when all five bands come from here. That being said, this show started earlier, doors at the renovated Irving Plaza were at 6 pm. or 1800 for non-Americans. Every few steps you ran into someone you knew. I saw a lot of faces that this was their first show since you know what. It’s rare to see in metal shows nowadays but this show had a host! Bassist extraordinaire, Dan Lilker from Nuclear Assault and Brutal Truth fame. MCed the whole night.
Funeral Leech opened the night with their doomy death metal. A fine way to warm your neck up to headbanging. Remember, head banging is a marathon, not a sprint. Black Anvil blasted out their grooving black metal, I can’t wait for their new album. Horror and Gore Pioneers, Mortician took the stage. It’s always ear candy trying to remember what movie each sample came from. I’ll make it easy for ya. What’s is Zombie Apocalypse? It’s been years since I’ve seen them and they sounded just like I remember. They are consistent in style and tone. Bassist and vocalist Will Rahmer sounds just as good live as he does on record. They are never a disappointment.
After years of being back together, I finally got to see Demolition Hammer. It was nonstop head banging. I finally got to hear “44. Caliber Brain Surgery,” I was a happy kid. Their eight song set which was mostly from Epidemic of Violence with three tracks from Tortured Existence. Drummer Angel Cotte is a beast of a player while keeping true to late drummer Vinnie Daze, but also injecting his own style. I look forward to anything new this band will hopefully do.
Immolation are the best dressed band in Death Metal. With eleven albums under their belts this hometown show set covering seven of those albums. No complaints here. Leaning heavily on their new one, Acts of God, they take up half of this sixteen song set while the rest was classic goodness. There’s something about watching Ross Dolan sing, he just has way everything looking as if he’s spitting venom. This is damn near a career spanning set from Into the Everlasting fire all the way to Kingdom of Conspiracy, Kinda hard to nitpick the choices. I will have wish they added something from Failures for God and Providence, those are my personal favorite releases.
It felt like a Castle Heights Saturday up in there on this night. If you know, you know. This night was truly a nod to the old school.
WORDS BY OMAR CORDY