Spread across the three adjoining Academy venues in deepest, darkest Birmingham, the third annual HRH Metal indoor fest is well into its second day when I finally arrive (a long story involving illness and unforeseen hospitals), and gathering pace on the main stage with Nottingham stoner trio Witch Tripper. The band’s beer-fuelled, Black Sabbath inspired riffery capturing the attention of a respectably sized early evening audience.
The world of Extreme Metal (at least in the UK) experiences a strange phenomena whenever Cradle of Filth prepare to release a new album. Thousands of inexplicably angry internet voices all join in unison with pre-prepared mantras of, “just another watered down Cradle album”, “they’ve been shit since Principle/Dusk/Cruelty/Midian” (delete as applicable), and “Dani sounds fucking terrible these days”. Sometimes after only hearing one song, or on occasion, none at all.Continue reading
There used to be a time when side projects and “super-groups” were a big no-no in Metal. You had your band, you knew your place, and that’s where you stayed or else. Nowadays of course, you can’t walk down to the shops without another twenty bands trading members and forming new acts in the time it takes to buy a pint of milk and a cucumber sandwich.Continue reading