Chris Earl
Proudly announcing themselves from Cork, the birthplace of Cillian Murphy (And also Dermot Kennedy but they didn’t want to talk about that) God Alone opened the show in bewildering fashion. Beginning the night playing to about four people, they give 150% to make sure that all four feel suitably wowed and threatened by their intense performance. Adorned in some of the worst yet oddly appealing shirts you’ve ever seen, what followed was a barrage of guitar wizardry and aural terror. Sounding like Muse if Matt Bellamy did meth and listened to nothing but early Mr Bungle and Talking Heads in a carnival, they persevere through technical difficulties to blow the gradually increasing crowd away. Featuring some Kung Fu, dry Cork stage banter and a drummer who went to the bar during the aforementioned tech issues to get a beer, they imprint themselves on all watching by sheer force of will alone.
Swiss hardcore/noise/punk/all of the above quartet Coilguns are a different proposition to the openers. Vocalist Louis Jucker is a welcoming, if slightly intoxicated man who’s effortless continental charm wins the crowd over inbetween energetic, crushing tracks. A mix of Black Peaks and The Chariot, tracks such as ‘Generic Skincare’ show the band at their most ferocious and socially conscious. Louis spends some of the set lying down, on the drumkit and by the end, he’s scaling the walls of the basement venue like a demented spider monkey. The amount of fans gained is evident as they get the (Admittedly slightly subdued) crowd shaking their hips and banging their heads. There’s a lot of hype around Coilguns live and on record, and from this showing it’s incredibly evident why. New single Venetian Blinds gets a good reception and it’s undoubtedly the highlight of the set. Next time they come around, you know it’ll be at the top of the bill.
Blossom was a landmark moment for Pupil Slicer. Few bands have managed to elevate their sound to such a degree between just two albums as much as the London extreme metal group. From the chaotic mathy grind of their debut, ‘Blossom’ took things to more grand, epic heights, bringing black metal and 90’s alternative to the fore. Behind the scenes however, things have been tumultuous in the band, losing members and having to complete this tour with temporary members on guitar and bass. This is more than a little evident, as while vocalist and lead guitarist Kate Cherry is growing into an incredibly confident and versatile front person, there’s a little chemistry disconnect between the members. As the epic black metal of ‘Momentary Actuality’ kicks in however, you’re reminded of what an incredibly intense brand of music Pupil Slicer possess. Leaning into this, Kate channels their inner Abbath with some fantastic mannerisms and some Gene Simmons-esque tongue poses.
When Pupil Slicer go heavy, things are great (Despite similar technical issues around bass that plagued God Alone) and few bands manage to create as oppressively diverse soundscapes. When Kate tries to replicate the clean vocals, so distinct and powerful on record, they unfortunately sound too forced and at times, the mix of live and tracked vocals (Of which there is no shame in for music so complex) is awkward to listen to, at least at first
Thankfully, every other part of the set hits its mark. Kate unleashes their inner gen Z calling the support bands “Goated with the sauce” (Which tbh they are, no cap) and tracks like ‘The Song At Creations End’ and the albums title track blow the crowd away. The band may recognise that the next time they do a headline run they’ll want to be at full capacity (permanent) members wise, but they should count this as a triumphant victory. One of the best bands in the UK playing one of the best heavy albums in recent times.