Live Review: Desertfest - Saturday
17th May 2023
Featuring: Indicia Blues, Verminthrone, Witchorious, Conan, Sons of Alpha Centauri, Pallbearer, Barbarian Hermit, Amenra, Zeal & Ardor
Words: Matthew Williams, Matt Noble
Photos: Jessi Lotti, Sam Huddleston
Day two begins in more glorious sunshine, and after a few quizzical looks and some complimentary cheers for my Shred Dibnah t-shirt, it promises to be another day of high-quality music. It’s stacked with bands that I was looking forward to seeing and I began the day where I ended Friday, upstairs at The Black Heart to watch Oxford’s Indica Blues. Their blend of psychedelic doom intrigued me, and the four-piece started off with vocalist and guitarist Tom Pilsworth saying “Hello Desertfest, we are Indica Blues, and this next song is called “Inhale”, and their cool vibes are instantly appealing to the packed venue.
They have a nice flow to their music and play a couple of new tracks called “The Raven” and “Bloodsands”. With great rhythm and effortlessly smooth solos, the packed crowd are nodding their heads along in approval. The bass licks are gripping, and they vary their tempo exceptionally well. 2016’s “Ruins on the Shore” was next up, dedicated to Volcanova, I think Tom said, and the slower paced versus, juxtapose well with the power in the chorus.
“This is another new song from our album that will be out on Majestic Mountain Records, let’s see those heads banging to this one” and bang along they do to the impressive “Universal Heat Death”. The guitar loop on “Demagogue” was something to behold, and by the time we get to the striking final song “The Air is Still” Tom says, “it’s been a pleasure to be here, worth waiting 10 years for this” and they end to loud applause from an appreciative crowd.
Next stop was my first visit of the weekend to The Devonshire Arms, a tightly packed bar, with the stage in the corner. I had a quick chat with the drummer from Grymchurch, before he disappeared to the front, as the venue filled up to watch the mighty Verminthrone. The 5 piece bring the heavy to the festival, with their sludge metal sound. They begin their assault with “Pallor” and “Kuru” with the dual vocals reminding me of Raging Speedhorn. The riffs are fast and heavy, the drums are pounding, and the crowd are loving it.
“Thanks for having us here and thanks for coming to watch us little c**ts” says frontman Dan Banshaw, as he goes through a range of emotions on stage, before introducing a song all about cocaine, called “It Always Snows”. It goes off with the crowd bouncing along, to their relentless barrage of noise, as they push on with “Don’t trust Morning People” followed by “Aorta but True” which has the outro to Metallica’s “Sad But True”. They are a force to be reckoned with, as the music is grim, dirty, nasty and noisy all wrapped up in one filthy sound and by the time they finish with “Event Horizon” they could turn the outside sunshine into darkened skies. A job done well.
Torus are first on in The Underworld on Saturday afternoon, with laid-back, catchy stoner grunge to shake off the hangovers to. There's lots of chunky low end to their sound, but balanced out nicely with very strong melodies that suggest a very high ceiling for the three piece. Alfie is an excellent frontman, whether jumping off the stage into the crowd, teaching the audience how to sing along to his songs, or conducting everyone to clap along at the start of early days single 'High Rope'. Behind him, the rhythm section sounds downright mean, holding every note and beat together expertly. Towards the end, a stoned out cover of Britney Spears' 'Toxic' goes down very well, with a complete change to the song's instrumentation to sit nicely with the vibe of the festival, including a doomy breakdown. Not what I expected, but I'm here for it!
Another band I was looking forward to seeing was Witchorious. The French trio began with bassist Lucie and guitarist Antoine throwing their instruments in the air, as they launch into the wonderful “Watch Me Die” Their dark witchy sound is superb, and they bring a spooky element to the day. “Hello, we are Witchorious, and this next song is called Monster”, which felt evil, and I loved the joint vocals, with Lucie’s voice dominating on this one. There is a nice, relaxed feel to the next one, but then I got a text to say that something very special was about to go down, so I headed off for my first visit to the blast furnace better known as The Underworld and witnessed a true spectacle in the making.
Liverpudlian caveman battle doomers Conan slayed The Roundhouse in style, with a fun visual backdrop taken from 80s movies to complement the auditory massacre onstage nicely. They have been cooking on gas following the release of latest record 'Violence Dimension'. Opening tracks 'Foeman's Flesh' and 'Desolation Hexx' kick off the setlist with force, and 'Frozen Edges Of The Wound' sounds particularly vicious this afternoon, especially the faster break towards the end that Johnny King orchestrates masterfully behind the drum kit. 'Gravity Chasm' earns the band a rowdy mosh pit, and the newer 'Invinciblade' also goes down extremely well. Conan sound great today, with Jon Davis and David Ryley trading off vocals powerfully at the front. Closing with the classic 'Volt Thrower', snapping a sea of heads in unison to its crushing midtempo beat, it's a triumphant return to Desertfest for Conan. All hail.
Nick Hannon and Marlon King from Sons of Alpha Centauri were busy tuning and when they re-appeared on stage in their splendid matching black shirts, they were joined on the drums, by none other than Alfredo Hernandez. This specially curated set for Desertfest would rank as one of the highlights of the weekend, as they begin with “Well In It”.
Instantly, you could tell that this was special. The rhythm was silky smooth and when the bass kicked in, the sound imposes itself upon the crowd and you are swept along for the ride. It’s hard to convey emotions but suffice to say that most of us in this underground bunker were beguiled by the trio. With quicker tempos backdropped against slower, dreamy, psychedelic wonderment, this was a rare treat, as the trio played “Old Chestnuts” and “Two Black Eyes”.
There is no chat in-between songs, and no mics on stage, but having been a band since 2001, the chemistry is evident between Hannon and King and with Hernandez on drums, it takes them to levels others will struggle to achieve. With each song ending, you could see the grin on King’s face grow wider and wider, as he watches the crowd’s reactions flood in. There are slick guitar slides, scintillating drum fills and sublime bass notes, that when combined, produce sounds that are captivating and charismatic. By the time they finish their euphoric set with “King Krupa” and “If I Left You Alone” this is one performance that people will have been gutted to miss.
Barbarian Hermit raise hell in the Dev with a very fun set that mostly takes from last year's spectacular 'Mean Sugar'. The sludgy groove wizards from Manchester waste no time when the lights dim, unleashing a torrent of heavy riffs and neck-snapping grooves that causes the whole room to move, jump and generally fall into chaos. The Hermit are in fine form this evening, with impressive songwriting on show that has everything from psychedelic, chilled out breaks to intense moments in the set with double bass drumming and a brutal vocal roar from frontman Simon. The skull crushing 'Deadbolt' is a set highlight, while the Crowbar-esque breakdown at the end of 'Stitched Up' almost decimates the whole bar. 'Mean Sugar' gets the majority of the crowd singing along to its hook, while the creatively titled 'Who Put 50p In You?' earns a huge response from the audience. The band appreciatively and humbly thank the room as their best crowd in London to date as they leave, but it really is a statement performance from Barbarian Hermit.
Pallbearer had only arrived at the venue minutes before their set due to an issue at customs, but any pre-show stresses are seemingly left backstage as their emotive, expansive doom metal captivates a very busy Roundhouse on Saturday afternoon. A pensive setlist, rich with light, shade, and contrast, their song choices see a lot more of the softer, cleaner led material take centre stage than what might be considered quintessential Pallbearer by some fans. The effect is nothing less than spellbinding - and when they do turn up their amps, it sounds colossal. Each song has huge melodies, each note thoughtfully considered and deliberate, the musicality an integral part of who they are and what they do. With up to three members on the mic at any time, but led by the rich, pure and melodic lead vocals of Brett Campbell, Pallbearer is living, breathing proof of how doom metal can be pushed beyond its typical limitations to create something special.
The stage was set for another of the bands that I didn’t watch to miss. This was the 3rd time I’ve witnessed the extravaganza that is Belgian post metallers Amenra, and with smoke filling the stage, I was about to be whisked off to another world for an hour. The strobes begin, as the tempo slowly build in anticipation and then they explode into “Salve Mater”.
With the screen behind them filled with dark, haunting visuals, the crowd are immersed in their evil place, as Colin H van Eeckhout’s relentless punishing vocals, scream out in pain. The music is beyond intense, and they create a level of tension that others can’t match. “Razoreater”, “Plus pres de toi” and “De Evenmnes” are given the full treatment as they invite the crowd into their misery, but it’s done in the most sinister of uplifting ways.
They are spectacular to watch, and I wondered if the music is written to accompany the visuals, or the other way around, as they are entwined as one. “A Solitary Reign” is paraded in front of us, and with a single white church on the screen, and one spotlight on the stage, further adds to their mystique. “Ter Ziele” and “Am Kreuz” follow before they end with the haunting “Silver Needle. Golden Nail” which feels like a slow suffocation, but it’s a visceral experience of artistry and musicianship that is near perfection.
I had a bit of a fanboy moment during Amenra, as I managed to grab a photo and brief chat with Manuel Gagneux as he appeared behind me, so by the time headliners Zeal & Ardor hit the stage, I was beyond giddy. These were the main reason I wanted to attend the festival as I saw them a few years ago in Manchester and they were sensational.
They appear in hooded cloaks, with mysterious lighting, as “The Bird, The Lion and The Wildkin” begins and leads into “Wake of a Nation” as the sign lights up above them to unveil their logo. My favourite song “Götterdämmerung” is played at speed, with the sound and lighting in perfect synch and it’s a glorious sight to behold.
They go through their repertoire of hits combined with new songs from latest release “Grief” with “Ship on Fire” showing why they bring something different to the festival. “Erase”, “Gravedigger’s Chant” lead into new tracks “Fend You Off” and “Kilonova”. “Hello Desertfest, it’s a real honour to be here on this stage” says Manuel, as he introduces the next few songs. “Blood in the River” is heavy and intense, and “Run” asks that immortal question, “Where’s your fucking God?”
Each song ends with massive applause, and before “Tusk” Manual comments “thanks for seeing this out with us”. They bounce from one unbelievable track to another, and they’ve improved so much since I last saw them. This is the last show of their current European tour, and they play another favourite of mine, “Row Row” which sees awesome vocal harmonies. “On this next song, we’d like a little bit of help” as they play my favourite track off the new album, “Sugarcoat” and it doesn’t disappoint.
“It’ll never be normal to come to a different country and have people show up to sing our songs” says Manuel in-between the monstrous “Death to the Holy” and “Devil is Fine”. And this is why they are so damn good, as they bring elements of gospel, metal, jazz, drum n bass to add to their heavenly vocal arrangements, and why so many people are here to watch them.
“We have 3 more songs, hope that’s ok?” no, I wanted more, as I didn’t want the show to end, but as Manuel catches a pair of glasses and uses them against his fretboard, the band put every bit of energy into it with “Clawing Out” finishing off a set that was unique and breathtaking. As we all poured out, day two was over, and I had survived.
All photo credits: Jessi Lotti, Sam Huddleston
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