Live Review: Conan - The Asylum Venue, Birmingham
25th November 2025
Words: Matt Noble
Photos: Tim Finch
On a cold Tuesday night at The Asylum in Birmingham, energetic fuzz and rollers Massasauga got an evening of live underground heavy music going with the power of the riff, distilled into a pure, no frills, two piece format. Over their short set they impressed tonight's crowd with lively bangers that had enough swagger not to take themselves too seriously, but enough grit to leave their mark on fans of tonight's other, heavier bands.
Along with a stoner swing that characterised most of their songs, they have big doomy sections and a bit of a punky aesthetic, plus self aware stage banter between songs to make for an entertaining set. Massasauga were tight, noisy and fun throughout. Ending on the Kyuss-influenced 'Ghosts', by which time the room was starting to fill out well, they surely turned some new heads tonight.
Deathfiend, up next, heavied up the place with some old school, 80s inspired nastiness. With the crowd in good numbers by now, they responded well to their dirgy riffs, inspired by an extreme mix of death, doom and black metal. When Deathfiend keep it simple, slow and grim, they drag you kicking and screaming into the void, although their bouncy grooves - such as in the well received 'Order Of One' - and crusty D-beat blasts certainly kicked up some energy. Johnny Doom's OSDM-esque vocal delivery led the tracks with menace while their dark atmosphere and professional performance simply did the talking across their classy set. Deathfiend's latest record 'Dark Rising' is a little over a year old now, pushing them to new heights, with the title track a set highlight of the evening. Ending on the hellraising 'Age Of Mistrust', it's a triumphant show all around from one of the West Midlands' darkest exports.
Chained To The Bottom Of The Ocean, on UK shores for the first time, gave an oppressively heavy performance mixing death, doom and sludge metal into a vicious, ugly cauldron of despair. Taking the audience into a thick chokehold for half an hour, with nothing but feedback from the amps between songs, it made for a hellish experience, led by raw, tortured vocal screams along with intense blastbeats scattered throughout. The guitar work uses noise and discordant chords to add to the suffocatingly heavy atmosphere, staying on one riff for extended periods to punishing effect. The low light, smoke and silhouettes added an element of mystery to their stage presence and performance, forcing nothing but the sonic abrasion to the centre of attention. Little gets more extreme than CTTBOTO, but it's a memorable set just for how intense it is, with a particularly impressive drum performance. As the last song ends, the absence of noise is really felt in the room as silence hits for the first time since the lights first dimmed down. Gnarly stuff.
Headliners Conan take to the stage to a rousing cheer, starting with the simple but powerful opening notes of 'Foeman's Flesh' from this year's Violence Dimension. Their heavy riffs are each stamped with the Conan identity, taking over the main room of The Asylum for over an hour - looking very full by now, especially for a Tuesday night. Jon Davis's signature vocal wail carried well, sounding potent out the front, complemented effectively by David Ryley's guttural secondary vocals that weave in and out as required. Johnny King, at the back, exercises control and restraint sublimely when their tempos drop to a crawl, although was note perfect in their occasional steps into faster territory.
The more recent numbers in their back catalogue do well tonight. When a main riff packs as much groove as 'Frozen Edges Of The Wound' or 2022's 'Ritual Of Anonymity', they are designed for busy crowds like these to move to. In this sense, Conan are as fresh and relevant as they've ever been, with new material that delivers and performances that remain tight and commanding. However, the old school setlist staples such as 'Hawk As Weapon' or 'Satsumo' still pack a punch and never fail to impress, with this set no exception. Their legacy was never in doubt, but setlists like these - weighted towards the second half of their career - prove there's still a healthy amount of noise yet to come from one of the heaviest to ever do doom. Ending on 'Volt Thrower', as the night comes to a fist-pumping close, we're left already waiting for their next jaunt on the road.
Photo Credits: Tim Finch Photography
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