treghet
01-15-2012, 04:47 PM
After being canceled months ago the festival was finally set to happen this weekend. Needless to say, it has been a long time coming. After a few bands dropped off earlier this week I was worried the show might not go smoothly, but that was not the case. In fact, the show ended up being a blast and well worth the long wait.
When I walked into the venue Depths of Misery was playing, but I was much more interested in the numerous vendors and bands who had set up booths. I walked around to every one of them, checking out their shirts, CDs, and records trying to decide what I should buy. I was actually overwhelmed by all the awesome stuff. It was like an underground metal swap meet.
By the time I had made my purchases Depths of Misery had finished their set and Hod was getting ready to start theirs. They were decent, but I didn't like their vocalist. I noticed they had a female guitarist though, so that was pretty cool. After Hod was Divine Eve, the first band I was interested in seeing. The crowd began to fill in before they got on stage. For the first couple songs their sound was a little bit off, but after that it evened out. Their style of death and doom metal comes off incredibly heavy in a live setting. They put on a great performance and the crowd seemed pretty into them. I'm not sure about the first two songs and fourth song in the set, but the rest are correct.
A Somber Blossoming (Soulsflight)
Vindication
As the Angels Weep
The Last of the Sunset Faded
Innocence Lost
Harlequin of Perpetual Destiny
Velvet of the Godless
Next up was Acheron from Ohio. They hit the crowd with a fury of Satanic death metal. This was their first show out here since 2007 when they played the third Gathering of the Bestial Legion festival. I am not sure about the first two songs.
The Apocalypse
I Am Heathen
Godless (We Are Gods!)
Church of One
Blessed by Damnation
Ave Satanas
Satan Holds Dominion
Power and Might
Fuck the Ways of Christ
Now the New York (currently Pennsylvania) death metal legends, Incantation, would take the stage. I don't think they've played a show in California since 2006, so it was a real treat to get to see them. They opened with the eerie instrumental from their last album and then exploded into "Thorns of Everlasting Persecution". Their set mostly focused on their more recent material, but they brought out "Rotting Spiritual Embodiment" and one of their classics, "The Ibex Moon", which no Incantation set is complete without. I'm not 100% sure on the eighth song, but all of the others are correct.
Primordial Domination
Thorns of Everlasting Persecution
Absolved in Blood
Hailed Babylon
Lead to Desolation
Rotting Spiritual Embodiment
Sacrificial Sanctification
Dying Divinity
The Ibex Moon
Impending Diabolical Conquest
Seeing Incantation was worth the ticket price alone, but now Autopsy was going to take over. Surprisingly, the show was only fifteen minutes behind schedule by the time Autopsy came on. They opened with a song from their new album and then delved into their classic albums. Their sound was unbelievably crushing. I would go so far as to say they might be the heaviest band I've seen. Chris Reifert's vocals sounded just as sadistic as on the albums and he pulled them off with ease. There are very few drummers who also take on lead vocals, so it was interesting to watch him. I expected it to be awkward not having him up front doing vocals, but it wasn't. Despite being being behind the rest of the band and unable to move around he managed to fulfill the role of any other frontman.
Their set was exceptional and it contained almost all of Severed Survival. They pulled out "Mauled to Death", a song from their first demo which they had never played live before! They also played "Service for a Vacant Coffin", which was not listed on the set list. Their set ended up being about an hour and a half long and it was an experience to say the least. The festival ended up being way better than I expected and I feel lucky to have seen both Incantation and Autopsy. :rocker:
Born Undead
Twisted Mass of Burnt Decay
In the Grip of Winter
Severed Survival
Ridden with Disease
Voices
Pagan Saviour
Embalmed
Mauled to Death
Always About to Die
The Tomb Within
Critical Madness
Gasping for Air
Dead
Slaughterday
---
Charred Remains
Service for a Vacant Coffin
When I walked into the venue Depths of Misery was playing, but I was much more interested in the numerous vendors and bands who had set up booths. I walked around to every one of them, checking out their shirts, CDs, and records trying to decide what I should buy. I was actually overwhelmed by all the awesome stuff. It was like an underground metal swap meet.
By the time I had made my purchases Depths of Misery had finished their set and Hod was getting ready to start theirs. They were decent, but I didn't like their vocalist. I noticed they had a female guitarist though, so that was pretty cool. After Hod was Divine Eve, the first band I was interested in seeing. The crowd began to fill in before they got on stage. For the first couple songs their sound was a little bit off, but after that it evened out. Their style of death and doom metal comes off incredibly heavy in a live setting. They put on a great performance and the crowd seemed pretty into them. I'm not sure about the first two songs and fourth song in the set, but the rest are correct.
A Somber Blossoming (Soulsflight)
Vindication
As the Angels Weep
The Last of the Sunset Faded
Innocence Lost
Harlequin of Perpetual Destiny
Velvet of the Godless
Next up was Acheron from Ohio. They hit the crowd with a fury of Satanic death metal. This was their first show out here since 2007 when they played the third Gathering of the Bestial Legion festival. I am not sure about the first two songs.
The Apocalypse
I Am Heathen
Godless (We Are Gods!)
Church of One
Blessed by Damnation
Ave Satanas
Satan Holds Dominion
Power and Might
Fuck the Ways of Christ
Now the New York (currently Pennsylvania) death metal legends, Incantation, would take the stage. I don't think they've played a show in California since 2006, so it was a real treat to get to see them. They opened with the eerie instrumental from their last album and then exploded into "Thorns of Everlasting Persecution". Their set mostly focused on their more recent material, but they brought out "Rotting Spiritual Embodiment" and one of their classics, "The Ibex Moon", which no Incantation set is complete without. I'm not 100% sure on the eighth song, but all of the others are correct.
Primordial Domination
Thorns of Everlasting Persecution
Absolved in Blood
Hailed Babylon
Lead to Desolation
Rotting Spiritual Embodiment
Sacrificial Sanctification
Dying Divinity
The Ibex Moon
Impending Diabolical Conquest
Seeing Incantation was worth the ticket price alone, but now Autopsy was going to take over. Surprisingly, the show was only fifteen minutes behind schedule by the time Autopsy came on. They opened with a song from their new album and then delved into their classic albums. Their sound was unbelievably crushing. I would go so far as to say they might be the heaviest band I've seen. Chris Reifert's vocals sounded just as sadistic as on the albums and he pulled them off with ease. There are very few drummers who also take on lead vocals, so it was interesting to watch him. I expected it to be awkward not having him up front doing vocals, but it wasn't. Despite being being behind the rest of the band and unable to move around he managed to fulfill the role of any other frontman.
Their set was exceptional and it contained almost all of Severed Survival. They pulled out "Mauled to Death", a song from their first demo which they had never played live before! They also played "Service for a Vacant Coffin", which was not listed on the set list. Their set ended up being about an hour and a half long and it was an experience to say the least. The festival ended up being way better than I expected and I feel lucky to have seen both Incantation and Autopsy. :rocker:
Born Undead
Twisted Mass of Burnt Decay
In the Grip of Winter
Severed Survival
Ridden with Disease
Voices
Pagan Saviour
Embalmed
Mauled to Death
Always About to Die
The Tomb Within
Critical Madness
Gasping for Air
Dead
Slaughterday
---
Charred Remains
Service for a Vacant Coffin