Dark Funeral, Belphegor, Incantation, Hate, & Vale of Pnath @ Lee's Palace, Toronto (May 29, 2019).

    The amazing live shows just keep coming with the Devastation on the Nation tour carving a path of ruination through Toronto. I've been looking forward to this high class evening of death and black metal for a few months now. Vale of Pnath and Incantation are a huge draw for me, with both bands representing an incredibly different take on death metal. The icing on the brutal cake however is the dual headliner between Belphegor and Dark Funeral (both bands I've never had an opportunity to see live). The bill for this tour is completely stacked, leaving me no option but to arrive as early as possible to not miss any of the devastatingly good times.

    Unfortunately I missed Nightmarer but I did luckily I arrived at Lee's just in time for Vale of Pnath to take the stage! I seemed to be one of the few that were able to make it out for the early set time. The low turn out was definitely noticed by VoP, as they turned the front lights off and played in darkness (hopefully not to hide their disappointment). Either way, I raged hard as they played a mix of songs off their brand new album as well as some older material. Next up was some Polish black metal as Hate took the stage, and while it took a bit of time to get the crowd moving, the palace had woken up by the end of the set.

    Incantation are one of those bands I never get sick off. Last night they proved once again that they are even better live. They delivered a dialed performance, with every bass lick and beat felt throughout the sternum. The pit exploded for tracks like Carrion Prophecy and Ibex Moon, as Incantation proceeded the cast their insidious spell. Belphegor and Dark Funeral continued the trend. It was clear people were coming out of the metalworks for the headliners, with not a shred of room left when they each took the stage. Both bands completely obliterated my expectations, with some of the most powerful live shows I've seen of late. That being said, I do think Belphegor took the edge with the gig in state of complete madness during their set. I was thoroughly impressed. Check out some pictures from the night below and cheers to all the bands and crazy assholes in the pit. A special extra shout out to that guy who jumped off the bar by the stage during Incantation with no one to catch him! RIP lmfao. /,,/;,,;/,,/

Dark Funeral

Belphegor

Incantation

Hate

Vale of Pnath

- Metal Yeti /,,/;,,;/,,/

Alien Weaponry @ The Velvet Underground, Toronto (May 17, 2019).

     Alien Weaponry are one of the most interesting bands to have emerged out of the modern metal scene the last few years, and last night they landed in Toronto to start the thrash metal invasion on their Tūmatauenga Tour. Hailing from the far away planet of New Zealand these young humanoids, deliver a break neck blend of cultural infused thrash metal that pulls its vocal styling, language, and content from the bands specific Maori experience and ancestry to complement the modern take on early Sepultura era thrash they deliver fully on. Alien Weaponry released their first full length album "Tū" in 2018, to critical acclaim and open arms from the metal community. The music they make is powerful as all hell and is sure to attract many new and old thrash fans as well as some progressive metalheads along the way.

     By the time I got to the Velvet Underground the place was packed with battle jackets and eager fans. The opening bands Hounskull and Plethora did an great job priming the crowd for battle, with the anticipation palatable in the minutes leading up the main event. Alien Weaponry took the stage in style, with their drummer commencing a powerful Maori war chant and dance which was soon followed up all the thrash metal fury we came for.  They played a mixture of material from their early EP's as well as their debut full length release Tū. Another killer surprise was the band incorporating a few unreleased tracks into the set-list that we should be expecting to hear on future releases. The entire set was dialed with the crowd happily singing along to tracks like "RAUPATU" and "Holding my Breath". Alien Weaponry brought tremendous energy to the stage, with the members actively having a good time thrashing out and connecting with the crowd through the tunes.

     I've always been impressed by trio bands, and Alien Weaponry were no exception. This show had several highlights more me, with this being my first time seeing the band live. But on top of the stacked set-list, many my favourite moments were just seeing these young metalheads passion on stage. Alien Weaponry are very young to be where they are today, with none of the band members legally able to drink in the bar they were playing in. This band gives me so much hope for the future of metal, as clearly the torch is being passed to a very young but capable group of metalheads! Overall I had a fantastic night which I will not soon forgot. I highly recommend everybody takes the chance to see Alien Weaponry if given the chance, as I am sure they have a bright future in metal ahead of them. Cheers to all the crazies I clashed with in the pit (especially that mini wall of death, lmfao) and a huge thank you and shout out to Alien Weaponry for delivering the goods. Check out a few photos from the night below!

Alien Weaponry

-Metal Yeti