The Metal Column – August, 2009
OK, so this is just a metal column, but these are complicated times. Boundaries are blurred. Man or woman (Lady Gaga)? Straight or gay (Sufjan Stevens)? Black or white (Michael Jackson)? Good or evil (Michael Jackson)? Dead or alive (Michael Jackson)?
Yet perhaps the most crushingly pertinent question facing us, in this context, is: what qualifies as metal in this mixed up, shades-of-grey world?
Well, August has it all: Old school, Nu-school, Pre-school, Special school...
Edinburgh residents, get your ears around The Ark's Highland Fire Folk Metal Festival (1 Aug) featuring Waylander, Ravenage and Northern Oak and showcasing 'some of your all-time favourite folk metal tunes'. “About bloody time” you bellow, one gauntleted fist raised to Valhalla. Glasgow simultaneously sees youthful native exports Bleed From Within launching their album Humanity at Ivory Black's (1 Aug). Those guys also play a part in The Classic Grand's Metalfest 2009 (15 Aug) alongside It Prevails and Sylosis.
Sympathy please for Aberdeen, whose meagre monthly pickings include the camp, fashion-metal witterings of England's Cure The Disaster at The Tunnels (2 Aug). Stardom doubtlessly beckons, much to the disgust of the men in Slayer shirts.
It's good name versus bad name at Dundee's Balcony Bar when Worksop's And So Their Eyes Were Bloodshot get a lesson in nomenclature from locals Decapitate Your Date (5 Aug) who also make an appearance at Kage, in that same city, supporting We Stare At Mirrors (16 Aug).
Punk die-hards take note as The Adolescents (yes that's THE Adolescents of 80s US fame) pay a visit to a newly invigorated Capitol in Glasgow (5 Aug) whilst notorious German extreme hardcore monsters Ding Dong Dead! kick seven shades of shit out of Captain's Rest five minutes across town (5 Aug) with support from the highly regarded Corpses.
Another band surfing a wave of word-of-mouth hubbub is Glaswegian newborn Holy Mountain, who bring their deafeningly heavy, doom meets jazz meets rock 'n' roll to Captain's Rest (Aug 12).
The 13th Note hosts brilliant Scottish metallic noise-bastards Vom who launch their album (14 Aug) before supporting the equally belligerent Black Sun (29 Aug) at the same location.
Israeli hype-magnets Monotonix bring their manic and mobile racket to Edinburgh's Sneaky Pete's (Aug 19) and Glasgow's Stereo (20 Aug) which, last time around, culminated in the entire band being carried from their venue out into Edinburgh's Morrison Street, still playing. All I'm going to say is that would never have happened to Dave Lombardo, but aspiring photographers could do worse than attend. The 13th Note meanwhile plays host to another hugely hyped outfit in the form of Luxembourg's post-hardcore great-white-hopes Mutiny On The Bounty, touring with Metal-press darlings Blakfish (19 Aug).
Leeds band-cum-steamroller Omerta (not to be confused with the Belgian and American acts of same name) pay a visit to The Captain's Rest (22 Aug) and Aberdeen's Drummond's (23 Aug) with tour support from aforementioned hardcore pitbulls Corpses.
Ireland's riffingly atmospheric post-rock touring-machine And So I Watch You From Afar stop off at Edinburgh's Sneaky Pete's (23 Aug) before August's main event sees Faith No More, almost unbelievably, return to our shores and wheel out some Jim Martin-less classics at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange (25 Aug). Shame then that Sounds of Swami, the impressive alt-punk outfit from down south who ripped their Scottish audience a collective new arsehole on their last trip, find themselves competing against Patton's world-beaters, albeit nearly 50 miles away in Glasgow's Bar Bloc.
Lastly, though it may be but a token gesture, classic and thoroughly authentic 80s thrash outfit Onslaught raise an almighty V sign to the emo movement before wind-milling the shit out of Ivory Black's (27 Aug). Expect a circle pit populated almost exclusively by irate but thankful old-schoolers, basking in nostalgia and the blood of strangers. What fun.