It’s been a while since I’ve been along to The Live Rooms in Chester. Yes, yes I know there’s been a pandemic or something going on, but even factoring that into the equation the churn of heavy or alternative metal bands going through Chester remains limited. The schedule leading up to the turn of the year seems to be putting a change to that. This is a Sunday night gig though, and it’s been moved to the front bar rather than the main room. A small stage houses the bands to an attentive and decently sized crowd and atmosphere.

First up is Leatherback, the suited solo industrial act, complete with low-slung Les Paul, laptop, pedals and keyboard/sequencer. Having seen him previously present a somewhat disjointed collection of Ministry and KMFDM influenced instrumental-only songs I’m pleased to see he’s progressed and honed his act. He hits on the right mix of overdriven octave metal riffs with pounding electronic backing that churn and drive incessantly. It’s head-bobbingly engaging. Gone is the schizophrenic jumping around of elements, guitar tone and structure, with a more holistic vibe and song-writing having been found. The promise is coming to fruition.

Death Blooms have been making headlines recently with one of their fans being refused a stay in an Airbnb in Bristol (for one of their gigs) because the owner didn’t want to host a fan of a band with “aggressive, expletive-riddled and disturbing” music and lyrics. Now of course Death Blooms being the savvy and intelligent bunch they are have jumped on this with social media buzz and even a t-shirt to commemorate the incident (yes, I have pre-ordered one!). Their brand of viciously aggressive nu-metal will always draw comparisons to Slipknot, but whilst they do have a lot in common there is something more nuanced at work here. With plenty of elements on the backing track, notably layers of keys, bass, additional guitars, this gels nicely with the live instruments adding the raw aspect that gives the live performance that dynamic edge. It all works well and means the delivery is tight and polished without losing its power and impact. The songs are catchy with excellent vocal shredding and clean vocals, guitars crisp and jagged, with stomping, pounding drums. Fans of Mudvayne will immediately hear plenty of Chad Gray in frontman Paul Barrow’s heavy and clean vocals. In fact the whole experience is akin to those noughties metal bands that liked to fuse various aspects of sub-genres in passing to a very industrial based groove core. If anyone but me remembers The Union Underground then that’s exactly what I’m talking about with Death Blooms. Song ‘Anger’ mixes the best of their heavy elements with the anthemic choruses that could help them break through to the big-time. Having seen these Liverpool-based guys at Revive Festival in Academy 3 (Manchester) recently, it’s exciting to see them in a small venue for comparison. The larger venue and sound rig afforded a slick, professional delivery but in the small venue the live instruments are much more prominent. This allows for a much punkier feel to proceedings which is equally as wonderful as the more polished version of the band. This also suits the fans with the crowd into it full-tilt, moshing from start to finish. Big things await if there’s any justice in this world.

Blood Youth take to the stage with menacing purpose in hoodies, boiler-suits and similar nu-metal attire. This is the first tour with new frontman Harry Rule, and having seen the band recently for Kaya’s final shows it’s impossible not to compare the experiences clearly aligned to their individual performances. As a band they have evolved through early melodic hardcore sensibilities to new-wave nu-metal at its finest. The bass is reminiscent of the percussive groove of Korn, with brutal guitar riffs of Slipknot supplemented by equally Korn-esque haunting high-end purrs, and pounding tribal drums. The songs bounce and groove and the crowd is violent and energetic once again with a moshpit in full flow. The mix tonight is very vocals and drums heavy though, possibly due to the switch to the smaller front room, and it’s not helping showcase the best elements of the band. Harry is clearly an excellent vocalist with plenty of character and brutally passionate delivery. Kaya’s shoes are hard ones to fill though, and the harsh vocals don’t have the same sour, staccato delivery. Harry is obviously making the clean vocal lines his own by delivering them in a slightly different and more sinister manner, but with the sound balance poor and the understandable need to grow into the role, it’s just slightly off the mark tonight. Hell, it’s a very difficult job to step in and sing other people’s songs in a band – we saw that with Jot Maxi in Hacktivist and he’s now providing some of their best ever work given the chance to perform the songs he’s been part of writing. Blood Youth are a great band and once Harry and the guys have settled I can see them becoming forerunners for new nu-metal.