We are continually told that guitar music is dead. The mainstream piles on the narrative that rock music has had its day, and it is simply a forgotten genre in its death throes. If this is the case somebody has forgotten to inform the hundreds of multigenerational attendees that have packed out Rebellion for the last couple of nights. The simple fact is that death metal is sticking its finger up at all this "guitar music is out of fashion" nonsense and is becoming more vibrant and important by the day.

Tonight, has been sold out for months, in fact, the whole tour has shifted tickets in a manner that would make Taylor Swift exclaim “Ohh that’s fast“. This is a solid stateside bill that proves beyond doubt the versatility and diversity of death metal. Whilst the mainstream may bemoan that is simply four identikit acts grunting into a mic and pushing a drumkit down some stairs, actually, this is four very different and very unique takes on the continually evolving beast that is death metal. 

Vomit Forth’s version has a large chunk of groove added to it. It's still death metal, but prominent in the mix is a swagger that is reminiscent of Lamb of God and Pantera. Rather than just pummel us with power, Rick Brayall and Bailey Olinger guitars chug along in a rhythmic and primal fashion that avoids the head and instead dives straight to your dancing feet.

Kane Gelaznik is also doing his best to get us moving. “Come closer” he bellows to the uncharacteristically shy audience in front of him. It may have only just turned seven, but he is determined to orchestrate as much madness as possible. Whilst initially slow on the uptake, the bodies do begin to gyrate to Vomit Forth's eminently danceable sound. We even get our first stage invader of the evening, the omnipresent red cap Boy tonight incognito with a black cap.

This is death metal with additional girth and a lethargic strut. It oozes as opposed to gallops, but it still manages to be effectively infectious. By the time we reach the end of their short set both the audience and Kane seemed visibly frustrated that it is all over far too quickly. The promised return to our shores cannot come quick enough.

200 stab wounds in juxtaposition are incredibly old school in their approach. Rather than take their cue from modern masters, they have looked into the annals of history for their inspiration. There is an urgency and directness to their approach that is reminiscent of first-generation scene setters Bolt Thrower, Benediction and Cancer. 

They hurl themselves through their set with each track bellowing forth at lightning speed. There is an elemental power at play here and it feels like being caught in a whirlwind of crescendoing noise. A maelstrom of kinetic energy, it is a stark reminder of the life-affirming force of hurtling clatter.

They spark the pit into life and soon bodies are promenading around the dancefloor with malicious intent. They are stunning in their velocity and singularity. A massive amount of musical ability needs to be in place to be this raucous and unrefined and Steve Buhl and Raymond Macdonald's guitar work is utterly divine. They will be back again in November haunting the corridors of Damnation Festival and believe me it's going to be messy.

The appearance of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania’s Signs of the Swarm heralds another left turn in style. This is deathcore, a repugnant unstoppable beast that combines death metal's ferocity with death-defying breakdowns and squealed vocals. Some feel that this “stop-start” approach dulls the impact, but the entire inhabitants of Rebellion can testify to the almighty intensity of Signs of the Swarm’s performance.

It is spectacular in both its scope and its ambition. Whilst the previous two bands were without doubt magnificent, everything seems to crank up a gear as ‘Pernicious’ screams out of the monitors. The sound is lush and widescreen. It feels big, bombastic, and full of malevolent intent.

David Simonich prowls the stage like a caged tiger. His vocals are sharp and incisive, piercing through the herculean noise produced by his bandmates. Whilst it is obvious that some deathcore deniers have chosen to go and hide out in the beer garden, there are enough devotees on show to turn the front area into a well organised massacre. The bodies rain down in synchronisation with the pulsating and laser-precise riffs.

It is a note-perfect set. Everything is ratcheted up to the max. Carl Schulz’s guitar sound hurtles upwards and then plunges downwards at a rapid rate. Intoxicating and hypnotic, Signs of the Swarm prove beyond doubt that they are ready to soirée with the big boys and girls. Divine utterly divine.

By now the atmosphere has reached fever pitch. Rebellion is packed to its rafters and beyond and expectant bodies have shoehorned themselves into all nooks and crannies available. Cattle Decapitation are not strangers to these shores (this is their third Mancunian show in five years) but the utter brilliance of last year's “Terrasite” (number 27 in our coveted end of year list) means that there is real expectation to see them in the flesh. 

They do not disappoint. They emerge one by one through a foggy cloud of stage smoke, with the imposing figure of Travis Ryan arriving last. They take a nanosecond to survey the scene in front of them and then hurtle straight into ‘Terrasitic Adaptation’, the breakneck opening track of the latest record. From then on it is carnage incarnate.

This is death metal reimagined for arenas. It retains the gnarly jaggedness, but supplements it with a sheen commerciality that makes everything sparkle. It's still eminently nasty but there is a big epic feel to that nastiness. ‘The Storm Upstairs’ (also hailing from the new record) personifies their almost bipolar approach. It crackles with malicious resolve but also manages to be gargantuan and foundation-shaking in its sonic oscillation. In other words, it just feels big and muscular. 

We get an hour of solid, bone-shaking aggression, beautifully rendered, but still aggression. Travis Ryan perches on his box and screams into the face of the worshipping throng. They choose to stay very much in the now, ignoring completely material from their first four albums. But as the aforementioned “Terrasite” (and 2019's “Death Atlas's) are such archetypal slices of modern death metal, you hear nobody complain.

The quality of the performances is so good that we could have remained in this moment forever, but everything must come to an end. Before the penultimate track of ‘Pacific Grim’, Travis teases us that they will be back in this city next year (Damnation? Please please?). They then top it all with a monolithic ‘Kingdom of Tyrants’. Crunching and incendiary, it just simmers with brutality and proves once again the nihilistic beauty of ornate death metal. We get the regulatory goodbyes and thank you’s and they are gone.

So next time someone tries to kid you that guitar music has reached the end of its path, simply lead them by the hand and take them into the forbidden pleasures of death metal. Raise a quizzical eyebrow and asked them “Really?”. 

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
Cattle Decapitation, Signs Of The Swarm, 200 Stab Wounds, Vomit Forth