On March 11th 2020 I went to see Employed to Serve at one of the smaller rooms here at Manchester University Student Union’s sprawling Academy complex. I consider this place a second home. I went to university here, so been attending gigs in its four venues for thirty years. I did my finals in the Academy (and was only halfway through my additional time when the Indigo Girls came onto soundcheck, but that’s another story). Hell, the main security guard on the door welcomes me with a hug. What I didn’t know that night as I cycled off was that it would be my last visit for fifteen months. Actually it would be my last gig, period for fifteen months. My return tonight is therefore far more than a show by my fancied hometown heroes Pist. This is a homecoming, it’s a rebirth, it’s a majestic pulsating sludge phoenix emerging from the ashes.

Tonight, is also a celebration of resilience of the Mancunian never say die attitude. Hats off to APF Records, Mastiff and Pist for sticking to their guns and not giving up the ghost on this particular event. This showcase of the label’s jewels in its crown was originally scheduled for back in October last year, but got scuppered by Greater Manchester ascension into tier three. Then it was going to be in December, before the Kent variant “fucked” all our plans. In fact, this event has been pending for so long that Mastiff are no longer part of the label’s rota of bands. Tonight is a case of third time lucky for this show and the feeling in the room is one of both unbridled joy and god-darn relief.

That unfurling of pent up emotion hits you as you enter the hall. It is full of faces I know from time spent on the Manchester Metal scene. Faces that I had never expected to have missed so much. I may formally know less than one percent of the people here, but it feels rejuvenating and soul-cleansing to be back in the presence of every single fucker in the Academy. The whole evening is a swathing mass of shared glances, enthusiastic waves of acknowledgement and illicit stolen hugs when the security aren’t watching.

We are still not quite back to normal. It’s a seated gig in strict household groupings (which means that as an anti-social bastard I am on my own) and a strict eye is kept on us to ensure that we stay in our allotted quadrant. Mastiff frontman Jim Hodge quips that it is like playing to your mates at school and quick-witted scamp in the audience replies that it is suspiciously like being at Butlins. It’s masks on, though when seated most of the audience ignore that directive. However, there are some upsides. The first is the fact that being served at your seat is soooo much more pleasurable and convenient than the usual scrum at the bar and the second is that Mastiff and Pist get to ply their wares on the Academy’s vast stage and pump their noise through the very impressive sound system.

Mastiff hit the stage at a little after eight and it was instantly like the last fifteen months hadn’t happened. During my enforced sabbatical I had often wondered what it would be like to see a live band again and how it would make me feel. The honest truth is that the over-reaching feeling was one of normality. Yes I was metaphorically tied to a chair trying to get the beer ordering app to work, but as Mastiff pounded out their gnarly blackened doom I felt exactly the same emotions about live music that I had felt pre covid. Namely exhilaration, passion and utter pleasure. The vast majority of the set came from the band’s forthcoming record “Leave Me the Ashes of The Earth”. ‘Midnight Creeper’ is Claustrophobic and heavy as hell. Other tracks from the album (I sadly catch no further titles, I am too busy being immersed to the utter maelstrom of noise) feel dark, oppressive and scuzzy, all thoroughly good traits in my book.

Emotion is the watch word of the whole set. Musically, it is a pensive, highly charged melting pot of caustic distorted riffs and impassioned yelps. Performance wise it feels like an incredibly important show for Mastiff, and not just because it is the first one back. It signals the start of one journey and the end of another. As stated above, Mastiff have now left APF to sign with eOne Heavy (home of High on Fire and Crowbar). However, the respect and love for their APF is evident and the moment where Jim pays tribute to their former label boss Andrew Field is particularly poignant. We are playfully promised a final track of epic proportions, but instead get a short blast of primal noise and they are gone. Bleak, jagged and really rather wonderful. Ladies and Gentlemen, we are back in the game.

I know it’s a cliché, but god do Pist look comfortable up on a big stage. Tonight’s performance proves beyond doubt that they hold aspirations far beyond their current underground cult hero status. They sound clean, crisp, focused and well-rehearsed. The days of being jagged around the edges and seeing the whole thing as a bit of lark are long gone. Tonight, they come across as a proper band entirely at home on a large stage. The addition of Jack Trelawny on 2nd guitar has really filled out and, to be honest, simplified their live sound. The riffs have much more room to breathe and don’t feel all shoved in together.

As with Mastiff most of the set is new stuff with (by my calculations) six of the nine tracks coming from the yet untitled, currently being produced third record. From what I hear tonight they are continuing on with the massive step forward they took with “Hailz”. Still Heavy and still grinding, but there is just so much more clarity and conviction to the riffs. The only track name that sticks is ‘Death to All’ (I really should take better notes) but musically every single one of the newbies makes it mark.

Talking of “Hailz”, the airing of ‘Mind Rotter’ is the moment that the audience start to really kick into life. Up until that point we have sat passively nodding our collective heads and making polite noises. Its appearance signals fevered cries of adoration and a whole bunch of people ignore the guidelines, climb to their feet and flay their arms and torsos around. “Hailz” is a magnificent record and Covid did it a massive disservice. It is therefore fantastic to witness the frenzied reception it receives. ‘Fools Gave Chase’ is, for me, its standout track and it is certainly the pinnacle of tonight’s set. Its mid-track breakdown is simply stunning and see’s Dave Rowland place himself on the drum riser whilst his bandmates weave magic around them. It just feels so special and send shivers down my spine.

We get one more track and the natives are clearly getting restless. More and more audience members get to their feet and start throwing their horns. By now the security are leaving us to it. No social distancing protocols are broken (well not many), it is just that we are all collectively sick of being stuck to our seats. It feels like a good-natured release of a year’s worth of pent up tensions. We get sincere thank you’s, an invitation back to their rehearsal space and at that point every fucker in the joint stands up and shows their appreciation. We get cries for an encore, but the house lights immediately curtail that and we are done.

So first one back. In many ways it was a gig and not that different to what had come before. The “exam hall set up” (Dave’s comment not mine) is a pain but the ability to order from the bar via app is revolutionary. However, the biggest surprise is that at some point mid-lockdown Pist have become a proper grown up Metal band with potentially the riffs, songs and attitude to actually make it. The fun support act is now the consummate professional headline outfit. On tonight’s offering this could be start of something very special indeed.