Live Review : Viscera + Osiah + Portrayal of Ruinn @ Star & Garter, Manchester on May 25th 2022

We rock up to the Star & Garter on a Wednesday with loads of anticipation for the night of deathcore ahead. This is yet again another great lineup secured by Tapestry Promotions for Manchester, and I can’t sing their praises high loudly enough for the work they put in and quality they bring to the scene in the North West. Onto the bands…Portrayal of Ruinn are opening proceedings fresh from their Metal 2 the Masses win, which in the process secured them a slot at Bloodstock. The room is still filling-up as they throw themselves into their brand of deathcore. As a local band they’ve a good following and those who know them well throw shapes, arms, legs and encouragement throughout the set. The influences of Suicide Silence, Whitechapel and Caliban are clear to see in both their musical violent and also more melodic moments. The band are short of guitarist Sean Grogan tonight as he attends the birth of his child, but that doesn’t stop the rest of the boys doing him proud. In particular vocalist Calvin Fayle works his full range of screaming, growling and singing impressively and with wholehearted energy. Good luck to the guys for Bloodstock and we’ll be seeing plenty more of them in the future, no doubt.

Osiah are cheeky chaps, but oh my word do they slam that metal down hard! The Sunderland deathcore gents hammer through their set, bludgeoning us with guttural vocals, blast beats and snarling guitars. It’s technically excellent and you can’t help but nod your head to the groove they provide alongside the staccato hits and beats. Founder member Ricky Lee Roper now fronts the band, after stints originally on all the other instruments I’ve been told, and marshals his troops splendidly. His vocal force is only matched by his engaging banter and general positivity between songs. It’s awesome to see a band like this to be so immersed in their performance when mid-song, but then with a self-awareness to not take themselves too seriously between songs. It makes the crowd more comfortable I’d suggest, and the connection is real. Actually, it’s noticeable all the way through the night that the crowd, venue, promoter and bands all just seem really happy to be able to enjoy what they’re experiencing. Truly the metal community and scene at its best.

Headliners Viscera deliver exactly what I like in a heavy tech-deathcore band; intricate guitar work, chugging intense distorted rhythms, busy syncopated drum parts and brutally vicious harsh vocals interspersed with heartfelt cleans. Opening with latest single ‘Sungazer’ they then treat us to a play-through of album “Obsidian” which means we get their full range of ferocity to soaring melody. The guitars produce at times ridiculously technical passages that observed in isolation would make no sense, but when layered with the drums, vocals and remaining guitar make for a complex yet cohesive experience. Standout tracks such as ‘Delilah’ and ‘Hammers and Nails’ have the room bouncing and grinning in equal measure. Jamie Graham will be known to many as the previous frontman for Heart Of A Coward, and naturally you can hear the evolution of his songwriting and vocals from those days, with everything cranked up a level whether it be in power, emotion or technique. It’s probably fair to say that Viscera are the evolution many HOAC fans were always looking for and given the chance there’s no reason that this band can’t explode even bigger in the future. The autumn tour with Despised Icon and Decapitated will hopefully be the making of Viscera as they deserve that kind of stage, support and success.