I have always been drawn to the more avant-garde and obscure corners of metal's rich tapestry. When I was making my first faltering steps into the genre in the mid-80s, whilst my contemporaries had their heads turned by the commercial giants of Maiden, Priest and the rapidly ascending Metallica, I was seduced by bands offering a more difficult and select version of metal. My early adoration with musical mavericks such as Celtic Frost, Suicidal Tendencies, Queensryche (back when they were brilliant) and Voivod.
Read MoreDue to guest list shenanigans, we only get down to the Club Academy (or cellar as it was known in my day) for the second half of Tortured Demon’s set. Annoying, but on the bright side we still get to see three tracks. Putting aside their youth, the most captivating thing about Tortured Demon is that they perfectly capture the raw turbulent energy that thrash was initially all about. They may be rough around the edges, and they may in places feel unrefined, but none of that matters because what they have at their heart is a chaotic connectivity that makes them a delicious live proposition.
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