Live Review : Sepultura + Raging Speedhorn + Cage Fight @ The Tivoli, Buckley on June 12th 2022

Tonight I am a fish so far out of water I might as well be up a tree. Getting Brazillian thrash pioneers Sepultura at the Tiv, one of just 3 appearances outside their Download set, was a real coup for them. There was no way ROCKFLESH could ignore it, I mean these guys are one of the cornerstones of the music most of my colleagues live for. And that’s the problem. They are in the UK to play Download Festival, and essentially everyone else is at Download too. So here I am, clutching my notebook somewhat nervously and wondering what on earth I have let myself in for. I have never heard a single song by any of tonight’s artists, couldn’t even name a band member for you. It’s all new, which is also kind of exciting I suppose. So fortified with a large rum I step into the fray. Let’s do this.

Live Review : Black Label Society + Tuskar @ O2 Academy, Liverpool on June 9th 2022

Tuskar are an utter force of nature. For a duo they make one hell of a lot of noise. Everything revolves around drummer and vocalist Tyler Hodges. His pulsating beats are high up in the mix and Tuskar’s scuzzy doom is predominantly drum driven. In fact the presence of guitarist Tim Hammond seems primarily to ensure Tyler doesn't get lonely up there by himself. Over the years doom has become refined and sanitised.

Live Review : Ginger Wildheart & The Sinners + Carol Hodge + Matty James @ Night & Day Café, Manchester on June 5th 2022

A word if I may about the venue, as I’ve not been to the Night & Day Café before. It’s a funky little place just off Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester. It’s long and narrow, with toilets downstairs in the cellar. The décor is eclectic, Tiffany lampshades mix with 70s-style plastic ones, the bar is lit by vintage stage spotlights and there is an abundance of fairy lights throughout. Furniture is transport café utilitarian or faded padded pub benches, and the walls are full of music-related cartoons and caricatures. I like it! We grab a table at the back, and I am delighted to discover that you can see the stage from most of the room.

Live Review : Steve Vai @ O2 Ritz, Manchester on June 5th 2022

Widdly, widdly, widdly, widdly, widdly… There you go that’s my review. Least that is what Stewart Lucas said I should write about tonight, so I guess my work here is done?!!

Well, maybe not quite. However, given in my latest review (for Creeper last weekend) I clearly stated I cannot do commentary on composition and melodies, rather lyrics and vocals are where it is all at… this review might be a slight challenge for me.

So, if you have come here for a detailed review of guitar playing and all that entails you are more than likely going to be disappointed.

Live Review : Bad Religion + U.K. Subs @ Academy, Manchester on June 4th 2022

The term “Cult Band” gets thrown around way too much for my liking. If there’s one band however who is deserved of this title, it is U.K. Subs. It is impossible not to enjoy watching a now 78 year old Charlie Harper strut around the stage with an absolute natural suaveness belting out some of the finest Punk songs written. It was a shame that at the start of the set, the Manchester Academy was very sparsely populated, and only by the final portion of the bands 40 minute set, did it seem like there was a pretty decent sized crowd.

Live Review : Eternal Champion + Frozen In Shadows + Asylum City Zoo @ Rebellion, Manchester on June 1st 2022

It is times like these that make you realise what a tight knit community we have. You see, Eternal Champion were in rather a bind. Their appearance at Manorfest was meant to be a UK exclusive and they were flying over from the States especially for it. In fact, they were literally on the tarmac when news of Manorfest’s postponement came through. So, they found themselves in the UK all dressed up but with no place to go. Metal being metal, various promoters (including Damnation festival’s very own Gavin and Manchester's Tapestry Promotions) immediately rallied round the band and miraculously managed to pull together a last-minute UK tour. So here we are at Rebellion on Wednesday night for a show that didn't exist seven days ago.

Live Review : Creeper @ Star and Garter, Manchester on May 29th 2022

So… in the space of 24 hours, I saw Creeper, met singer Will Gould and found myself buying two tickets for tonight’s randomly announced gig…

Well, truth be told by the time I got to the AO Arena on Friday to see Creeper, The Cult and Alice Cooper, picked up the tickets, found our seats (or rather just plonked down in the first free seats we found) the closing bars of “Annabelle” were playing and the band were walking off stage… sigh! Very disappointing, but my disappointment did not last too long as during the intermission we left our seats only to spy Mister Gould near the bar and feeling brave I seized my chance to go over and say hi…

Live Review : Meshuggah + Zeal & Ardor @ Academy, Manchester on May 28th 2022

Of Metal’s many traits, the one I adore the most is its ability to continually evolve. Most other musical genres have a fixed shelf life. As soon as they surface in the mainstream, they are made instantly obsolete by whatever scene is bubbling up in the underground behind them. Metal’s secret for survival has been simple, but highly effective. Namely, it assimilates what is set up to replace it and absorbs that into its own collected being.

Live Review : Alice Cooper + The Cult + Creeper @ AO Arena, Manchester on May 27th 2022

Initially, it seems that Creeper have the odds well and truly stacked against them. There are barely a thousand people inside this gigantic arena for their 7.00 PM start and the seating set-up is reminiscent of those cringe-worthy times at school that your mates' band played assembly. Additionally, a wholly unscientific mid-set survey, conducted by the band, shows that the vast majority of people present don't have a Scooby who they are. However, Creeper have two secret weapons.

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.

Live Review : LANDMVRKS + ten56. + Resolve @ Rebellion, Manchester on May 24th 2022

Sometimes you’re at a gig and it just feels that little bit more special, that it’s a night you’ll tell the kids about and could be one of those watershed “I was there” moments. Tonight feels like one of those times. All three bands end up performing phenomenal sets, and in particular for headliners LANDMVRKS you feel that this should be the start of something massive.

Live Review : Mayhem + Mortiis + Barshasketh @ Academy 2, Manchester on May 21st 2022

It used to be that an appearance by black metal legends Mayhem was a rare phenomenon, however, in recent years they have become less sporadic and more generous in their live appearances. Consequentially there has begun to be less of a feeling of “oh my god it's Mayhem!” and more of “Didn’t we see them last week?”. Saying all that, it is still third time lucky for this particular show. Originally scheduled for March 2020, it was pushed back into 2021 and then into this year. This trail of postpones means that there is a veritable air of expectation, even if the album they were meant to be promoting (“Daemon”) has long slipped from our collective consciousness.

Live Review : Whitesnake + Journey + Europe @ AO Arena, Manchester on May 18th 2022

Tonight, the AO arena has become one vast Karaoke booth. With no material to promote, all three acts unashamedly head down the “greatest hits” path. This is a case of raiders of the back catalogue, and even the most fair-weather planet rock listener finds at least one track in each set they miraculously know all the words to. Europe are first out the traps and whilst they are all now in their late fifties, they have the playful air of five teenagers playing rock n’ roll for the sheer love of the music.

Live Review : Phil Campbell and The Bastard Sons + Gorilla Riot + Unknown Refuge @ Academy Club, Manchester on May 17th 2022

In these days of media driven celebrity drivel- where everyone wants to be famous for 5 minutes for exposing their breasts, telling some seedy kiss and tell ‘story’ or dancing like a twat and sharing it for some unknown pointless reason on Tik Tok in the vague hope that someone will give them ‘likes’ and comment and praise them into thinking they are talented, real talent often goes amiss and shockingly overlooked. As does the term legend. Again, too often loosely thrown about, bestowed by corrupt media on any such non entity they deem deserved of that title.

Live Review : The Mercury Riots + Black Water Fiend @ The Freebird, Newcastle-Under-Lyme on May 14th 2022

Another day another rock gig, but also a new venue to explore. I liked it. It’s easy to get to, plenty of parking, staff were lovely, the room is small but has seating for us old codgers and the sound was spot-on. Even the lights, which looked ominously purple at first, turned out to be not so bad and I think Ryan managed to do both bands justice with the photos.

Live Review : Collateral + Before The Storm + Cry For Mercy @ The Live Rooms, Chester on May 13th 2022

Tonight’s main support should have been Empyre, but unfortunately they have been hit by the dreaded ‘rona (get well soon guys) so local band Cry For Mercy were drafted in to open the show instead. They are a 3-piece outfit from Wrexham, and they open with just a guitar and vocals, which I quite like. Unfortunately though this is due to a technical issue rather than by design, and once someone works out how to plug the bass in the sound gets a lot better! The style is bluesy, but in a commercial and catchy way, and it’s OK. My first thought on hearing them is that they sound a bit like Thunder.

Live Review : Metal 2 The Masses Merseyside Heat 3 @ Zanzibar, Liverpool on May 13th 2022

Metal 2 the masses, Bloodstock’s gift to small dingy venues the length and breadth of this fair isle (and beyond). In many ways, it represents what we at ROCKFLESH towers are all about, celebrating the rich and diverse talent that exists in our vibrant metal underground. This is Liverpool’s heat 3, Deified has cancelled due to illness but it as still pulled an eager crowd, happy to spend their Friday night watching bands and throwing beer at each other (more about that later).

Gig ReviewAuthor : Stewart Lucas16 May 2022ZanzibarAutopsya, Nesh, Mad Spanner, ZanzibarComment

Live Review : Fit For An Autopsy + Ingested + Enterprise Earth + Great American Ghost + Sentinels @ Rebellion, Manchester on May 8th 2022

It’s an early Sunday evening start for a very heavy night at Rebellion, and New Jersey progressive metalcore crew Sentinels are first up. They prowl the dark stage in sinister fashion with a mysterious electronic backing-track before exploding into an exciting, high energy set. The best way to describe them is a tech-metal Malevolence, but they cover way more bases than that suggests.

Live Review : Hacktivist + Lake Malice + Rosen Bridge @ The Bread Shed, Manchester on May 7th 2022

Rosen Bridge are up first in The Bread Shed tonight having made the short trip from North Wales. They immediately crank out their crunching tech-metal akin to Northlane, InVisions and Architects. They’re not as slick and smooth live as on their recordings, but still offer an interesting and entertaining performance. The harsh vocals bite and slam into the front row, but the cleans seem troubled by the dry house sound tonight.

Live Review : Helloween + HammerFall @ The Academy, Manchester on May 4th 2022

Power Metal, that most maligned and ridiculed of Metal many sub-genres. Tonight, is a heavyweight tussle between two of its premiere league exponents. In the red corner, Helloween who conceived the whole bloody genre back in the eighties and in the blue corner, HammerFall who have kept the flame burning (and held the hammer aloft) since the mid-nineties. If you like your metal bloated, bombastic and free of irony then this is a marriage made in Valhalla, if not I would bugger off and watch the football.