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My Experience at MDF 2015: Part 4 – Sunday

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For the final day in Baltimore we (now also joined by Josh’s friend Tom who was with us for just that day) decided to make a trip to legendary writer Edgar Allen Poe’s grave.

I decided to wear my Suspiria shirt; one to wear something that for once wasn’t a band and two because it fit the the atmosphere of the exhibit. After getting a picture with his tombstone we headed back to the Edison Lot, stopping by 7-11 for lunch before heading down to the venue. When we got there we ran into none other then Katherine Katz of Agoraphobic Nosebleed.We all got pictures with Katz and I eventually would get to interview her. For this day I would stay at the Edison Lot for the remainder of its run (just like I did last year).

Masacre

When we finally got to the venue we had already missed the first two bands, so the first one I caught was Colombian death metal band Masacre. Knowing nothing about this band I decided to watch them out of curiosity and damn was this awesome. I couldn’t believe a band I never heard of could end up being one of the best bands Sunday had to offer. After this set, I’m now a proud Masacre fan.

Goatsnake

Back in 2011, Goatsnake dropped from playing MDF and where replaced by Ghost.While Ghost were cool to see, I’m glad that this year I finally got to see this stoner/doom super group.

Goatsnake was a nice break from the extreme nature of Masacre and most of the bands from previous days. Goatsnake had a good sound which helped with their trippy atmosphere (until this show I never noticed how much the singer sounds like Alice in Chains’ Layne Stayley).

Primordial

After seeing death metal then doom we then switched to folk metal with Primordial. As mentioned in part three, I am very picky with folk metal. Primordial is a band that is not only an exception but one I find to be top notch. Primordial sounded much more epic live  – especially when they closed with “Empire falls,” their signature song.

Winter

After Primordial the shift returned to doom but with a deep-seated vengeance. I was super stoked to see these death/doom pioneers as I was always a big fan of their only album,”Into Darkness” for quite some time. As it tends to be in real life, Winter was extremely heavy and crushing – one of the heaviest bands on the fest.

Anaal Nathrakh

England’s Anaal Nathrakh were yet another one of my “must-see’s” (Sunday was on a roll). With the exception of the clean vocal sections, the band’s distinct mix of grindcore, black metal and industrial translated great live (a very minor complaint). The crowd went from being crushed by doom to intense moshing. The transition would revert to doom yet again with the next band.

Skepticism

To be honest, I was never a fan of funeral doom. During this band’s set I decided to get food from my favorite MDF vendors Pork Lord Tacos. After eating I went to the shape area. Here I met a girl named Coco who turned out to have read my interview with Teloch of Mayhem as well as friends with my areas infamous Facebook troll Olivia (small world).

Demilich

After Skepticism was over my excitement skyrocketed. One of the bands I wanted to see the most was about to start.

Finland’s tech-death masters were a band I planned on catching no matter who played at the same time. Demilich’s set was perfect: the sound, the energy, the choice of songs – EVERYTHING. This was easily my favorite set from Sunday night and one of my favorites of the whole fest.

Neurosis

Neurosis was always a band I found to be over-hyped. While I am a fan of sludge, the more post-rock infused bands just never did it for me. I was bored during their whole set and was honestly just awaiting to see Amorphis.

Amorphis

Next to Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Amorphis was the fest’s second biggest draw.

This was Amorphis’s second time playing in America (the first being at that year’s 70,000 Tons of Metal cruise). Amorphis was set to play their best album “Tales from One Thousand Lakes” in its entirety.

Unlike ANB (who more then met expectations), Amorphis was the most disappointing band of the entire fest. The main problem was the sound which I immediately noticed was way off. The mic would also tune in and out a lot – most noticeably during the clean vocal sections of “Black Winter Day.”

I didn’t stay for the whole set as I wanted to catch Melt Banana at Soundstage, but people who did told me Amorphis played no encore and would have had time for one if they did. What a bad move for a Sunday headliner.

Melt Banana

Japan’s experimental rock band was up next. I caught up with my friends Nick and Cheyenne and we watched from the rail at Soundstage.

Melt Banana more then made up for Amorphis’s disappointing set. The over-the-top energy mixed with the theatrical light show and vocalist Yasuko Onuki’s chirping vocals made it impossible to not enjoy this experience (she would also talk to the audience in her “chirp voice,” which I thought was pretty funny). As different as it was, Melt Banana was still one of the fest’s best acts.

D.R.I

I had once seen D.R.I. three years ago where they played a two hour set due to it being their anniversary show. Here I only planned to watch them for 45 minutes so it wouldn’t conflict with Portal at Rams Head. Having said that, 45 minutes of D.R.I. is still a lot of songs!

They opened with “Who Am I?” – the perfect way to start a D.R.I. set. Like last time, their energy was great but because of a larger crowd, they were more fun to watch this time around. After watching a decent amount of songs I went over to Rams Head for the final band of the 2015 Maryland Deathfest.

Portal

I got into Rams Head and watched Portal set up from one of the TV screens before finding a great spot where I could see everything.

Portal had a dark theatrical performance that went well with their odd, atmospheric music. They were going over time and their equipment’s power was eventually shut off. This didn’t stop them from finishing their last song. Overall, they were a great way to finish the fest.

After their set Josh,Tom, Matt, Nicole and I went back to the hotel (Jason had already gone back after D.R.I.) before heading home the next day. As always, MDF 2015 was a success and we all can’t wait to see what Evan and Ryan (the fest’s organizers) have in store for us this year.

Music

My Experience at MDF 2015: Part 3 – Saturday

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Saturday was going to be the roughest day of the fest. With so many good bands across the stages, I knew I’d end up moving around a lot.

Before the show we stopped at a pharmacy since some of our friends needed a few things. Here I ran into Joe Sullivan of Metal Rules TV (this was an awesome surprise as his concert reviews are a big influence on mine). Today was the only day that our group included two more people, Gwen and Joff (this was due to them only having Saturday Edison tickets).

Fulgora

As early as 12:15 P.M. (seriously MDF wtf?) Fulgora played. I went into this set knowing nothing about them except that they’re on Phil Anselmo’s of Pantera fame’s Housecore Records. The band played some kind of sludge/death metal mix with a space theme.The drums were impressive but sadly, nothing else was.

Serpentine Path

After Fulgora were done another sludge/death metal fusion took the stage. This was one I was more familiar with. Playing a sludge influenced version of 90’s death doom, Serpentine Path crushed it.

Twilight of the Gods

Twilight of the Gods is a Bathory influenced power metal band. Although power metal is normally not my thing, I will admit this band played well. I’d heard the band started out as a Bathory cover band, which would have been awesome if they played some Bathory songs.

Morpheus Descends

The first of the “must-see” bands of Saturday. Being from the area Morpheus Descends is from, I’d seen them twice before (both secret shows). Now was time to see them play to a much larger audience.

I was joined by Pearl and Andrew of Chicago death metal band Moratorium.We all watched Morpheus Descends play their classic tracks such as “Immortal Coil” and “Corpse Under Glass.” It felt both weird and awesome to see a band from my area play the main stage at a huge festival.

Einherjer

After watching some death metal from familiar ground the lot shifted to viking black metal from Norway. I tend to be pretty picky when it comes to the whole folky side of metal, but Einherjer was always one of the ones I dug. Their epic and atmospheric sounds really translated well on Edison. I could have done without the people in Turisas shirts dancing funny, but it was a fun set regardless. After these guys I would run over to Soundstage.

Full Of Hell

After getting some cheap 7-11 food I went into Soundstage for some powerviolence. Full of Hell played their brand of hyper-aggressive noise really well. I didn’t stand too close to the stage as I was going to leave right after their set.

Vulcano

I rushed back to Edison Lot and got there just in time for some Brazilian thrash. I never had the chance to check these guys out before and boy did I wish I had.They played very raw and primitive old-school thrash that quickly reminded me of Sarcofago and old Sepultura.

Bulldozer

After watching one of Brazil’s most obscure thrash bands, it was time for an Italian one.

I will admit though I’ve made fun of some of their weird ideas and lyrics in articles in the past, I don’t dislike them at all and find them fun to listen to. With that said, I actually really enjoyed their set. My friend Herb, who was standing right up front yelled at them to play their infamous “Dance Got Sick” EP -t o which the bands vocalist, A.C. Wild heard him and laughed.

Tryptikon

On the car ride here Josh and I were both discussing what Tryptikon’s set would be like. We wondered if it would be all Tryptikon songs or if there would be any Celtic Frost covers thrown in for good measure (either variation would’ve been cool). I mentioned that I doubted they would play “Proclamation of the Wicked” or any Hellhammer songs.

As soon as the set started I was wrong. They opened up with “Proclamation of the Wicked,” playing it in the slowed down Tryptikon style. I watched it with my Albany friends Filip and Craig and while we were pretty far, we heard them nice and clear where we were. They played a mix of Trypikon songs and Celtic Frost classics. Singer/guitarist Tom G. Warrior proved me wrong once again when the band played the Hellhammer track “Messiah.” Not only was it an amazing set, it one of the best performances of the whole fest.

Matyrdod 

I rushed back to the Soundstage yet again to catch these Swedish crusties in action, who played a fun energetic set. After Matyrdod I went once again back to Edison.

Arcturus

I got back to Edison right when these guys were about to set up. A very different band on the bill, Artcurus are a Norwegian metal band with avant-garde influences. The bands sound turned off a lot of people but I was excited to finally get to see them (especially after their great new album “Arcturian”). Vortex’s vocals sounded spot-on and the band’s campy theatrics were fun as hell to watch. Arcturus had a great set, playing material from most of their albums.

Razor

The last band of Edison Lot was the old-school Canadian thrash band Razor. While I still wish Sodom didn’t cancel their appearance, seeing Razor was still pretty cool. The band delivered a great thrash performance and a set that included a lot of classics. Herb and I left 15 minutes before their set ended to catch a band we both wanted to see at Rams Head.

Gnaw Their Tongues

We got into Rams Head to watch what was probably the second biggest outlier on the bill next to Mobb Deep. Gnaw Their Tongues play electronic music with black metal influences.

Instead of a full band it was a man programming beats on his laptop while another member did shrieks. I’m not a huge fan of electronic music, but this band is a pretty big. Gnaw Their Tongues had a lot of walk-outs due to being so different from many other bands on the bill, but I enjoyed the haunting atmosphere the band brought with them. Towards the end of their set I yet again went back to Soundstage.

Wolfbrigade

Wolfbrigade are the band that got me into crust punk and are still one of my favorites of the genre. They killed with their high energy and intense circle pits.Their whole set reminded me of first checking these guys out in 12th grade and learning what crust punk is all about.

Agoraphobic Nosebleed

The time had come for the main attraction of the entire fest: Agoraphobic Nosebleed’s first official live show.

The expectations where high. Just the thought of being part of the first real show from a band that never plays live was mind-blowing enough. The venue was extremely crowded. Anyone who had a pass that allowed access to Soundstage on Saturday was here.

The band more then met expectations. The energy was top notch. The sound was crystal-clear and extremely loud and their set had the most violent pit I had ever seen.

ANB would end up being my favorite performance of the entire fest. It felt as if the band had been building up to this very moment from the day they started. When ANB finished we traveled back to the hotel. Walking with us were a bunch of Josh and Nicole’s friends who were also blown away by this moment as well as a guy with a traffic cone on his head yelling that he was the singer for Portal (not making this up).

Check out the final part (Sunday) right here.

Music

Nuclear Assault at the Gramercy Theater – 9/12/15

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Thrash legends Nuclear Assault have embarked on their final tour (dubbed as the “Final Assault” tour) which will commence with a one-off appearance at next year’s Maryland Death Fest where they will finally hang it up for good.

Last Saturday, the band played an awesome show to a packed hometown crowd with friends Murphy’s Law and Whiplash at New York City’s Gramercy Theater; which I was fortunate enough to have attended.

I had taken the day off from work for a local show in my area when the date of that show got moved. I figured I’d tag along with my friend Jay to go to this awesome looking show instead. We took the train to New York City, got slices of dollar pizza, then took the subway and walked to the Gramercy Theater. Once inside, I ran into some buddies of mine and we caught up until the show started.

Whiplash

Up first were thrash legends Whiplash. I was not too familiar with them outside of their 1986 debut “Power and Pain,” but my friends were excited to see them. The band was fucking killer. They had incredible incredible energy and sounded great.

Murphy’s Law

Next up was the hardcore punk band Murphy’s Law. While I am a big fan of 80’s hardcore, this band was never one I could get into. The band played a very long set and had a lot of energy. After watching them for a few minutes, I went down to the lower part of the venue to look at merch. Jay and I would then meet Tony Potaro, the vocalist and guitarist for Whiplash and get a picture.

Nuclear Assault

After Murphy’s Law finished it was time for Nuclear Assault.

I had seen them once four years ago at MDF 2011. While this fest had other greats like Voivod, Ghost, Acid Witch, Nunslaughter,and Exhumed; Nuclear Assault owned – and here they were no different. The band delivered classics such as “Brainwashed,” ”Hang the Pope” and “Critical Mass.”

Bassist Danny Liker is a legend. I’m also a fan of his other bands Brutal Truth, S.O.D and his time in Anthrax. S.O.D is scheduled to play the Black and Blue Bowl in Brooklyn next year and I will make sure I go.

Music, Podcast

Bonesaw Podcast – Episode 19: Robert Orr of Zamboni

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Joined by his partner in crime Robert Orr, Chris Butera discusses the NWA biopic “Straight Outta Compton,” this year’s installment of their annual “Thrash Bash BBQ” concert, Batman: the Animated Series and more.

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Bonesaw Update: Thrash, Doom and BBQ’s

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Hi Everybody,

Haven’t posted anything in a few days guys so I figured I should cue you in on what’s been going on.

I’ve been working like a dog at my “joe” job while trying to become a force in publishing. During my days off, I’ve been recording podcasts with a number of fantastic underground artists, writing for Metal Insider and working on some musical projects (which I’ll get to later).

On top of that, I’m still doing some booking for the Thrash Bash BBQ. It’s been a little tricky since we changed the date from August 1st to August 15th so there has been some re-booking issues here and there. I am also waiting for the artwork to be delivered by Paul Motisi. He does work for Moon Tooth and is a fantastic artist. You can check out his stuff here. Once the artwork is taken care of the final flyer will be made and we’ll be going into heavy promotion mode.

I’ve been reading Hardcore Holly’s book “The Hardcore Truth” and my God, is it good. Holly holds nothing back in his tell-all. If you’re the type who enjoys a good shoot this is for you.

On a side note, prepping for my cousin’s wedding this Fourth of July weekend so it’s been hectic. I’m very proud of her and can’t wait to see her walk down the aisle along with friends and family.

Music has been interesting to me lately. Some new artists I think should be taken care of are Gruesome and Temple of Dagon, who are hitting their stride with their new EP titled “Revelations of the Spirit.” Both artists are incredibly talented and deserve a listen. Gruesome’s “Savage Land” album is great. How they managed to nail Death’s “Leprosy” sound is beyond me because this was an effort that took much more than studio magic. There will be some reviews for these pieces and hopefully that will open a few doors.

Saw The Skull the other night at Santo’s Party House along with Sunlord, who’s guitarist Alfonso Ferrazza was a recent guest on the podcast. It’s always nice to meet the people you work with. They had some high energy but no energy was higher than The Skull as singer Eric Wagner was inhaling cigarette smoke and other substances that are legal in some states (but not this one) on stage. If you don’t know The Skull they’re a doom/stoner band consisting of former member of the band Trouble – who are still active with different members. If you don’t know Trouble then check them out. “Plastic Green Head” and “The Skull” are good places to start.

Last but not least, my musical endeavors have begun to start back up. The Zamboni album is sounding great but is still in the early mixing stages. Hopefully it’ll be finished by the end of the year. I’m very proud of it and can’t wait to get my hands on the end result. I have also been working on a blackened doom project with my friend and coworker. I won’t be giving away any details but I will say that it’s instrumental with soundtrack concepts.

Thanks for giving me the time to fill you in on my current events. At some point I hope to bring back the band of the week and throwback Thursdays. If you or anybody you know would be into writing about anything the site focuses on feel free to email me at bonesawzine@gmail.com. We’re always looking for contributing writers. Until then know what you’re worth and fight the good fight.

-Chris Butera

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Bonesaw Podcast: Episode 13 – Sunlord’s Alfonso Ferrazza

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We talk metal with Alfonso Ferrazza from Queens thrashers Sunlord. Ferrazza chats about recording Sunlord’s debut “The First One,” touring with the legendary Anvil, and his passion for music as well as gearing up for Sunlord’s June 28 show at New York’s Santo’s Party House where the band will be opening for The Skull (featuring ex-Trouble frontman Eric Wagner).

Check out Sunlord on Facebook or Reverb Nation.

Music

King Parrot: Dead Set Review

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When one finds a band that sells a t-shirt bearing the words “I’m not here to fuck spiders,” it’s safe to say they have no idea what they’re in for.

That band is King Parrot; a destructive grindcore act from the hardcore pubs of southern Australia who is bestowing their sophomore album entitled “Dead Set” on Pantera and Down’s legendary front man Phil Anselmo’s (who also produced the release) Housecore Records.

The album kicks off with “Anthem of the Advanced Sinner.” If you’re familiar with King Parrot’s music the difference in production is night and day compared to their first album “Bite Your Head Off.” The clarity of each individual member is striking and it goes to show what a difference a larger budget and ample amounts of time can make.

“Dead Set” progresses deeper into darkness with “Need No Saviour,” “Hell Comes Your Way” and “Like a Rat,” boasting speed and relentless grind with true precision and technicality. The plunge then goes further with “Tomorrow Turns to Blood” and “Home is Where the Gutter is” when the grind becomes blackened and sludgy. The songs slowly start to accumulate grooves in all the right places, twisting King Parrot into form.

“Sick in the Head” and “Punisher” shake things up a bit by starting with thrash laden riffs before taking some groove oriented turns at Albuquerque. One of the best things about King Parrot is that their music is all over the place, never sticking to the same formula twice. We could be looking at the first “progressive grindcore” band – if ever there could be such a thing.

Although every musician has bolstered their repertoire on Dead Set, no one has improved more than vocalist Matt “Youngy” Young. Youngy’s voice has gotten significantly higher (which he attributes to quitting cigarettes) and more ferocious at that. Whereas Youngy sonically was a bit more like Steve “Zetro” Souza (Exodus) on “Bite Your Head Off,” he’s much more in the vein of Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates, Lock Up) on “Dead Set.”

The final two songs “Reject” and the title track combine everything that King Parrot have done so far on “Dead Set” and then crank it up a few notches for good measure. The title track not only revolves around a blackened breakdown, but it also clocks in at six minutes and 49 seconds; the longest song King Parrot has ever recorded to date.

King Parrot continues to be unpredictable with “Dead Set” and have clearly gone a long way from playing locally to tens of people. With the added experience from the success of “Bite Your Head Off,” the band has musically matured for the better and it shows on every crevice of “Dead Set”.

After all, they’re not here to fuck spiders.

Music

Band of the Week: Temple of Dagon

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Awaken the almighty Cthulu with California’s Temple of Dagon.

A band whose lyrics are centered around H.P. Lovecraft’s tales of terror, Temple of Dagon unleashes a unique breed of metal blending death metal, thrash metal, doom, crust punk and New York influenced hardcore grooves.

Taking their name from Lovecraft’s “Dagon” story, the band formed in 2009 and released “The Book of Azathoth” EP, which contained a more primitive sound. Temple of Dagon would later perfect their sound on 2014’s “Rituals of the Deep,” their first and only full length record to date.

On January 22, Temple of Dagon announced via Facebook that they will be playing the OC Cruststock Volume 3 festival from June 26 to June 28. Tickets can be obtained at this link.

Check out Temple of Dagon HERE.

Download “Rituals of the Deep” HERE.

Music

Band of the Week: Nailbomb

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Nailbomb was a side project of Max Cavalera (Soulfly, Ex – Sepultura) and Alex Newport (Fudge Tunnel) that should have taken over the world.

Unfortunately, Nailbomb’s run was short lived as the band would only play one show at the 1995 Dynamo Festival (which would become their live album, “Proud to Commit Commercial Suicide”) after releasing their only album of extreme aggression, 1995’s “Point Blank” on Roadrunner Records.

“Point Blank” was highly chaotic and wild with its blend of thrashing breakneck speed and heavy, sludgy grooves. The political and confrontational lyrics were just as offensive as its album art – a female Vietcong member with a U.S. soldier’s gun pressed against her temple. The brutality of the artwork was only a metaphor for what Nailbomb would sound like.

This is some of the most raw emotion to be captured on audio.

“Point Blank” also featured guest musicians Dino Cazares (Fear Factory), Andreas Kisser (Sepultura) and Igor Cavalera (Sepultura) and would become a highlight of every career involved.

“Point Blank” also had some box office success as the song “Wasting Away” was featured in Gus Van Sant’s 1995 comedy-drama “To Die For” where Nicole Kidman seduces a young Joaquin Phoenix in order to convince him to kill her husband.

For whatever reason, Nailbomb chose to release only one album, but Cavalera, Newport and friends gave every bit of anger and frustration they had to getting a phenomenal record out of “Point Blank”. While there’s always a possibility for a return album in the name of nostalgia, perhaps it is better in the long run that Nailbomb’s legacy is left where it peaked.

Music

Band of the Week: Blood Feast

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One of the unsung heroes of old-school Thrash – New Jersey’s own Blood Feast.

Taking their name from the classic gore movie, Blood Feast originally formed in 1985 as “Blood Lust.” They changed their name the following year, shortly after the release of their “Suicidal Mission” demo.

In 1987 Blood Feast released their debut album “Kill For Pleasure” and the “Face Fate” EP on New Renaissance Records. These releases were innovative with the speed and technicality of their work reaching a new level of ferocity in the Thrash Metal world.

Several years and a shift in the lineup would go by before Blood Feast would release their sophomore album, “Chopping Block Blues” in 1990 on Colossal Records. Guitarist Adam Tranquilli had left the band and Blood Feast would record “Chopping Block Blues” as a four-piece. Blood Feast then split up a year later in 1991.

Blood Feast seemed to be over, but they would later reform for two one-off shows in 1999 and 2007. The latter would lead to Blood Feast officially coming out of retirement with Tranquilli returning to the fold and a slew of lineup changes. Since then, Blood Feast have released two compilations (2002’s “Remnants: The Last Remains” and 2013’s “Last Offering Before the Chopping Block”) and have been working on new material for quite some time. The clip above is the official video for their new song “Off With Their Heads.”

The only question that lingers is if and when a new Blood Feast album will see the light of day. In the meantime just sit back, relax, and don’t forget to drink the blood of every corpse.