Thy Art Is Murder - The Underworld, London - February 7 2014 (Live Review)
Monday, 10 February 2014
Written by Alec Chillingworth
How do you go about opening for one of the most formidable, shit-hot up and coming metal bands on the planet? I'm not entirely sure, and neither are Aegaeon as they take to the stage at The Underworld, with Thy Art Is Murder heading a formidable bill.
Their technical, brain-boggling death metal feeds the masses for a time, but a computer issue leaves them stranded on stage in silence for about five minutes. It's painfully awkward, and while they manage to churn out another tune before they leave, any momentum was already lost.
It's a good job that Aversions Crown are here to get the party started, then. With more wind-milling on stage than Jason Newsted on holiday in the Netherlands, they are what the Underworld needs.
Musically, it's more of the same, but the punishing delivery ensures that fans in the sold-out pit get what they came for. Aside from a couple of wankers punching everyone, it's a joy to witness.
Musically different from everyone else on the bill due to the inclusion of clean vocals and, well, not being a death metal band, Heart Of A Coward stick out like a sore thumb. But, when they take the stage, the reaction is just unreal.
Concentrating mainly on material from their latest album, 'Severance', Heart Of A Coward's mish-mash of prog and groove-laden hardcore proceeds to kick seven shades of shit out of the place. Frontman Jamie Graham is an absolute beast, jumping from harrowing screams to emotive cleans instantaneously. Singalongs to Deadweight and Shade are next-level stuff, with the roar of “Suffer! Bitch!” on the latter already sounding arena-ready.
Most bands would be shaking uncontrollably at the prospect of following such a set, but Thy Art Is Murder do so with such ease. Watching vocalist CJ McMahon strut on stage, wild-eyed and clad in a mac, before launching the band into Defective Breed is just off the chain.
While many songs aired tonight are from 'Hate', their most recent album, it's nice to see the inclusion of oldies like Whore To A Chainsaw, during which a dude with a camera strapped to his face goes crowdsurfing. Drummer Lee Stanton deserves a mention, thumping his way through the setlist at heroic pace without apparently breaking a sweat.
By the end of the night, it's just carnage. Absolute fucking carnage. Stagedivers come and go in their masses – with McMahon joining them – and there's about 20 people on stage by the time Reign Of Darkness is played. Thy Art Is Murder are a genuine revelation.
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
