The recent widespread vaccination and mask requirement safety protocols has lead to a surge in shows... it seems like there are must-see shows happening almost daily! One of these definitely was Grayskull Booking's event at The Middle East in Boston featuring the well-known local band Mourned, NYC death-doom band Funeral Leech, and the 2020 breakthrough tech-death band Blood Incantation.
Grayskull Booking has been knocking it out of the park for a while, but lately with this show and notably HIGH ON FIRE / DOOMRIDERS, and from what I hear BARONESS in the near future too, The Middle East is set to become the best recurring metal venue around. It compares to the very fond memories I have visiting the Gramercy Theater in NYC for a time in the 2010s, if there are any of those that remember those days.
MOURNED is Billy Nichols, Brendan Coughlin, CJ Romero, Dave Coughlin. They play a very fresh, modern-sounding death metal with a lot of groove. I'm not overly into bands that come off like a show-off music practice exercise, or bands that simply cram as many mosh-friendly parts in as possible. These guys strike a great balance between grime & technicality, and because of that wide appeal they are definitely headed for great things.
In November 2019, they released "Devoured Humanity" a 2-song EP which contains songs that will be featured on an upcoming full length. This was done at the legendary GODCITY STUDIOS here in Salem by Chris Johnson. There's also a Japan only release with these tracks plus their EP "Riff Ripper." They've got two other promos/demos out as well.
I can't wait for this full-length to be done, I hope they release it on vinyl! I've got a short clip of "Blue Rain" as a preview of how they sound live, what incredible energy!
They've got killer merch as well, I snagged a longsleeve myself (photo from the band's Facebook)
Fun fact - I believe I noticed on Insta that Brendan is also a great graphic designer!
FUNERAL LEECH is a New York City Death-Doom band, from Brooklyn I believe. Like Mourned they also have a great aesthetic, particularly their logo, which the drummer had adorning the bass drum head at the show. What a great kit as well, huge 80s/90s style toms with a great looking finish. Check out their Facebook for all the imagery.
This is one of the more unique bands I've heard of late. They excel at creating atmosphere, and during the show they even included pre-recorded clips and samples for additional effects between songs. The drummer lays down interesting, steady time & fills while simultaneously supplying the death growls. The video below doesn't really do them justice but it's enough to get the general sense.
Their sound came off at first to me like old-school Florida death metal, or Bolt Thrower... but as I heard more I could compare them to something like Abstracter, which I have been listening to a lot lately.
I've read some criticism that the band sounds formulaic, however, I instead appreciate the overall vibe and I bought the record right away. This is something I can put on and chill to, alone in the evening or with a friend, the way the season is changing to fall really puts me in the mood for it.
What can I say that hasn't been said to "death" about them? A couple of years ago they became the darlings of music reviewers across multiple scenes, likely thanks to their excellent musicianship, X-Files-esque mythos, and increased accessibility moving from their frist LP "Starspawn" to "Hidden History of the Human Race."
Their content plays on Annuki mythology, which in short is as follows:
"The Annunaki “Those Of Royal Blood” are believed to be immortal gods that inhabited the earth during the Ancient Sumerian time in Mesopotamia.
The Sumerian civilization developed on the Persian Gulf, growing to strength at around 4 – 3,000 B.C. The ‘Plain of the Land of Shinar’ is the territory which after 2,000 B.C. became called Babylon. The Greeks named the region Mesopotamia (The land between two rivers), most of which lies in the modern state of Iraq."
Read more about that HERE, this content was found at https://www.annunaki.org/. Personally I find this all quite fascinating!
That tangent aside, I was initially skeptical about the band's staying power, as I am for most every band that receives a similar sort of attention they receive. As we are well past that initial time in the spotlight, the dust has settled and there are those who review their music on only a slightly above average level. Listening to them today and experiencing the band live, I am more impressed than I ever was, and to be completely transparent I am borderline obsessed! They are clearly taking a lot of inspiration from "Sound of Perseverance-era" DEATH, ATHEIST, and the like, and I'm all for it! It's extraordinarily technical, (but not too "studio magic") and as a musician I am wondering where I can get a glimpse into their writing and recording style. I wonder, how long does it take to come up with the parts? How much of these syncopated parts just flow right out of them effortlessly, or is it more like learning complex sheet music, with each measure taking due time to learn slowly a couple beats at a time? Regardless, it seems clear that this level of talent requires a full-time commitment. I love the vocalist's style, and I'm glad the band has not veered off into plainer, clean, progressive rock like so many others have in the last 5 years or so (I'm looking at you, Mastodon, Opeth, etc - no offense either, they are good, but I like metal more than rock)
Enjoy a long clip I recorded of their taking to the stage!
No comments:
Post a Comment