METAL NIGHT, Broken Conscience, That Night Forests Grew, Hollow Bodies, Mortiferum.

Holy Molys, Lev 1 Esquires, Bedford. Saturday 14th December 2013.

Tonight Metal music came from both our home town and our welcome visitors from Peterborough, kicking off with Bedfords own welcome to the dark side MORTIFERUM giving us death, thrash and metal which I thought was well practiced all round especially as they really haven’t been going all that long. Blisteringly good guitarwork emphasised their sound. Their own songs are pretty good and their covers add a stamp of their own, appreciatively because of the vocals, sung with more bite than an overprotective rottweiler with a bone which adds a more impressive and unique versions of the covers they choose, metal classics from Megadeth to Maiden. It seemed surreal hearing the song Iron Maiden sung in the same room that I once helped protect original singer Paul Di Anno from an escalating fight that was getting nearer to him… But that’s another story! Well done Mortiferum you fitted this line up fantastically.

HOLLOW BODDIES our first Peterborough guests of the night are a band I was first impressed with seeing earlier in the year in the bar of Esquires, they interact well with the audience between songs in which their vocal ranges are amazing, mainly cleanly sung from their main vocalist and what a strong set of vocals. Further interest to the vocal sound is added from their guitarist with screams and growling vocals to increase the vocal interest of the sound, not only that, I noticed his cleaner vocals sound listenably great as well! Even the drummer gets to blast some vocal duties adding to a band with a formidable sound to their well crafted songs, with some played from their Tonight’s Agenda C.D.

Sticking with Peterborough THAT NIGHT FORESTS GREW are an incendiary of hardcore explosive thrust. Probably expecting this promoter to go down the same tiresome route of calling any gig in December a ‘Christmas Gig’ (oh no we are not jumping on that band wagon!) the Forests wore their cosy Christmassy knitted woolly jumpers for the occasion. Well I’m a big supporter of hardcore bands that are good enough without taking themselves too seriously, always injecting fun and positive attitudes in with the professional performance. Most of their material is lively scenery chewing vocal spitting fury and somehow manage to balance restful edges and subtle areas in to the sound while visually striding around the place making both floor and stage area their own and why not its all engaging interactive entertainment.

If you are wondering what happened to Return To Rome who were supposed to play tonight, one of their members had to be let go from the band and they hadn’t mentioned this till they were reminded about the gig with newspaper features about the gig posted on facebook, so unlikely they will be playing within a radius of the Shire.

BROKEN CONSCIENCE were the Bedford headliners with added dimensions from their usual sound in the form of new stand in drummer Callum who you may remember from Fences & Floodlights giving us some competent beats. Also strong friend and fan of the band (and Birthday boy) James on keyboards on a few songs, adding even further dimension to their metal sound. “James are you on keyboards on this last song?” calls their singer. With a reply of No he was then asked to get in to the crowd and start moshing. After a few songs and some coaxing, some moshing did indeed ensue. Their sound is reminiscent of metal bands Metallica also Flotsam And Jetsam from these heroes of metal who are laying their sound down in the studio soon which I will look forward to hearing. Just a bit more movement from their guitarists would increase their stage presence further.

Mortiferum Vid