Review of PHOBOCOSM album launch of “Deprived” with Special Guests, IRN, ADVERSARIAL, and THANTIFAXATH Coop Katacombes 1635 Boulevard Saint-Laurent, Montréal, QC H2X 2S9 Saturday, September 27th. 2014.
With Sepulchral Production (which I wanna thank alongside Samuel Dufour of PHOBOCOSM for allowing me access to review the event) selling their wares and PHOBOCOSM’s t-shirts/cds for their new album, “Deprived” being set up, fans eagerly marched into Coop Katacombes to be witness to an event filled with Doom Death, and Black Metal delights offered by Dark Descent Records as label mates, Thantifaxath and Adversarial would join Phobocosm on this evening! Special guest to open the night were IRN from Toronto set to get this evening going.
As fans gingerly entered from the terrace outside, the thundering pulse of the first act began to reverberate off the darkened walls… Toronto’s, IRN quickly established themselves as a slow, churning Doom band complete with massive feedback and “stop and go” momentum. Still, brandishing the occasional blast beat, the trio displayed a good amount of energy and stage presence, convulsing along to their miserable chords and downtrodden drums! Possessing a harrowing scream, the vocalist/bassist offered up quieter moments of bass that would not sound out of place as the soundtrack to a Hammer Horror Film starring Christopher Lee or Peter Cushing; an incredible amount of atmosphere! As the fans stood still and bobbed their heads, “Sewer”, “Causing Decay”, and “Old Orange Hands” all culminated in a crushing blow, but it was with final number, “Always Die Slowly” that IRN really made a lasting impact upon the audience. A recognizable riff and infectious groove made this a set highlight over rung out chords.
** Pictures have been taken with my normal digital camera and I don’t pretend to be a professional photograph. Therefore, they are just intended to illustrate the review.
Another threesome, Toronto’s ADVERSARIAL had a tougher go of their initial proceedings. With guitar pedal difficulties, the singer/guitarist cued the soundman for minor adjustments in between short blasts of aural chaos! Similarly, the drummer seemed to play slightly out of time when performing blast beats, and though visibly shaken, he quickly regained his composure for a better performance as the set rolled along. A stark contrast to IRN, ADVERSARIAL sounded strongly militant and caustic, blazing forward with blast beats and intricate (AND impressive!) bass and guitar finger work! Though the players stood statuesque, the music certainly did the talking with disjointed riffs and dissonant complexity. Controlled chaos and a will to overcome made this set come together nicely!
Another enigmatic presence from Toronto, THANTIFAXATH, mounted the stage dressed in ominous head to toe hooded robes to decimate the venue with their brand of Black Metal fused with mesmerizing experimental flourishes! A unique listen and an even more fascination in watching the band play, THANTIFAXATH proved that there is STILL room within the Black Metal genre to maneuver and add fresh, new ideas! Much like ADVERSARIAL, the playing is disjointed and offered onlookers an uncomfortable listen but moments of finger tapping and eerie chords transported the fan to other worlds. Combine this with a straight forward tremolo assault and the set remained a scary example of a band that doesn’t cater to limits or clichés – inspiring!
The moment all were waiting for with anticipation, the first listen of PHOBOCOSM’s latest release, “Deprived” performed in its entirety! What is clearly noted and accepted is the awesome power this Montreal troupe achieves with their wall of sound! Relentless when the band is in full swing; drowning in suffocating misery when they bring the tempo down to a slow crawl. In between songs, feedback and dense fuzz introduced the following cuts as cheers resonated loudly and images of fireballs and solar flares danced upon a video screen above them. The only set of the night to instill a small pit and numerous headbanging, PHOBOCOSM were on top of their game and consistently gave the fans their all! As the lights signalled the end of the night, many gravitated towards the merch. table once more to grab a copy of what they just heard…”Deprived”!
Chris
