The first show of the Blackenedfest tour kicked off last night at Irving Plaza and already there is problems with two bands not showing up: Marduk and Cattle Decapitation. Marduk, apparently, were still on the plane coming over from their piece-of-shit country while the rest of the bands were onstage performing. You would think that you'd get here a day early for the start of a tour. No doubt it probably had something to do with visas and immigration type crap, but at least Mayhem didn't run into any troubles. And what's the deal with vegan wussbags Cattle Decapitation? Simply that they are on the last date on tour with GWAR. Maybe it would help if you fuckfaces would at least plan out when and where you're going to be and coordinate a better timeframe if you're going to be on two separate tours running right after the other. That said, the night wasn't a complete loss - anchored by two really good performances by headliners, the legendary black metal masters in Mayhem, and Colorado natives and deathgrind upstarts in Cephalic Carnage. Still, I expected a lot for the $37 that I paid, and with two out of five bands not showing up, this night really wasn't as good as many had hoped. But, at least I saw Mayhem! Small victory, I guess.
LAIR OF THE MINOTAUR - Good band. Don't remember much else. Set Rating: B-
WITHERED - Good band. Still don't remember much else. Set Rating: B-
CEPHALIC CARNAGE - Cephalic Carnage's weed-tech-grind followed, along with dedications to cheetos, masturbation, and glass pipes (that they also sold at the merch table!), and props like a horse mask. It was well-executed and entertaining, but somewhat of a mild comedown following the energetic and pummeling assault of Withered. Set Rating: B
MAYHEM - Finally, the night belonged to the black metal pioneers. Mayhem took the stage a little before 10:30, playing a set that lasted until before midnight, when they retired sans encore. The core duo of Hellhammer and Necrobutcher with live members Morfeus and Silmaeth banged out rapid-fire blasts of black metal fury, spanning their entire discography. For all of their impressive technical prowess and energy, the highlight of their live set is the infinitely watchable Attila Csihar. Attila's formidable on-stage presence can only be described as dictatorial; he towers over his bandmates, gives the thumbs down as if he is deciding the fate of a man's life, punctuates lyrics with a clenched fist, and barks at his devoted minions with his thick Hungarian accent. In between a pair of impaled "heads", Attila sang from behind a "tree stump" podium which doubled as an area to hide both effects triggers and various gross-out props. Attila made sure to fondle and rub his face against those heads and an IV cart with dangling arm for further nauseating effect. Kitschy? a little. Fun/ny? Definitely. Besides being visually arresting, Attila is one of the most versatile vocalists in all of heavy music. Barks, pitch perfect viking vocals, Celtic Frost grunts, screams that last longer than it seemed humanly possible, and what I like to call "squeaking elf"... a low end screech that was part Gollum and part creaking door, were all present and impressive. What is a bit off, though it is part of the band's repertoire, is that while Csihar is doing his spooky-man routine, you look over and see bassist and original member, Necrobutcher, looking so old and plain in a black T-shirt and playing on what seems to be two separate planes of existence. Still, the music is in sync and what you hear on tape is what you hear live. The buzzsaw sound of the guitar, mixed with the dirty sludge from the bass, and drummer supreme (and very friendly) Hellhammer is masterful when providing the fast, heavy boomage with each song. My first Mayhem concert experience and a very good set, despite cancellations and a certain feeling of disappointment. Set Rating: B+
AFTER THE SHOW
I had a chance to meet Attila, who was polite enough, but seemed to be content in smoking his little Hungarian peace pipe and macking on some ugly groupies in his presence. Still, he was nice enough to comment on the announcement Varg Vikernes's release from prison after murdering fellow Mayhem band member Euronymous back in the 90s. When I asked him about how he felt, he said in his thick accent:
"I think it's good. He did his sentence."
I asked him if there was a place for him in Mayhem and he said:
"Maybe not. I don't know. We'll see."
A man of so few words! To me, especially when you look at my photograph with him, he looks a little bit like WWE wrestler Shawn Michaels, at least from his profile. Also, when I asked him about his feelings about fans who download, he said:
"I don't care really. Fortunately, Mayhem are in a place where we have fans who like are music and will come to see the shows. But for other bands just starting out, it isn't good, no."
Later on, as I waited by the nearby restaurant, Hellhammer finally showed up and was actually very friendly. Unfortunately, my goddamn cellphone's camera was acting up and I couldn't take the usually DIY shot of me and the other person and ended up having to get someone to take the pic for us. It came out well, but doesn't fit in with my other pics with band members. I mentioned that he was friendly, and certainly the very surprisingly short Jan Axel Blomberg (his real name) was very patient and gracious, until I wanted to leave and he seemed to not want to let go of my arm. At first, I thought he was going to hug me, but he grabbed my hand as if to do a "bro-hug" and grabbed my shoulder and arm while holding onto my hand. In other words, he wouldn't stop touching me! And while I think he was just being friendly and I don't think he's gay, I found it rather weird and uncomfortable. I guess that's how they roll in Norway.
Show Grade: B-
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