 Poster: Kristy de Klerk Illustratie |  The Metal Deck, available wherever Serge is (and in our shop) |
My neck hurts, my shoulders hurt, my legs hurt and I got a glooming headache. The worst thing is, I'm sure it's going to be worse tomorrow since I'm going to play squash again tonight. It's been years since I've done anything sportive so yeah, it'll hurt. Why everything hurts now already? Well, after an exhausting day at Rocktoberfest last Saturday, I headed to Antwerp Music City last night, right after a day of shopping (I needed squash-shoes). I need to rest a little more...
Angakok
Belgian sludge trio Angakok drove from Liége to Antwerp for half an hour of fuzzed-out fun. I really wanted to see these guys since I quite enjoyed their album (read review). The venue was already filling up quite nicely and when Angakok's massive riffs and methodical drums filled the room, the first headbangers carefully commenced their hobby. It looked like the audience could very well appreciate the wall-of-sound, created by this trio, and it looked like everyone was surprised that their gig ended so soon. This was a short but fierce blast of brutal sludge, brought with plenty of aggression. The vocalist, who afterwards proved to be a nice and friendly guy, looked so intensely mean behind the microphone. Both other members seemed to be in a state of fuzzed-out trance. This simply was a highly convincing set, and I don't think I'm the only one who'd like to see these guys perform a longer one soon.
Au-Dessus
The evening continued with another blasting set, this time from Lithuanian horde Au-Dessus. This was another band I was looking forward to, and again because I really like their album (read review). With their blend of doom, post-whatever and black metal, these hooded madmen delivered bigtime. Many audience members seemed stunned by the intense and immersive music. The set was completed with a quite fitting scenery, including an awesome welded microphone stand and those hooded cowls. Usually, I'm quite cautious about stage-scenery and imaginary but when the music is played to perfection, a band is allowed to do anything. With Au-Dessus, everything perfectly fell into place, making them rise above being merely a band. Au-Dessus became an entity, probably one of the most interesting ones in the world of dark extremes today.
Sunnata
picture: Jo Versmissen From the very beginning of their set, it was absolutely clear that everybody in attendance was there to see Polish doom masters Sunnata. Or better, to undergo the dark ritual, performed on deep and heavy frequencies. I haven't been in Antwerp Music City a lot yet, and I'm sure that will change in the near future, but I've never seen the audience this ecstatic during a performance. Of course, it was the second time these guys played here, which somehow always gives a band an advantage. People were screaming along, raising their horned fists, banging their heads or being utterly mesmerized by the droning wall-of-sound coming from the speakers. Sunnata destroyed the venue, rolled over it like a slow but massive freight train, much to the delight of a by now packed Antwerp Music City. This was perfection in stoner doom, that's for damn sure.
Outro
Shortly after the last drones of Sunnata oozed from the speakers, I headed home, hoping I wouldn't be delayed by another bomb threat (read about that here). Luckily, nothing happened, and I could put my tired ass down in my comfortable sofa sooner than I expected. Once again, this was an awesome evening at an awesome venue (facebook Antwerp Music City), provided by an awesome promoter (facebook Ondergronds). We'll be back soon, undoubtedly...
Serge
Serge
