felix
FRIDAY 06 NOVEMBER 2009
19
MUSIC
music.felix@imperial.ac.uk
Live Cannibal Corpse @ KOKO Eliot Barford heads to Camden for a night of (not) moshing
L
ast Thursday, Cannibal Corpse brought death metal to Camden. The city’s band t-shirt wearing, greasy-locksflowing metalhead population turned out (I had a Mastodon top on) and though KOKO wasn’t sold out, it was bustling inside. There were three supports bands: Trigger the Bloodshed, Annotations of an Autopsy and Dying Fetus. I made sure to get there for the latter because (and please just forget the name) they are one of the most individual extreme metal bands around. Their relentless blasting between catchy choruses had everyone in the mood when they finished. I honestly think “Praise the Lord (Opium of the Masses)” is the most danceable death metal song on record. Yeah, danceable. But we were there for the Corpse, and the Corpse delivered. Everyone
who knows them (and if you’ve seen Ace Ventura, you’ve seen Cannibal Corpse) knows what to expect, suffice to say it was insane. They’re touring on a new album (Evisceration Plague) but they played a career-spanning setlist, delving back to their debut for “Skull Full of Maggots” while thankfully drawing mostly from classics Tomb of the Mutilated and The Bleeding. The sound was good, but perhaps the staff of the indie-kid nesting site KOKO weren’t totally prepared for the relentlessly bass-heavy storm and if you weren’t into moshing (and I’m not) you probably ended up further back than you would have liked. Still, the atmosphere had a pleasant camaraderie, and everyone responded to charismatic lead-vocals George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher’s banter with enthusiasm. Eventually, curfew came round and
Albums that you should know
I
1983 due to “musical differences”, MacKaye formed the highly influential and critically acclaimed band Fugazi, drawing the name from a Vietnam War acronym meaning “Fucked Up, Got Ambushed, Zipped In”. Though preserving politically charged lyrics and a DIY punk ethos, Fugazi expanded their music in new directions, creating an entire sub-genre: post-hardcore. Whilst MacKaye was the main songwriter for the first few records, their long-awaited sixth studio album “The Argument”, released in 2001, is the work of four talented musicians at their creative peak. Aside from multi-
Saturday DMZ (Skeam, Loefah, Coki...) :: The Mass :: Heavy Dubstep Roger Sanchez :: Ministry of Sound :: House
Monday Cymbals Eat Guitars :: Rough Trade East :: Experimental Pop Just Jack :: Shepards Bush Empire :: Dancepop Hip-Hop Jarvis Cocker :: Village Underground :: Britpop Alternative The Cheek :: Cargo :: Pop
Sunday Brass Impact :: Tha Half Moon Pub :: Big Band Jazz Bloggers Delight :: The Lock Tavern :: Dance / Electro Home Grown :: O2 Islington Academy :: American Rock Amon Amarth :: KOKO :: Metal
Tuesday The Flaming Lips & Cymbals Eat Guitars :: The Troxy :: Rock / Indie Backstreet Boys :: O2 Arena :: Boyband Homosexual Pop Ash :: Corrib Rest :: Pop Rock
rambling of “Cashout”, all the way to the intricate guitar tapping on “Nighthop”, there really is something for everyone here. Sadly, “The Argument” was also Fugazi’s last album before their indefinite hiatus in 2002. But the post-hardcore scene spawned by Fugazi still thrives today, and MacKaye remains as prolific as ever.
Wednesday Fionn Regan :: The Luminaire :: Folk Hundred Reasons :: Barfly :: Rock Shinedown :: HMV Forum :: Hard Rock Colin Hay :: Bush Hall :: Acoustic
Thursday Muse :: O2 Arena :: Rocky Space Rock Biffy Clyro :: Brixton Academy :: Progressive Rock Roots Mauva :: The Hospital (Endell Street) :: Dub / Hip-Hop The Automatic :: New Slang @ McClusky’s :: Indie Rock Cosmo Jarvis :: Notting Hill Arts Club :: Indie
LISTINGS::
Airborne Toxic Event :: Shepherds Bush Empire :: Rock Magnum :: Brixton Academy :: Rock Dead Prez :: KOKO Camden :: Political Hip-Hop Viking Skull :: The Borderline :: Heavy Metal ENL :: 12 Bar Soho :: Indie Rock Goldilocks Effect :: Monto Water Rats :: Alternative Paul Rodgers :: Hammersmith Apollo :: Blues Rock CKY & Special Guests :: Barfly Camden :: Rock / Experimental Plump DJs :: Fabric :: Electro High Contrast / Beardyman / Ed
Rush / Danny Byrd :: Matter :: Drum And Bass
subtle, dynamic range of vocals – illustrated by the “Viva viva viva” chorus of the brilliant “Life And Lime”. Despite the complex start-stop beats and sudden transitions from gentle guitar chords to all out noise, this is without a doubt Fugazi’s most accessible, catchy and melodic album. From the simple post-punk riffs and innate
:LISTINGS::LISTINGS::LISTINGS::LISTINGS::
Friday
ple guest vocalists and close friend Jerry Brusher featuring on a second drum kit/percussions throughout the album, “The Argument” really stands out due to the alchemy between MacKaye’s heavy, low-end riffs, Joe Lally’s Latin and dub-influenced basslines, and Guy Picciotto’s scratchy, high-pitched guitar wails. Not only do the guitars on songs like “Epic Problem” intertwine perfectly, but the vocals constantly complete each other: as MacKaye shouts anthemic lead vocals at the top of the lungs, forcing the listener to shout them back, Picciotto acts as a foil (inspired by hip-hop) favouring a more
Cannibal Corpse KOKO 29th October ★★★★✩
Fugazi ‘The Argument’ Dischord 2001
Gregory Power looks at modern classics that shaped music today an MacKaye has always been something of a pioneer when it comes to the world of music. First, he formed the definitive – albeit short-lived – hardcore punk band Minor Threat in 1980, setting a standard for punk bands the world over with a high quality production album released on MacKaye’s own label, Dischord. It’s at that time that he involuntarily spawned a movement he described as “Straight Edge”; rejecting the “sex, drugs and rock n’ roll” creed of the punk community and openly admitting to the “uncool” healthy, vegan lifestyle he leads. After Minor Threat’s break-up in
George gave his last words. The crowd pledged their support to death metal with a sea of devil horns and prepared for “Hammer Smashed Face”. With the first power chord, the whole room turned into a seething mosh pit, and I allowed myself a frantic dash to the front to adulate the band. It was an uplifting end to a crushing set. I’m not sure Cannibal Corpse are the band to convert new fans to death metal, but there’s a reason they’ve sold well over a million records over twenty years. That night was a true highlight for metal in today’s London.