CANDLEFEST (Day 3) @ The Underworld, London (26/08/2013)

Candlefest13The Oxfordshire based Candlelight Records hosted it’s now annual feast of delights from its current roster of bands at The Underworld in Camden Town, over 3 days. Sadly I couldn’t attend days 1 & 2 because of other commitments, but I hear from other notable attendees that Anaal Nathrakh laid waste to the subterranean venue on the Friday with Altar Of Plagues bowing out for good apparently on the Saturday with an emotional set. I wish that I could have been there.

However, I made it on Sunday for what was for me one of the best line ups for ANY gig/festival thus far in 2013.   Continue reading

WINTERFYLLETH, EASTERN FRONT & JØTNARR – Live @ Colchester Arts Centre (13/07/2013)

TMA Winterfylleth at Colchester Arts Centre July 2013 450x600

Having favourite bands and venues can be a frustration when they rarely combine; the preferred bands are frequently placed in less than ideal venues.  However, sometimes the stars align and the experience is enhanced by the act and the location making the performance more than the sum of its parts.   Unfortunately, when such a pairing is such a long way away from home, it is a battle for common sense and compulsion to decide… so a flight was booked to take me back to one of my old haunts in England.  Compulsion is so much more rewarding! Continue reading

VARIOUS ARTISTS – “Voices From Valhalla” (A Tribute To Bathory)

VoVThere are some interesting compilations which have emerged from the underground in 2012, Enslaved, Emperor and this Bathory tribute from the great people at Godreah Records. Covering both Black and Viking metal eras from Bathory, contemporary artists have produced a fitting tribute to the great Quorthon and his band who inspired so much of what I think is good in today’s underground metal offering. Continue reading