Sunday night heavy metal on the Canada Day long weekend
This was my third metal show at This Ain’t Hollywood in Hamilton this year. That the number isn’t higher is my fault (I’ve missed some good local shows here and at other venues). But it’s pretty sweet that I can rate the ones I have attended highly and declare my time and/or money well-spent.
Lutharö
Each time I see Lutharö perform is better than the last. Their songwriting continues to mature and their already charismatic stage presence seems more and more like second nature. The band have a new guitar player who sounded like he’d been playing with them for ages. As always, I look forward to hearing what’s to come next.
Fog of Leprosy
Why did I think Fog of Leprosy was a doom band? They’re not.
Skull Fist
Skull Fist released one of my favourite Canadian heavy metal albums of 2014 – Chasing the Dream. And I can’t understand why they weren’t on my top ten overall list, because I listen to that record more than half the albums I did pick. (Sorry, guys!)
Though I listen to Skull Fist repeatedly, I’m not good at keeping up on band news. So I had no idea frontman Zach Slaughter was semi-sidelined, or why, until we saw someone else fronting the band and Adam looked it up and told me Slaughter has had some trouble with his vocal chords. (Read up on their Facebook page if you want to know more.)
Fill-in Brian Stephenson is no replacement, but he did a great job with Skull Fist’s material, in terms of spirit and delivery. I didn’t expect to be dancing, but I was, and singing along, so clearly, I had a good time. The bluesy guitar solos were a great live touch, and each member made effective use of the small stage. The show felt intimate and larger-than-life all at once.
Closing remarks
Hellbound wasn’t officially covering this event – Adam and I went not for business but for pleasure. Still, the show was too good not to put down a few words documenting my appreciation, and to share the few cell phone photos I asked Adam to take.
Facebook event page: www.facebook.com/events/561366117368768.
