It’s a very metal week in Montreal. Heavy Montreal 2016 kicks off in Parc Jean-Drapeau tomorrow, complete with afterparties scheduled for Katacombes and L’Astral. And today marks the second day of Grimposium’s Doomed to Death events – the reason I’m here.
Yesterday’s Grimposium activities covered a broad spectrum. Vastum‘s Daniel Butler presented a paper touching on neoliberalism, psychoanalysis, “obscure death” and death metal aesthetics, which led into a discussion guided by musician and criminologist Lee Mellor. Following the discussion, a rare screening of Blekkmetal took the place of presentations from Misery Index‘s Mark Kloeppel and Jason Netherton, who were delayed in Germany and still en route.
(If you haven’t read our review of Blekkmetal, check it out. Read Grimposium’s press release for the day here.)
The evening’s events took place around the corner at another Concordia University venue and covered even more ground. First we were treated to a fascinating bilingual workshop on death metal vocals presented by Marie-Hélène Landry (Obsolete Mankind) and Sébastien Croteau (Necrotic Mutation). Immediately following, the newly arrived Mark Kloeppel and Jason Netherton were joined onstage by Michael Berberian (Season of Mist), Michelle Ayoub (Broken Board Montreal), and Vivek Venkatesh (Grimposium) to sound off on the extreme metal scene.
Finally, a packed cinema experienced the Canadian premiere of Death by MetaL, Felipe Belalcazar’s bio pic on the band Death and the man behind it, Chuck Schuldiner. A short Q&A afterward provided some additional insight into the filmmaking process and indicated a general appreciation for the film from its audience.
I’m not going into much detail here – my commentary and reviews are still to follow, including my coverage of today’s free panel with Repulsion (US), interviewed by Albert Mudrian (Decibel) and Jason Netherton (Misery Index), and tonight’s concert featuring Misery Index, Vastum, Vengeful and Cardinal Wyrm. Check either or both of these events out if you can.
In a small gesture of thanks to my Montreal hosts, I also encourage you to spend some time listening to Dead Messenger. And, if you’re in Toronto this weekend, check out NO FUN, an interdisciplinary dance performance inspired by the music and movement of punk icon Iggy Pop. It’s taking place at Factory Theatre Mainspace (125 Bathurst Street) till August 7.
