Witch Mountain / Blood Ceremony / Castle @ Hard Luck Bar, Toronto ON, June 13th 2012
By Natalie Zed Every once in a while there is a concert line-up that makes you do a double take. The bands are so…
By Natalie Zed Every once in a while there is a concert line-up that makes you do a double take. The bands are so…
Currently set to celebrate its Canadian premiere at the NXNE festival in Toronto, Så Jävla Metal is a documentary about the evolution of heavy metal music in Sweden. The film traces the beginnings of heavy metal through hard rock, beginning with bands like Europe, and continuing to trace the development of the sound as the music became heavier. It contrasts the way that Swedish metal grew up in tandem with metal in North America and other places in Europe, specifically in Norway, where the violence of black metal is contrasted again Swedish death metal. Writer and director Yason Hillborg found the time to talk to Hellbound about the documentary, his vision for it and his experiences making it.
“Converge are an overwhelming band to see live, vicious, visceral and breathtaking. The set quickly settled into a hard, driving rhythm, and the entire audience was carried along by it, compelled, possessed – taken. It can be difficult to talk about music and sexuality in a way that isn’t sensationalizing or reductive, but there is no question that the sheer aural force of Converge is an intense experience that borders on the erotic.”
Natalie Zed reviews the April 6th Toronto performance by Converge, Burning Love, Loma Prieta and Vilipend
“There is something about Paganfest that is magical. Someone on my Twitter feed referred to it as “the Comic-Con of metal shows” and I can’t think of a more apt description. The cosplayers were certainly out in force, from warriors carrying drinking horns and wearing utili-kilts to pirate wenches in striped tights. Before a single note was played, I saw foam swords, pirate flags, inflatable moneys, and even one memorable chain mail bikini. This show was all about the pageantry, about proclaiming your allegiance to one of the pagan metal subcultures, whether that be Russian folk or Roman Centurion. It made the audience a part of the entertainment, and made the ridiculous length of the show a lot more bearable.”
Natalie Zed reviews the April 2nd Toronto performance of the 2012 travelling Paganfest featuring Turisas, Alestorm, Ex Deo and more.
Natalie Zed reviews the February 12th Toronto performance by Lock Up, Goatwhore and Strong Intention. Live photos by Albert Mansour.
“The entire floor of the Phoenix eventually became a pit, the area right on front of the stage was like a maelstrom, with little eddies and whirlpools breaking out all the way to the very back wall. The venue eventually threw the rear doors open to ease the infernal heat, and people’s bodies near the exit gave off visible steam when the cool air hit them. It was exhausting and sweaty and exultant, the most love concentrated into a single performance that I have seen in a long time. ”
Natalie Zed reviews the sold out performance by Lamb Of God at Toronto’s Phoenix on January 27th. Live photos by Adam Wills
Natalie Zed reviews the January 22nd Toronto performance by occult rockers Ghost, as well as support acts Blood Ceremony and Ancient VVisdom at the Mod Club. All live photos by Adam Wills
Since Hellbound.ca is a Canadian-owned and operated metal publication, we do things a little bit different than most. While 2011 was coming to a close we asked all of our contributors to pick their Top Canadian metal albums of the year. We then tabulated up their responses and have created our third annual Top 10 Canadian Metal Albums writers poll.
Please check out what our writers feel to be the best Canadian metal albums released in 2011.
Ladies and gentleman, the TOP 5 METAL ALBUMS OF 2011 according to the contributing writers of Hellbound.ca…
“I’ve been looking forward to enjoying another love set by UnexpecT since I saw them play at Sneaky Dee’s last year, and they delivered on all of my very high expectations. The experimental French Canadian band are the very embodiment of an avant-garde aesthetic combined with a dauntless independent spirit.”
Live review by Natalie Zed.