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BRUTAL ASSAULT #25 – DAY II REPORT


The festival is over now and after bringing you the first day already, we got little more calm and piece to bring on another days. So here is the second one, Wednesday. The second day started with Czech band Sceletons. Guys present themselves as thrash death crossover and I totally agree. Even more, main vocalist and guitarist seems to be a really big fan of Chuck Schuldiner, which he borrowed vocal from. At least to my ears. Guys were really awesome. From the same genre, Heathen from US played their stuff, too. Call me crazy, but I have heard vocal from Iron Maiden a bit. The second day and am I nuts already, or deaf? At the very same day Czech Schizophrenia and D.R.I. closed thrash metal line-up.

Sceletons, Heathen

From old school to the new one. Core genres (especially the brutal one) were pressed into us by Lorna Shore. Guys had a hell of an audience, and their heavy deathcore with brutal and guttural vocals hit like a giant hammer! Bit behind, brutality wise, we could hear both lovely and heavy vocal of beautiful Tatiana and Jinjer. Djenty Tesseract also played at the afternoon.

Tesseract, Jinjer, Lorna Shore

Good ol’ brutality from years back were given to us by the Bloodbath on afternon and legendary Cannibal Corpse in the night. The stage was packed really tightly, tons of people definitivelly looked forward to see and hear these immortal butchers. Earlier, Misery Index made other fans really happy with their fast grind.

Cannibal Corpse, Bloodbath

We also witnessed some more experimental stuff by Igorr or Strigoi. The frontman appeared next day in other legendary band – Paradise Lost. No wonder Strigoi gave us some interesting heavy crust crossover with a doom song as a bonus. Imperial Triumphant trio was another more experimental band. Their combination of really jazzy approach (bass especially) with some black metal and masks were something many people waited for. The concert was even spiced more, when the E string of the guitar snapped shortly after the start of the show. He managed well even without it. Another not so metal band was Me and That Man. This bluesy concert was great for every fan of Nergal, as well as for everybody, who just wanted to chill from the extreme stuff.

Me and That Man, Strigoi, Imperial Triumphant

Another star appeared here for the first time. Bobby Liebling of Pentagram made lots of people (me included, especially) very happy with his old and heavy doom legacy, funny faces and lots of energy. Hard to believe he manages it in his age! With doomy aspect but more progressive, Czech Elbe was playing on afternoon. Many people waited for melancholical and calm French guys from Alcest, tho this set was much more intense due their last album. For fans of even more sadness and pain in the music, Amenra played their very heavy slow set, which was thick as the swamps in an abandoned wood. late in the night and we could hear the songs from various albums with nice classical projection behind them.

Amenra, Alcest, Pentagram, Elbe

One of the highlights of the day was the theater of Japanese cult band, Sigh. Their combination of occultism, black and thrash metal with blistering fast and cool guitar solos was really top and smaller stage suited them great for their rituals. Dark Funeral played lately that night, too. The night was closed by French black metal inspired horde Regarde les Hommes Tomber. It was 2 A.M. but there was still big pack of people craving to see the guys and party on to the morning hours as well.

Sigh, Regarde les Hommes Tomber

The most important guys – fans

Brutal Assault #25 – DAY I REPORT


At last! After two years of nothing, the gates of 25th Brutal assault open to us and here are some bands giving us their best. As usual, we witnessed little longer quevesat start, but nothing that we could not withstand. Some stuff was done at the last minutes as the ceilings on the balconies, but at least everyone could see what it takes to prepare festivals this big. So here goes the Tuesday.

Fans rules!

After little adaptation getting some tasty food in various of tents, both with meat meals but also vegan options, which is quite standard now, we could see the first artists performing in one of four stages. The start (at 2.15p.m.) was quite mild and not so in your face. Japanese metalcore of Sable Hills gave us some more melodic stuff so our skulls were not crashed immediatelly. After that the hardcore crossover Slope was pumping some positive energy into people as well as exotic Bloodywood with their combination of ethnical vibes and metal music.

Slope, Bloodywood

Some heavy hitters were delivering the best tho and that was Devourment from Texas with their brutal death metal. And they were not the only one in the day. Later on, Extermination Dismemberment and Korpse showed some nice work with a public and forced the people cheerfully to do some moshing, stage diving and even wall of death with their guttural rich music. Little less intense with brutality, but with added melodies, Rivers of Nihil played on one of main stages. Vola or Czech Avatar was even further in progressive approach with their music. At The Gates continued with the milder aspect of the genre later in the night.

Devourment, Extermination Dismemberment, Rivers of Nihil, Korpse

Two bands of another direct metal subgenre could be heard. Classical thrash metal from California, Vio-lence showed themselves in nice lights with their fast show and also another local band Exorcizphobia gave us some thrashy riffs.

Vio-lence

Slower, but surely not weaker kind of stuff was represented by another, quite a new, Czech band Můra who looked like their motto is: Blood, corpsepaint and wine. Doomy steam-roller combination of doom death and black metal (mostly visually) was damn good, if you are in this kind of music and little smaller Bastion stage (new, instead of Octagon one) suited them well, too.

Můra

Later on the Pallbearer stayed in the genre as well as Evoken who represended slow funeral doom as if the time has almost stopped when heavy down-tuned riffes have been played.

Pallbearer, Evoken

Stay tuned for next days reports! Thanks.

INTERVIEW – VENOM INC.: “We explore the dark side of humanity and the endless questions of what comes next”


Interview with Tony Dolan by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Venom Inc. vocalist and bassist Tony Dolan chatted to us ahead of their special ‘Black Metal’ 40th-anniversary set at Bloodstock Festival UK, which takes place on its final day, 14th August. He talked to us about the festival, their follow-up album to their 2017 ‘Avé’ titled ‘There’s Only Black’ due for release later this year and how Venom came to reform in 2015 with the 1989-1992 Venom line-up under the new rebranded Venom Inc and more!

Continue reading INTERVIEW – VENOM INC.: “We explore the dark side of humanity and the endless questions of what comes next” →

REVIEW: ARCH ENEMY – “Deceivers”


by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Swedish melodic death metal masters return ever triumphant with their eleventh album ‘Deceivers’, which marks some of their finest, most ambitious and explosive material to date.

The colossal opener ‘Handshake With Hell’ asserts Alissa White-Gluz’s versatile capabilities displaying incredible clean melodic vocals paired with her fierce ones, making for a crushing combination, and the excellent fiery rapid guitar work makes it unyielding. An exhilarating and impressive one to kick off with.

Continue reading REVIEW: ARCH ENEMY – “Deceivers” →

BRUTAL ASSAULT #25 INFO


The great metal festival starts soon, August 9th to be precise, but if five days of non-top action in Czech is not enough for you, even afterparty is an option on Sunday in Modrá Vopice in Prague. Rock on!

INTERVIEW – I FIGHT BEARS: “Brutal breakdowns, lead-like heaviness, addictive melodies, bags of energy and a whole load of neck pain to go home with… Bears will be fought!”


Interview with Scott Preece by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Welsh modern metalcore act I Fight Bears unleashed their self-titled debut in 2018, which went down a storm. Now in 2022, armed with their new EP, ‘Liberosis’, they continue to make waves. They have just won the South Wales Grand Final of the Metal 2 The Masses competition, earning a prestigious slot on Friday 12th August on the New Blood stage at Bloodstock Open Air festival. We caught up with drummer Scott Preece ahead of their Bloodstock set to talk about the festival, the new EP, Spandau Ballet and more!

Continue reading INTERVIEW – I FIGHT BEARS: “Brutal breakdowns, lead-like heaviness, addictive melodies, bags of energy and a whole load of neck pain to go home with… Bears will be fought!” →