Vile Mixture Kicks Off with Chaotic Metal in Aalborg
In the west part of Aalborg, right on the harbour, you find SH35, a black box-style venue with a raw industrial aesthetic, which this Thursday night housed three very different but outstanding metal bands.
Made in collaboration with Lasher Agency, this was the first in a series of concerts under the name ‘Vile Mixture’, featuring different variations of extreme metal. And the lineup indeed showcased just how diverse metal can be, and each band’s own version of controlled chaos.
VÆGTLØS
The first band of the night was local legends Vægtløs, led by frontman Troels H. Sørensen, who is also a prominent figure in the local metal scene and has brought many obscure bands to the city over the years.
Vægtløs always deliver their particular brand of post-metal with just as much gusto no matter the venue or the number of people in the audience, and tonight was no different. Partly due to limited space on stage, Troels quickly stepped down from the stage and walked around the audience while not missing a step in his performance. The music is intense and atmospheric, with asynchronous black metal screams over instrumentals that range from slow and melancholic to full-blown blast beats.
The lyrics have themes of death and regret, but also about connection and family. Most songs are dedicated to people they either know or knew, and one of them to a friend with late-stage cancer, which they deliver with a heartfelt speech about how the music keeps him going. All of it highlights the connections we make, and both the beauty and sadness of the world we live in, and the way we leave it to our children. Each song is delivered with authenticity, and you can see Troels visibly shaking with anger and emotion on stage, letting everything out without shame or pretence.
They end their set on a sombre note, with the instruments going quiet and him screaming into the silence. A truly great performance for those who like something raw and unfiltered, with a lot of heart and thought behind it.
CAR BOMB
The second band of the night hails all the way from New York, and has been playing for 25 years, which shows in their performance. They embrace the chaotic and polyrhythmic style of mathcore, something that is still a bit of a niche genre in the metal scene, but is at least welcomed by the audience on this night.
They take full advantage of the lighting system as well, and even add lasers that match their shifting time signatures and tempos, with some of the rhythms somehow playing parallel to each other. It gives the music layers and is so well executed that it all comes together. You couldn’t do that without an enormous amount of precision and talent, which is just further proved by guitarist Greg Kubacki, who managed to adapt even when one of his strings broke mid-song.
They incorporate not only thrash elements with plenty of blast beats, but also use guitar-driven electronic effects. The vocals range from ferocious screams and gutturals to actual clean vocals, albeit a bit raspy.
But what really sold people tonight was the self-deprecating humour and great crowd-working skills of lead singer Michael Dafferner, which made the entire show less serious and brought some levity to the room, lightening the vibe after the serious and emotional performance by Vægtløs. The two bands complemented each other really well in that regard.
IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT
The final band of the night was another oddball from New York, a trio of masked artists donning the stage one after the other in an almost ceremonial manner. Their style of music encompasses a whole different kind of chaos than the previous two; it’s disorienting and even bordering on grindcore at times, and then melodic and almost jazz-like at others.
One thing that set them apart was that they really let the bass get some room to shine, especially in the non-vocal bits, which is relatively rare in metal but welcomed. The music is complex, to say the least, and just like Car Bomb has a lot of layers, but unlike them, it seems more like free-form jazz rather than technical proficiency. That isn’t to say they lack musical talent; all three of them have range, and it shows in both the dizzying guitar riffs, skilled drums, and energetic and vivid bass playing. The vocals also range from deep gutturals to high-pitched screams, and even though you can’t see their faces, you feel the power behind it nonetheless.
While they have little to no actual vocal interaction with the crowd, they have a very big stage presence, especially bass player Steve Blanco, who is just all over the stage and seems like he’s having the time of his life. Besides their hooded robes and avant-garde masks, they also use stage props like an old horn instrument with sparklers in it, and about halfway through the show, they do their signature move of spraying champagne on the audience. A lot can be said without words, and the non-verbal communication works well with their dystopian avant-garde style.
These three bands, while vastly different genres, each showcased their own brand of chaotic metal in their own unique way, and in a way that worked off and complemented each other. Truly a great start to Vile Mixture’s line of shows!
Photos (c) Morten Holmsgaard Kristensen
