By Jase Walker
Sometimes I do genuinely ask myself if I’m mental but since moving to the continent I’ve found myself seeing just how far trains can get me for a weekend show, so tonight I’ve gone off to Antwerp in Belgium for some proper angry metal. Tonight is Spite, who caught my attention on the Thy Art Is Murder tour last year along with Bodysnatcher, Boundaries (who blew my head off with their album last week), and finally, Mouth For War. This is going to be one of those shows where I’ll need to keep one eye on the crowd for errant legs and pints – but I’ve seen how the Dutch go apeshit at shows, so now it’s time to see how the Belgians do it too.
The doors have opened quite late and I’m wondering if Mouth for War are still actually playing considering at the time of typing this it should be halfway through their set. It seems like they’ve possibly knocked everything back by 30 minutes or there’ll be shorter sets. God this venue is bloody dark: I can’t see anything trying to get a decent spot.
Anyway, Mouth For War have kicked off and there’s already people flinging arms and legs around in the middle right from the first note. This is absolutely how you do an opening set for a show like this, Mouth For War aren’t fucking about, they want all the aggression and madness that people have got. People in the middle spin-kicking and throwing down hard and it’s only been going for a few minutes, absolute filth. I mean this is hardcore in a nutshell really, it’s just balls out trying to push how hard you can go with working as an outlet for aggression. Mouth For War go hard as fuck and while I’m not really a hardcore aligned fan, I can say without a moment of doubt that Mouth Of War have gotten this show started properly, I don’t think it’ll be long before they’re back with a headline show given the incredible quality of this performance.
Seems as a result of the late doors, they’re keeping to extremely tight changeovers since Boundaries sound ready to go after only a sparse few minutes. Admittedly I didn’t know it was the drummer doing these cleans but my god his voice really is something else, it reminds me heavily of Spencer from Periphery. Erring on the more metalcore side of things for tonight’s lineup, they go every bit as hard as the others though, mixing uplifting chorus segments with destructive grooves on the verses. If you know bands like Oceans Ate Alaska, Boundaries take on metalcore is fairly similar. Just because you’ve got some cleans in there doesn’t mean you can’t absolutely melt people’s faces the rest of the time.
I was definitely looking forward to seeing these, probably the most out of the whole show but admittedly I was not prepared for just how damn good this show would be. The sound is incredible, it’s so full yet clear and the energy of it all is insane. As supports it’s a shame that the set will be so short but it’s not a disappointment by any means, they know they’ve gotta get their best side out there to make an impression and they’re doing just that. Short but sweet, however truly phenomenal.
Next up after another speedy changeover is Bodysnatcher; admittedly I’ve made a point of staying a bit further back for this set as I’m not totally keen on being slammed into by several people at once doing acrobatics. This band’s vocalist really is something else, the sheer mixture of so many different vocal styles that are all equally disgusting is quite something. Again maybe not quite my thing on the whole but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t showing off a big gurn on my face to these. Bodysnatcher are absolutely savage in their delivery, there’s little room for anything other than being compelled to grab the nearest unfortunate victim and slam them into someone else. No wonder there’s a bloody ambulance parked outside the venue. Even with the insane amount of people vaulting themselves into the crowd off the stage, Bodysnatcher still wants more. More craziness, more energy, more movement, it’s never enough. I may not be a hardcore person myself but it’s not ever meant that I can’t be stood in awe at the sheer guts people who are hugely into this have and seeing shows like this is easily the best way to see it in action. Bodysnatcher’s performance really is something, seeing bands be able to smash out this sort of stuff consistently night after night is incredible, incredible show.
And finally tonight, Spite. There really is no other way to describe these guys other than absolute fucking grit. Some of the filthiest vocals and riffs you’ve ever experienced, they’ve got one mission for their set and that’s to cause as much havoc as possible. It’s easy to see why they can fit into so many different lineups across the extreme metal spectrum, deathcore, metalcore, hardcore, whatever, you name it, Spite can turn up, fuck all the shit up, and everyone loves it. Spite are kicking up a veritable maelstrom of noise, nasty riffs and vocals that sound like a toilet that’s been backed up with gravel, perfect. Admittedly I’m a bit surprised there’s not been more crowd surfing so far tonight but this venue is a bit more spacious for its capacity than I would have expected so people are much more spread out. Spite truly are a force to be reckoned with and watching this show unfold really shows why they’ve got the right stuff to do a headline run like this and sell the shows.
Every single punchy snare, every single thunderous chug, every wretching scream is felt throughout this show. It’s pure discordant ferocity and the crowd here is eating up with every single moment. Spite are fuckin disgusting and this is legitimately some of the highest praise you can give a band like this, it’s not designed to be fancy, beautiful, easy to listen to, any of that. Pure grooves start to finish and incessant aggression, Spite shows they’re one of the bands that is rising fast in the scene and clearly Antwerp is wanting this in heaps right now. What a fantastic night of outrageously heavy music, this is only day two of what seems to be a pretty extensive tour bringing face melting music across the continent.
Spectacularly maniacal show, don’t miss it.
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