Review & photos by Andrew Bansal
[Videos by Arturo Gallegos]
March 25th 2014, The Observatory, Santa Ana CA: After giving their Southern California faithful a small taste of their new incarnation by playing two intimate shows at the Troubadour last September, British extreme metal legends Carcass are back, this time on a full North American run as headliners of the Decibel Magazine 2014 tour with support acts The Black Dahlia Murder, Gorguts and Noisem. Given the disproportion between Carcass’ LA fan-following and the size of the Troubadour, many fans missed out on attending the shows last year and last night at the Observatory in Santa Ana was their chance to see Carcass in flesh, presenting material from their comeback studio effort ‘Surgical Steel’ along with a collection of older tunes dating back to their early years. The show was sold out and not long after the doors opened at 6 PM, the venue was packed to capacity and all was in readiness for a brutastic extreme metal extravaganza.
The start of the show was pushed back to 7 PM from the originally scheduled 6:15, which made sense as 6:15 seemed rather early for a five-band show. Baltimore youngsters Noisem opened things up with a fiercely exuberant 25-minute set that demonstrated their raw, unabated blend of thrash, grind and doom. This band started out under the Noisem name only last year but have already gained attention and turned heads with their debut full-length album ‘Agony Defined’, released via A389 Recordings, and if they continue to put on live performances of the kind of intensity they exuded last night, their reputation will only grow further and with age firmly on their side, they look all set for a long career ahead.
Check out a video clip from Noisem’s set:
Visit Noisem on the web:
facebook.com/NoisemBaltimore
twitter.com/NoisemBaltimore
Local special guests Nausea were added to the lineup but they were bumped up above the touring opening act Noisem and appropriately so, because Nausea have been around in the LA scene for several years and have a bigger following than Noisem. The death/grind quartet brought forth their typical no-frills death metal/grindcore onto this stage. Frontman Oscar Garcia was in his element and went about his performance effortlessly, while bassist Alejandro Corredor handled the higher-pitched guttural growls and interacted with the crowd between songs, and the lineup was well-rounded by the multi-faceted Leon del Müerte on guitar and longtime drummer Eric Castro. Although most of the younger members of this audience didn’t seem to be familiar with the band, Nausea’s section of fans certainly enjoyed the band’s much-deserved participation in this event.
Video of Nausea’s full set:
Visit Nausea on the web:
facebook.com/NauseaLA
Set List:
01. Does God
02. Freedom
03. Fear Of Napalm
04. Hate And Deception
05. Absence Of War
06. Fuck The World
07. After World
08. Cries Of Pain
09. Condemn
10. Corporation
Next up, Luc Lemay and his band mates in Gorguts took the stage to change the tempo and atmosphere of the show to a large extent with their dark, dissonant melodies. They played four songs off of their stellar latest release ‘Colored Sands’, and just as they were about to end the set with an older tune, Luc started facing technical difficulties with his amplifier and the band decided to cut their set short. Quite a few in this crowd were attending this show mainly to see Gorguts and were left hugely disappointed, but Gorguts will certainly have longer sets during the rest of this tour and it’s great to see this incredibly talented group of Canadians be part of this high-profile metal tour. Aside from playing on stage, Luc Lemay was seen handling merch duties all by himself, which not only helped build a solid one-on-one relationship between the band and its fans, but when you have the band’s frontman and principal songwriter selling you the merch himself, signing autographs and taking photos with you at your will, it also definitely results in a boost in merch sales for the band. If you’re attending this tour, Gorguts is an absolute must-see.
Video of Gorguts’ full set:
Related – Interview: Gorguts Frontman Discusses Juno Nomination + More
Visit Gorguts on the web:
Gorguts.com
facebook.com/GorgutsOfficial
twitter.com/GorgutsOfficial
youtube.com/GorgutsOfficial
Set List:
01. Le Toit du Monde
02. An Ocean of Wisdom
03. Forgotten Arrows
04. Colored Sands
At 9:15, The Black Dahlia Murder began their 45-minute set and judging by the response they received from the crowd, it was clear they had drawn plenty of their own fans to this show. In all honesty, I’ve tried my best to find appreciation for this band’s music, both on their albums and in the live setting, but failed miserably in my attempts. With that said, I certainly don’t have anything against them and all credit to them for building up their fanbase to what it is today. Vocalist Trevor Strnad is without doubt an entertaining frontman regardless of whether or not you’re a fan of the music, and it’s always fun to watch the moshpits during Black Dahlia sets. ‘Statutory Ape’ remains my favorite song of theirs and it was good to see it included in the set. I can’t fault the band for their performance level which was musically tight and visibly energetic, and for Black Dahlia fans this tour is worth the time and the money.
Video clip from The Black Dahlia Murder’s set:
Visit The Black Dahlia Murder on the web:
facebook.com/TheBlackDahliaMurderOfficial
twitter.com/BDMmetal
Set List:
01. In Hell Is Where She Waits for Me
02. Moonlight Equilibrium
03. On Stirring Seas of Salted Blood
04. Their Beloved Absentee
05. Statutory Ape
06. Raped in Hatred by Vines of Thorn
07. Phantom Limb Masturbation
08. What a Horrible Night to Have a Curse
09. I Will Return
At 10:30, the lights went out and the epic ‘1985’ intro from the latest Carcass album ‘Surgical Steel’ rang loud and clear on the PA. It’s not an overstatement or exaggeration to say that this little 75-second piece is nothing short of heavy metal perfection. That undeniably powerful guitar harmony gives true metalheads’ hearts warm and fuzzy, drawing them to itself like moths to a flame. To the soundtrack of this glorious intro, the members of the band appeared one by one and laid into what turned out to be a memorable set for fans old and new.
They began with ‘Buried Dreams’ but then delved into a large portion of the Surgical Steel material which I for one had absolutely no complaints with, given it was the best album of 2013 and musically lived up to everything one would have expected from Carcass. There were as many as six songs from the album, two more in comparison to their set at the Troubadour last year, which was the right way to go as people are more familiar with the album now. It was great to witness the inclusion of ‘Noncompliance to ASTM F 899-12 Standard’ in the set and it stood out as one of the highlights of the set, along with ‘Unfit For Human Consumption’ and ‘Cadaver Pouch Conveyor System’. This new material was delivered with crushing force by Jeff Walker and his band mates and gave the set a lot of impetus.
But of course, there was a healthy dosage of older material as well, with tunes like ‘This Mortal Coil’, ‘Genital Grinder’, ‘Ruptured In Purulence’ and several others delighting the old-school fans in the house. More than just the mere song selection in the set, these longtime fans found tremendous enjoyment upon realizing that even though the tunes as well as the band have aged, they’re still presenting that music with the same unbridled intensity and unmistakable quality that garnered them their fan base in the first place. If they weren’t doing justice to those songs in their own minds and in the eyes of the fans, Carcass is one band you could count on for not making a comeback whatsoever and not tainting their legacy. But thankfully for all involved, they’re still as good as ever in the live setting.
What added further to the show and made it a special occasion was, it just so happened to be Jeff Walker’s 45th birthday. As a result, he was in an even more humorous mood than usual, giving us a taste of that typically witty and dry British humor on several occasions between songs. The moment wherein he apologized on behalf of Carcass for giving rise to nu metal with their B-tuning was absolutely hilarious and had the audience in splits.
The view from the Observatory’s balcony was breathtaking, and it gave a fair indication of just how jam-packed the venue was for the show. But one thing I observed and am sad to report is, very few heads were seen banging during Carcass’ set and the show in general, which is by no fault of the bands whatsoever, and it just seems like headbanging has gone out of fashion, even at metal shows. Jeff was visibly miffed by the lack of energy as well, but regardless, the band powered through a fantastic set that turned back the clock several years for their longtime fans. Alongside Jeff Walker was lead guitarist Bill Steer who looks like he’s aging backwards, laying down all the leads and solos excellently and combining well with Ben Ash on the other guitar, while drummer Daniel Wilding held down the relentless rhythm of the set to perfection.
With an undeniably great combination of old and new material which they’re doing complete justice to on this Decibel tour, Carcass are living up to expectations and then some.
Check out a full photo gallery from the show below (view the photos here if you’re on a non-Flash device):
Related – Interview: Carcass Guitarist Bill Steer Discusses North American Tour & More
Visit Carcass on the web:
facebook.com/OfficialCarcass
twitter.com/CarcassBand
Set List:
01. Buried Dreams
02. A Congealed Clot Of Blood/Incarnated Solvent Abuse
03. Cadaver Pouch Conveyor System
04. The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills
05. Carnal Forge
06. No Love Lost
07. Noncompliance To ASTM F 899-12 Standard/This Mortal Coil/Reek Of Putrefaction
08. Edge Of Darkness/Unfit For Human Consumption
09. Genital Grinder/Pyosisified (Rotten To The Gore)/Exhume to Consume
10. Captive Bolt Pistol
11. Corporal Jigsore Quandary/The Sanguine Article
12. Ruptured In Purulence/Heartwork
Video clip from Carcass’s set:
Check out Arturo Gallegos’ YouTube channel:
youtube.com/SexThrash69
Remaining Decibel Tour Dates:
03/26/14 The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA *WITH REPULSION
03/28/14 Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC CANADA
03/29/14 Showbox at the Market – Seattle, WA
03/30/14 Roseland Theater – Portland, OR
04/02/14 Summit Music Hall – Denver, CO
04/04/14 Mill City Nights – Minneapolis, MN
04/05/14 House of Blues – Chicago, IL
04/06/14 Newport Music Hall – Columbus, OH
04/07/14 Stage AE – Pittsburgh, PA
04/08/14 Sound Academy – Toronto, ON CANADA
04/09/14 Metropolis – Montreal, QC CANADA
04/10/14 Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA
04/11/14 Best Buy Theater – New York, NY
04/12/14 Trocadero Theatre – Philadelphia, PA
04/13/14 The Fillmore – Silver Spring, MD
Visit the Observatory on the web:
ObservatoryOC.com
facebook.com/ObservatoryOC
twitter.com/ObservatoryOC
instagram.com/ObservatoryOC