Gig Review: Band Quest Essex Metal Heat 4 @ Edge Bar - 01/03/10
The previous week at the Edge Bar had seen some fine performances from the likes of hard rockers Killing With Style, so it was up to the 3 bands tonight to keep things on a high.
Not many acts taking part in Band Quest have anywhere near the history of trad metallers Snake Eyes (7/10) who formed over ten years ago. Starting life in Canada and having a video on Scuzz in the past is not on the radar of most unsigned bands. When you add the vocal talents of Paul Clarke to the equation it begins to look even more exciting. During his time with the South East London band Drakonis his vocals were never able to reach those heights that straight forward heavy metal allows, but Snake Eyes seems to be the platform 'the voice' has been waiting for.
The first half of the set seems to plod along, partly thanks to an atmosphere which can only be described as flat. 'Leather and metal' ups the game, adding a nice power-groove to proceedings. As the set moves into the closing stages the guitar becomes more prominent on faster tracks, the voice more powerful, creating a forceful Saxon style finally. This thirty minute set seems to have been only a hint of what Snake Eyes can do but was enough to move into the semi-finals with ease.
Next up were Legion (7) whose crushing riffs threatened to pull down the ceiling. The vocals from Matt Cooney are equally impressive, eventually handling the melodic parts with ease, allowing the songs to escape from an all out attack of heaviness. Each song is memorable in its own way, carefully crafted to hit out at the right time making this an interesting half hour of thundering metal.
If the evening needed a lift it was Rezinwolf (7.5) who injected the Essex air with a healthy dose of adrenaline. Their brand of old school thrash was a million miles faster than anything before them on the night and probably since Gama Bomb at the Hellfire Festival back in 2009. You can imagine hundreds of drunken metal fans in some dingy rock joint on a Saturday night going crazy over this but the Monday night crowd were slightly more muted. Maybe it was the bands desire to stick a little too close to their influences, with early Metallica and Municipal Waste-like riffs dominating the performance. Despite this when riffs hit the walls like bullets from a mad mans machine gun it's hard not get carried away with it all.
The evening may have been ruled by Snake Eyes but it was dragged into life by Rezinwolf.
Review by Alan Hicks