GIG REVIEW: Metal Magic Festival XVI @ Dronningepladsen (Fredericia, Denmark)

After having the best of times at last year’s edition, it was a no-brainer to come back to the scenic Heavy Metal party that is Metal Magic in Denmark. Let’s get stuck into the diverse and devilish lineup of underground perfection on offer this year…

Thursday

Raven was a surge of power, with these English titans rocking out classic numbers perfectly alongside some newer ragers. The trio certainly had a lot of experience under their belts and every ounce of hunger to still rock that they had back in the day. As one of the bands still flying the NWOBHM flag high, it is safe to say this moment in time is not going to die anytime soon.

Darvaza turned up the evil. This performance was a dark, vengeful and malicious one with a commanding performance that grabbed you by the jugular. A perfectly sadistic closing ritual for the first day. Giving the crowd a taste of spite and playing on Björn’s commanding stage presence, Darvaza feel like one of the far more sincere bands who will forcefully seize Black Metal back from any trend-junkies, by violent force if necessary.

Friday

Strychnos recently released one of my favourite records so far this year and as such I was ecstatic when they were added to the poster. Playing a crushing blend of Black and Death Metal that they have been fine-tuning since the 90s, this Danish titan of extremity certainly surpassed expectations with their tight and relentless performance of blasting bestial barbarity. A (literally) blood-soaked apparition of the underground and a band I feel is deserving of far more adoration, Strychnos held the key to the crypt gates and ushered all of us into the grave.

Venator gave a more joyous 80s Heavy Metal attack which was packed with melody and old school headbanging mayhem. The powerful duel-guitar onslaught and rampage of bass lines cut through some hard-hitting drums to backline some of my favourite vocals in the so-called “NWOTHM” circles. Every member offers an intricate and engrossing experience that feels very professional yet with all of the passion and rabid hunger of an underground band.

Pentagram (Chile) are true old school maniacs, playing their thrashing blend of South-American Death Metal that only that part of the world can do so perfectly. Their set was insanely tight and impressive with plenty of those demo tracks we all hoped for creeping into the macabre setlist for the show. A tasteful and vicious monument to the old school maniacs. This horde still has plenty of anger to offer.

Mysticum was the most caustic, violent and intense assault of the senses one could imagine. The scathing drum machines and malignant guitars met by inhuman voices provided the apocalyptic soundtrack to an equally indomitable light show. The scorn of Industrial Black Metal’s finest band and one of Norway’s most unique offerings to music, Mysticum, was something I was desperate to experience and it was worth every bit of the wait. A truly captivating and hostile experience that had me ecstatic to the point I am not sure I breathed until it ended. Being beaten by the pouring rain and frozen stiff only added to the visceral and tormenting brilliance of this set.

Saturday

Gruesome took on the role of keeping Death’s legacy going strong. The only band to truly do such amazing justice, Matt Harvey and his crew had an impenetrable sound. From those morbid riffs and snarling vocals to the tomb-cracking drums, this was true Death Metal played brutally. A splendid mixture of material from their full lengths and EP’s, Gruesome gave the fans exactly what they wanted; a trip to the savage lands where they could receive a spiritual healing.

Century were the first of two of my favourite Swedish Heavy Metal bands in recent years to grace the stage. Having seen these guys absolutely destroy the Keep It True warmup this year, I knew Century would dominate. Blasting melodic and street-ready Heavy Metal at high velocity, these guys absolutely hammered it out of the park. The vocals soared gloriously upon memorable instrumental waves of metallic excellence and provided a truly superb show that would not be easily forgotten.

Tyrann brought the fist-pounding and muscular Heavy Metal assault you would expect. As the second unleashing of the aforementioned Swedish wrecking crew, I knew this was gonna rule. Playing tracks from both of their killer records with fury and passion, every moment felt like an adrenaline rush that I could have stayed in forever. Everything about this band feels old school to the bone, unpolished and filled with relentless raw energy that is fuelled only by adoration for real Heavy Metal. The crowd were feral and salivating for more and I think it’s fair to say they more than delivered.

Sabbat are a band I have been dying to see. The Japanese masters of darkness and evil delivered a blinding set of powerful mayhem and violence. Every moment crushed and desecrated all things holy as the three maniacs slaughtered the sound space with the best of Japanese Black Metal mastery. Whiplash riffing, unstoppable drums and Gezol’s unique voice were the only way to end this weekend’s main stage, sacrificing all false metallic wimps on the altar of pure Heavy Metal armageddon.

Abysmal Grief closed the festival with a rite of evil Doom Metal occultism. Their majestic sounds both funereal and forceful were a truly immense sonic experience only rivalled by their attention to details with the stage aesthetics. A beautifully sepulchral ending to a weekend of true Heavy Metal carnage that only witnessing the occult horrors of Abysmal Grief could do justice. Every second haunted the soul with spectral apparitions as those truly unnerving instruments were met by inhumane vocals from the cemetery. Abysmal Grief transported the crowd to a charnel place before releasing us to haunt our homelands following such a show.

Another truly marvellous three days of Heavy Metal mayhem. The crowds were great, the bands even better and everything felt like a homestead for all true maniacs. Taking things back to a simpler time with a weekend that revolved solely around great music, this festival is exactly what the underground needs and it will always be a pleasure to return to it…