Mamatfest 01.02.2016

Pat from Atomicdeath invited me to this all-day show organized by Mamat Records, held at the Black Box in swanky Publika Mall (where I haven't seen a show since Doom came to KL in 2014). With metal shows being few and far between in Malaysia right now, this looked to be the only chance to see some death metal this month (without getting on a plane or a bus first).

Mixtape 15: South East Asian Metal Attack II

Mixtape 15: South East Asian Metal Attack II by Dreams Of Consciousness on Mixcloud

Here is the 15th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Tom Banks of the Vietnamese death metal band Disgusted. I met Tom in 2012 when Disgusted played Kuala Lumpur; having been in a band and lived in South East Asia for roughly the same period I've been writing about it for this blog, I wanted to get his perspective on the scene, and what it means to be a metal fan here. Especially important to me were his experiences in Vietnam, a scene that's little known and much overlooked, even in this region.

Atomicdeath Interview

It's long past time for an interview with one of my favourite local bands - ATOMICDEATH! I sent some questions to guitarist Pat, who was kind enough to answer.

Mixtape 2: Malaysia

The much promised, even much more delayed second DoC Mixtape, this time focusing on bands from Malaysia. My buddy Mike stopped by while I was in Queens and helped me discuss the Malaysian metal scene. 

The Gathering of Madness, with Sarjan Hassan, W.I.D.B., Atomicdeath, Vault, Succubus, WWHIRR @Rumah Api

Shows at Rumah Api usually feature several bands that I'm overly familiar with, with a few thrown in that I haven't seen before. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth going, especially as I've seen a few of these bands almost monthly since my first appearance in April. Honestly, how many raw angry grindcore bands does one need to see in a lifetime? But there's always the nagging feeling that I may miss something crucial and original happening in my own backyard, so I drag myself away from my computer and suspend my natural disposition to hate everything for about 4 hours.

With Man and Manusia from Sarjan Hassan and Emi from Tools of the Trade, openers WWIHRR are something of a Rumah Api supergroup. Their guitar-less, bass-driven power violence and epic slow parts instantly recall Man is the Bastard/Bastard Noise. Throughout their set, religious-tinged choral music played in the background, adding an extra layer of subversion to their music. A good start and a pleasant surprise for a night that I assumed would hold few of them.

There's no end to bands worshiping at the Altars of Madness, and Succubus is among them. Their style of thrashing death is well worn, but since I'm usually disappointed by a lack of Malaysian death metal, I'll keep my complaints to a minimum. All told, their set was solid and extremely entertaining, even if they played each song like they were racing each other to the end. They ended with Merciless' classic "Nuclear Attack," so if nothing else I got to hear that live for the first time in my life. With a cassette that's destined to be plugged heavily on the NWN Boards, you might as well clear a space on your patch jacket for these guys now.

Right now one of the least appealing styles of music to me is thrash, especially when done by anyone who wasn't playing it prior to '92. Vault features members of Lobotomy and Nightwolf (thrash perm is still thriving), so clearly they love this stuff. But do the rest of us need it? They plough through all of the genre's cliches without adding anything new to the dialogue, and after a few songs I had heard enough to politely excuse myself.

It may seem contradictory that I'm so reticent about retro thrash, and yet I love Atomicdeath. I don't really have an explanation, except to point out there isn't another band in Malaysia doing quite what these guys do. As I looked around at the small crowd who are present for AD's set, I wondered how many people in the local scene realize how special these guys are, and what it'll take for them to break out. In addition to their anthems ("Zero Tolerance," "Forever Black Hell," "Kombat 666") they included two new songs, hinting that a more blast-heavy direction is in their future. I for one can't wait. And to think I almost skipped this show. Somewhere in Bloomfield, NJ, the president of the Atomicdeath fanclub is saying "I told you so."

If the amount of heckling during soundcheck can be used to measure an audience's interest, than anticipation was high for the first live appearance of WIDB ("What Is De Because"...no, I don't get it either). They label themselves "death grind," but besides a vague similarity to Impaled and General Surgery at their gnarliest, actual grind parts were used sparingly and judiciously. More often than not, WIDB slow things down to a mid-paced stomp that lets the riffs breathe and the audience engage. With members of Malaysian veterans like Infectious Maggots and Carburetor Dung, their confidence and maturity is telling, and the dual guitarist/dual vocalist approach worked in their favour...even if the tiny Rumah Api stage doesn't lend itself well to such a large line-up. A good addition to the KL scene and the highlight of the entire evening. Plus, extra points for the singer's Napalm Death shirt ...you can never have too many Napalm Death shirts.

Whenever headliner Sarjan Hassan takes the stage, two things can be expected: crossover and pandemonium. With the new(ish) stage monitor at Rumah Api, dog piles and stage dives were kept to a minimum, but that didn't dissuade the audience from dragging singer Man offstage in an attempt to carry him around the room. I'm sure it only got better from there, but I had to bail to catch the last train home. Somewhere in Bloomfield, the president of the SH fanclub (also president of the Atomicdeath fanclub) is shaking his head in disapproval.

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South East Asian Metal Attack Mixtape #1

Enslave, Godless Symptom, Wicked Suffer 9.16.2012

I thought I got the hang of this "Malaysia Time" thing I really did. Not-A-Fest, featuring three foreign bands (headliners Enslave from Japan; Wicked Suffer and Godless Symptoms from Indonesia) was advertised as starting at 3 pm, so I figured that meant if I showed up the usual 3 hours late, I'd arrive just as soundchecks were finishing. Nope. Not only did the show start more or less on time, but Tools of the Trade actually opened despite being listed in the middle of the bill. Clutch the pearls, what a sneaky thing to do.

It's a little odd that a band that headlined Singapore Deathfest would open a local gig a few weeks later, but when I asked Tools' singer Tiong about it, he shrugged it off. There's not a lot of rock star attitude in the local scene, and Tools of the Trade seem to take these kinds of things in stride. I, on the other hand, was disappointed; I was looking forward to not just Tools, but Dance! On Your Grave and Reason to Resist, who I've never seen. Hopefully I can catch them some other time.

Still, I can't complain about a gig where Atomicdeath is on stage as soon as I arrive. Seeing a band once a month can lead to boredom pretty quickly (unless it's Napalm - I'd see Napalm every week if I could), but AD have wisely been varying their set over the last couple shows, shuffling in songs from their debut cassette as well as a cover of Malaysian underground thrash legends Silent Death. It's amazing how much better they've gotten since I first saw them five months ago at the same venue. Almost as amazing as Rumah Api having a stage monitor for this gig.

There was a great deal of excitement for Wicked Suffer, and they rewarded it with a fearless and aggressive performance. Big doom riffs served as a launchpad for their blistering powerviolence, and the place went apeshit, because short and fast is the rule at Rumah Api. I'm curious about the difference between the Malaysian and Indonesian grind/power violence scenes in terms of sound; Wicked Suffer have a bass player, which a lot of the Malaysian grind/fastcore bands lack, so there's that.

I guess groove heavy 90's thrash is definitely not in style right now; or maybe it's just not popular with the crust/grind kids who frequent Rumah Api, as Godless Symptoms didn't get quite the response that their countrymen Wicked Suffer got. They might be peddling a style past its sell-by date (or, if you're an optimist, a few years before it makes a comeback), but their enthusiasm for their own material went a long way in winning me over. Besides, I don't know how to dislike a band who asks the entire audience to get on stage with them for a celebratory photo.

Running scales in harmony during their soundcheck was a good indication of the level of skill that Enslave possess - that their punky aesthetic comes from a place of actual musical talent makes it that much better. With their melodic (often metallic) overtones and the vocals being shared by their female lead singer and male guitarists, I couldn't help but draw comparisons to Eskatologia, who share the same traits. It has to be said, though, that Enslave are much more frightening. Their tiny singer spent most of the set standing on the monitor, screaming through bipolar shifts between J-pop coquettishness and creepy J-horror bug-eyed glares.

Once the band started playing, they were completely obscured by their fans, who threw themselves with wild abandon through the air, over the stage, unto the floor. The crowd's exuberance actually caused a temporary stoppage in the set, as band and soundman needed the respite to fix technical problems (no doubt caused by fans falling on pedals and disconnecting chords). The heat and humidity of the room was oppressive, and I was impressed that band and crowd alike could maintain that level of commitment through a full set and an encore. I have friends who  bust my balls for the number of shirts I buy at gigs, but this time it was necessary: the shirt I showed up wearing was drenched like I'd been in a water balloon fight, and a new one was badly needed if I wanted to stave off pneumonia on the train ride home. Any show that feels like an hour-long grappling match and still ends in time for me to catch the train has to go in the "win" column. Let's hear it for Rumah Api's newfound punctuality.

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Kuala Lumpur Thrashed 2012: 9.02.2012

This is part three of a three day live show binge, between Friday, August 31st, and Sunday, September 2nd. Three shows in two countries in three days... how much metal is too much metal? Can this old hesher still bang his head without having a senior moment? We're about to find out...

The last of three days of metal brought me back to home base for KL Thrashed 2012. I was excited for the gig, mostly because of Atomicdeath; but two straight nights of heshing out were beginning to take its toll. Sunday morning, I woke up in Singapore to find that I slept through my alarm and had to rush like a madman from the backpacker's inn to make my bus. I caught it just in time, and after going through customs, I shut my eyes and didn't open them until I was back in KL. Any overpriced corporate coffee I may have sought out on arrival was only purchased to keep me vertical.

The gig was at the annexe behind KL tourist trap Central Market, and a few flights up from the Doppel Kafe (itself a pretty good spot to catch gigs). Any doubts that a thrashfest was scheduled were dispelled by loitering clusters of Jacket Patchers (and even a few Patcherettes). I've long thought that denim vests are an impractical way to show your cred, but a few dedicated heshers went as far as to wear leather jackets in the tropical heat. Style trumps comfort in metal (of course, there's still the case of that idiot running around South East Asia in his Napalm Death hoodie: Suspect is most likely sweating while throwing stones from inside a glass house).

Unlike the crowds at Rumah Api and Singapore Deathfest (where there were a good number of non-Asian foreigners), the KL Thrashed audience was almost entirely Malay - not in an exclusionary way, it just happens to work out like that here for some reason. Inside the hall, local distros set up tables filled with cassettes, patches, and rare (often bootlegged) shirts.  It was like a NWN! message board come to life. If anything, the festival demonstrated that thrash isn't waning in popularity here in Malaysia. That may seem strange, considering how many of the American Thrash Revival bands (Skeleton Witch, Bonded By Blood, etc) are slowly backing away from the label, most likely in an attempt to survive the glut and growing public backlash. But I can testify that old school metal never lost its appeal with Malaysian metalheads; back in 2003 when I was trying to convince friends here of the greatness of the Red Chord and Behemoth, it seemed all they were interested in was Slayer and King Diamond (and, to my utter bafflement, Grip Inc.).

Night Wolf kicked off this night of old school heshing with possibly the oldest school in thrash, a raucous blend of Motörhead, Hellhammer and Venom that was so popular in Bello Horizonte 30 years ago. Night Wolf feature the guitarist from KL's Lobotomy, trading in his axe for bass, vocals, Frost-style corpse paint and a few upside down crosses. His thrash'fro was still in resplendent effect, I'm happy to report. A cover of Abigail's "Satanik Metal Fucking Hell" should tell you what these guys are all about.

A covers band might seem out of place at another fest, but considering this whole event was paying tribute to a bygone era, Central Disposal didn't seem out of place. Dark Angel, Death Angel, and Exodus were all given their dues, but Central Disposal really shone with a cover of Vio-Lence's "Kill as One," which I couldn't help but shout along with. Actually, considering how almost none of the classic thrash bands have ever played Malaysia (the exception being Death Angel), maybe hearing those songs in a live setting was a rare treat for the audience.

Possibly the only band at the fest to do more than merely follow a wellworn path, Atomicdeath are the secret highlight of the fest. If mixing thrash and dis-core sounds like it's been done before, I can honestly say I haven't heard it, not the way these guys do it; and the applause they earn tells me I'm not alone. For real though, if the audience didn't give these guys the reaction they deserved, I might have smacked some kids upside the head. AD are the best band in Malaysia, and along with Tools of the Trade, the most likely to break out of the region.

If Bestial Kommand Nuklear Wrath were a real band, they'd probably sound a lot like Storming Steels: Skeksis-like vocals over blackened thrash. Coming from the northern states of Kedah and Perlis, they remind me of Absu without the blasting or sequined headbands. A cover of Sepultura's "Antichrist" is a nice touch and shows where their hearts are at, even if it didn't get a huge reaction from the crowd.

In sharp contrast to the blackened/Teutonic bias of most of the other bands on the bill, Heareafter offered a more technical and melodic take on the genre, reminding me more of new school kids like Warbringer. Their popularity was evident from the number of Hereafter shirts that were present and the fact that the audience's enthusiasm swelled when they got on. Maybe with Dave Mustaine banned from playing Malaysia for the foreseeable future, these guys can fill that niche?

Even if my overall enthusiasm was starting to wane, I was eager to check out Thai thrashers Remains. High pitched yelps, ultra-fast drumming and palm-muted tremolo picking, these guys were remarkably tight and focused, even by thrash standards. Though you might not have expected that as the empty bottles of beer multiplied behind them as their set progressed. Their swagger was amusing, but considering their prowess, not unearned.

After Remains, I badly needed a break; one was already scheduled for 7 PM, but I decided to skip out on Catarhh and Demonification as well - as I left the hall, the intro to "Beneath the Remains" segued into a Metallica cover, leaving me fairly confident that I wasn't missing anything revolutionary. I seriously considered going home after Atomicdeath wrapped up their set, but instead I headed down to Doppel Kafe to escape the cigarette smoke and wait for some feeling to come back to my feet (and neck). I figured I probably wouldn't get another chance to see the two bands at the top of the bill, Thailand's Nuclear Warfare and Sabah's Inside.

Were Nuclear Warfare more new school than old school? Closer to the Teutonic style of Kreator and Sodom than the Bay Area thrash of Testament and Exodus? Honestly, at this point it was all a jumble. All I can recall is members of Atomicdeath, Night Wolf, Lobotomy, and Kathgor showing their enthusiastic support at the front of the stage, and that the audience got so raucous that at one point I was pushed into and nearly knocked over the table with the mixing board. Who's got two thumbs and nearly shut down an entire metal fest? THIS GUY! Luckily that didn't happen, and Nuclear Warfare finished their set unhampered, to the adulation of fans and peers.

Inside, from the Western Malaysian state of Sabah, have been around since the late 90's - by no means the golden age of thrash, but compared to the relative youth of everyone else at the gig, they're practically Venom. Their status at the top of the bill must say something about the regard they have in the region. Excitement was definitely high as they marauded through a set of blackened thrash (more black than thrash from where I was standing). Crosses were inverted, horns were raised, and heads banged appreciably. I'm not sure their Antichristian message is all that scandalous in a Muslim country, but their showmanship was appreciated and provided a decent end to a good, if wearying, night of hesherdom.

Somewhere in a different part of KL, Tools of the Trade were playing a hardcore fest; I'd originally planned on making an appearance at that as well, to rack up my total score to four shows in two countries in three days. But alas, age has taken its toll, and my legs gave up on me. Considering I'll probably be seeing Tools at Rumah Api on the 16th, I figured they'd give me a pass.

Next: I get some well-deserved rest, and decide I don't want to listen to any metal for at least 20 minutes. I manage about 4.

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Days of Defiance 2 - with Infectious Maggots, Tools of the Trade, Atomicdeath and more 06.09.2012

Submitted for your approval: Days of Defiance, an art show/rockfest held in the trendy Publika mall, located in an affluent part of Kuala Lumpur.  Organized in part by the punk band Carburetor Dung, the event featured work from several of the local scene's photographers and artists, and 11 bands split over two days.  I missed the first day because I planned on going to BJJ class and ended up falling asleep instead...but enough of my hectic social life.  Day Two was always the priority for me, since it featured both Atomicdeath and Tools of the Trade, the two bands who changed my view of KL's metal scene from "nay" to "yay."

Like everything else about the mall, "The Black Box" (as the performance space is called) is enormous. It's a distinct change from the punk dive coziness of Rumah Api, and most of the bands looked out of place on the large stage. That aside, the juxtaposition of crusty metal kids and the mall's imperious settings was its own reward, as were the looks we got from the regular patrons.

Openers Last Minute (with Tiong from TotT filling in on bass) establish their formula early on by alternating between melodic hardcore riffing with DRI blitzing; if they figure out a way to integrate those two things, they'd have something special on their hands.  As it is, not a lot about their music is memorable, though their petite singer was all kinds of adorable as she danced circles around the stage.

Mid-way through the show, I passed by the neighbouring "White Box," where KL's beautiful people had come together for a charity ball and slutty outfits.  Teeth-grating electro-pop isn't dead, in case you were worried.  I tried snapping a few pictures before scurrying back to the safe anonymity of black shirts and cargo pants.

xCrime Scenex (the sXe tags are facetious, apparently) may have the answer for anyone wondering what happens if you cross Brutal Truth with Sleep.  Featuring half of crossover kids Sarjan Hassan, I expected their grind would be up to snuff;  what surprised me was how well they doomed.  Their slow moments, earth-shaking and Sabbath-worthy, would get Matt Pike's bleary eyed nod of approval.  Unfortunately, their momentum was derailed when their singer killed two mics within the first song, leading to an interminable wait (and an impromptu jam through Fugazi's "Waiting Room," which got clever points from me and an astonishing number of people singing along).  When the problem was finally resolved, they finished their set in style... though I couldn't help but dwell on the irony that we waited more than fifteen minutes for a band whose songs rarely extend past one.

More than any other band on the bill, Atomicdeath looked like they belonged on the big stage.  The bridge in opener "Forever Black Hell" should come with a disclaimer that says "WARNING: Moshing Eminent."  I'm not sure what else to say about Atomicdeath that I haven't said before, except that this is the third time I've seen them in three months, and they keep getting better. They play the shit out of the six songs from their split with Bloodstone, and end as they usually do with their thrash anthem "Kombat 666."  I can't wait for that song to ring out where it will do the most damage: on a muddy field in a little town called Wacken. 

Infectious Maggots had "OG" stamped all over them, even before their guitarist teased the riff to "World Eater" during soundcheck.  The band is all well into their forties, and if their best days are behind them, there's still something endearing about their lack of pretension. Throughout their set, members of Tools and Atomicdeath headbanged reverently at the front of the stage. Musically they sound like most 90's death metal, though the appearance of clean vocals and faux-rapping midway through their set suggests that they attempted to integrate themselves when the ubiquity of "alternative" left little of same (a quick youtube search confirms they also went through a dodgy industrial phase).  By the end of their set, I felt as if I'd seen an overview of Malaysia's metal history.

The audience conspicuously increases in size and enthusiasm for Carburetor Dung, and they were probably the biggest draw of the event (not surprising, as they helped organize it).  They play punk with lots of rock and roll swagger, and the crowd loves them for it.  Their reworked version of the Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog" strips the original of all its menace, which I guess made it safe for the young girls present to dance around to.  I personally needed a wall to lean against while they played, even as their finale caused an eruption of singing and skanking around me.

Carburetor Dung may have cemented their local hero status, but when it comes to breaking out of the local scene, I'm betting on the grindcore dark horse.  At the tail end of their "Defy Peninsular" tour and a month away from hitting Europe for the first time, Tools of the Trade have never sounded tighter or more ready to fuck shit up.  The remaining audience were ready to riot, even though it was past midnight by the time the band got on (start times here are mostly an in-joke, I reckon).

Despite their local MVP status, the band members remain humble, thanking the crowd for their support and letting their blistering, jagged riffs do the talking for them.  After going all out for a whole set, they acquiesced to the chants for more, and played two songs while bassist Emi put down his instrument to focus on screaming.  [Comparisons to Pig Destroyer are fair except for one point: the bass is essential to TotT's sound, and they sound half as deadly without it] Cue mayhem and the inevitable dogpiles on the stage to signify a job well done.  Hopefully those European kids will give them some good ones to remember.