03/29/2024

Undead Goathead

Dedicated to metal, music, and mischief.

Concert Review: Cormorant, Dysphotic, and more at The Cave

dysphotic cave

 

The good news is that my ears are gauged a size or two bigger. The bad news is that my Betsy Johnson golden hoop earrings (and my earlobes themselves) got ruined in the process. Mosh pits can be so cruel. Here are the bands responsible for this mayhem:

Dysphotic opened with a relatively low-key number, but kicked into full swing with their second track. The vocalist delivers a furious roar, which is even more impressive considering this is his first performance in… five years?  Jesus, that’s brutal. The deep growls complimented the crushing guitar and bass chugs. Some songs were mesmerising with their mantric tempos, which would change pitch and finally erupt into discordant fury. I’m also a sucker for pick slides, and although Dysphotic uses such techniques sparingly, they are well placed in the song structures. The band members play with dexterity and virtuosity, but there is nothing melodic about this music. Their brooding sound belies a dark intensity.

A band is only as good as their drummer, which is why Echoes Of Fallen is so fucking sick.  That dude is a goddamn beast. The primal, monstrous percussion is the nucleus around which the other instruments orbit. You can feel the tribal rhythms shutting down your higher thought processes and reverting your brain to its instinctive “Fight Or Flight” response, resulting in bloody, gruesome mosh pits. Add some killer death metal riffs and gutteral vocals on top of that, and get one of the loudest, nastiest grind bands in New Mexico.

Cormorant is a musical chameleon that  embodies a plethora of subgenres. Just one song can convey the winsome fury of black metal, countered by thunderous percussion and galloping riffs in the vein of NWOBHM. Bluesy clean vocals are sometimes sung in harmony, other times they overlap death metal growls. The different influences intertwine throughout each track’s buildup and taper off after the  climax, resulting in a dynamic, engaging performance. Needless to say, they fucking killed it. 

I’ve seen Yar countless times, but they keep me on my toes by always playing with passion and fury, often outdoing themselves. They opened with a newer song, Skin To Burn, which ignited furious slam dancing with its rowdy thrash riffs and the signature snarl in the vocals. They also  played my favorite jam, Emerald Cave, which incidentally happens to be about smoking weed. I was ignorant to this fact when those infectious guitar hooks first banged their way into my head, but in retrospect, it makes perfect sense that it would be my favorite Yar song.

The music was wicked, but it actually caused an epiphany for me tonight. Although many would consider it paradoxical, I find that black metal exemplifies peace with oneself. You can be at war with society, religion, politics, your friends and family… But you’re never at war with nature, infinity, or solitude. Conversely, other subgenres such as death metal and thrash will acknowledge introspective turmoil, cognitive dissonance, and the brutal necessity of inner conflict. But enough of that esoteric nonsense. My ears are still ringing, my neck is killing me, and I have the blood of a stranger on my steel toes. This concert was everything I needed it to be. Five fucking stars out of five!

5stars