Decibel Presents: Through Space And Grind 2015

Through Space And Grind, a new tour sponsored by Decibel Magazine, made its maiden voyage through North America with this doozy of a line up. I witnessed the carnage firsthand when the tour reached Albuqurque’s Sunshine Theater on February 24. Here’s how I survived:

I wasn’t actually in the venue during Black Crown Initiate‘s set. However, from what I could here from the bar next door, those bass speakers were fucking ace. Besides, at the risk of sounding like a bitch, I was never a huge fan to begin with. The songs are pretty and the lyrics are poetic, but I don’t think they’re heavy at all.

Phobia was yet another Death Metal act that easily gets lost in the mix. With a genre as deviant and intense as this, “good enough” is never really good enough. Sure, they were decent musicians and the songs were really cool, but I didn’t retain any of the melodies or get any riffs stuck in my head. I almost forgot that they performed at all.

Iron Reagan was surprisingly good. I had never given them a chance before, on account of their stupid name, but they were actually a decent thrash band. They were still on the silly side of thrash metal, in the vein of D.R.I, Suicidal Tendencies, or Municipal Waste. With such creative song titles as “Your Kid’s An Asshole” and “Worthless Loser”, they were pretty much  what I expected.

Exhumed, while heavy, sound better on records than they do live. They use copious theatrics such as guillotines and  chainsaws to compensate for their underwhelming music. Although their performance was fast, aggressive, and bloody disgusting, the gratuitous gore did little to redeem a forgettable setlist.

Voivod, on the other hand,  was absolutely magnificent. Holy shit. I enjoyed the first half of their performance front and center, where I had a prime vantage point to see each band member  up close, smiling, laughing, and running around like lunatics. Even when I retreated to higher ground for the second half of the set, their energy was ever contagious. Thier goofball shenanigans belied musical genius and truly heavy tracks. Not only did they have a wonderful stage presence, but their songs are spectacular in both composition and sheer power. Prior to this show, the only  Voivod tracks I knew were from their definitive album, Nothingface. Now I’ve been introduced to some equally brilliant obscure songs, as well as new material. In addition to these deep cuts, they of course played their phenomenal cover of Pink Floyd’s Astronomy Domine. Not to cop out like Lovecraft on Cthulhu, but it was indescribable.

Napalm Death equaled Voivod in intensity, but their sound was more on the straightforward brutal assault side of the fence, instead of progressive compositions. They lived up to their reputation as grind/death metal pioneers, playing fast songs (some under a minute) and inciting lethal mosh pits. There is raw rage and fire in their music, and it was a perfect way to taper the night off into drunken oblivion.

Although some bands were better than others, Voivod more than made up for any mediocrity that transpired through the night. Five fucking stars it is!