FESTIVAL REVIEW: UK Tech-Fest 2019 – Friday

With the introductory, ‘early bird‘ day under the belt and the juices well and truly flowing, Friday brought the first of the three main events for this year’s UK Tech-Fest, and along with it a consummately stacked lineup. From slam to ‘R’n’B core’, this day took us on a rich journey of tech music’s entire spectrum, and served as a poignant advert for the festival and the genre. Let’s take a closer look.

ABHORRENT DECIMATION – LINE 6 Stage

Clearly Simon Garrod wasn’t prepared to show any mercy to the UK Tech-Fest crowd when planning his Friday lineup for 2019. Rather, he opted to hand the first slot of the day to death metal outfit ABHORRENT DECIMATION, an outfit seasoned in showcasing brutality in its purest form. As expected, the London-based outfit proceeded to shake the main stage to its foundations, effortlessly delivering their brand of extreme, blackened death metal in a cleanly, professional manner. As is the case for most successful outfits, the band’s frontman, Ashley Scott, acted very much as their centrepiece, performing his craft with unwavering precision and brutality. His presence and charisma certainly didn’t go unnoticed either, always poised assertively at centre-stage, standing tall and holding the crowd in the palm of his hand. This added a different dimension to the performance entirely. However, despite a virtually watertight display from each member, it was ultimately difficult to ignore the handful of leads that were backtracked rather than being played live – always a letdown for a technically astute band. This said, ABHORRENT DECIMATION still kicked off the day by making an arresting, imperious impact, and no doubt forced the punters out of a hangover-induced stupor.

Rating: 8/10

SIAMESE – LINE 6 Stage

Having sprung out of the shadows and established themselves as one of UK Tech-Fest 2018’s shock highlights, pop-inspired metalcore act SIAMESE made their highly anticipated return this year, this time earning themselves a prestigious main stage slot. As expected the performance radiated joviality and energy, with the Danish outfit’s fun, lighthearted nature once again translating seamlessly to the live setting. Whilst the party vibe very much prevailed throughout, this year the band were able to deliver a more serious, focused set, largely consisting of a selection from brand new album Super Human, in addition to a few fan-favourites from 2018’s Shameless. Whilst the overall musicianship struck as typically clean and professional, the band’s eclectic, engaging nature was epitomised by Christian Hjort Lauritzen‘s spellbinding display of guitar and violin, flitting between the two to appropriately compliment each section. And, needless to say, frontman Mirza Radonjica-Bang effortlessly captivated the audience from the offset, his charisma, R’n’B-style delivery and beautiful singing voice bringing each song very much to life. This was a fun, compelling, and virtually flawless display from an up-and-coming band with the wind in their sails, more than justifying their progression to the festival’s main stage.

Rating: 9/10

GODEATER – Fireball stage

Hailing from Glasgow, Scotland, GODEATER are a fresh act with a point to prove. Having garnered a respectable status with just five songs under their belt, the quintet came to make an impact, and certainly did so. Their punishing brand of tech-death infused prog-metal poured mercilessly from the stage, with each member showcasing professionalism, pride and enjoyment throughout, sending the second stage crowd into raptures despite being just 3pm with the summer sun at its zenith. The band’s series of short, fast-paced and technical songs clearly fitted the live setting like a glove, but were unfortunately let down at times by the band’s lack of experience, with the pace of the songs and the frequent tempo changes often causing the tightness of the performance to slip. However, overall this was a display adorned with energy and musicianship, and sets a fine precedent for what will surely be a promising future for GODEATER.

Rating: 7/10

ANDY JAMES – LINE 6 Stage

Mixing the day’s proceedings up a little, English guitar shredster Andy James took to the main stage to dazzle the masses with his almost impossibly deft and precise playing style. Armed with a drummer and bassist to form the spine but still very much remaining as the centrepiece, James proceeded to rifle through a set packed with intricate soloing, tapping, metal riffing and chorus melodies, managing to consistently create the impression of traditionally formed songs without any presence of vocals. But the songs themselves aside, this performance was really all about the technical ability, with not a single note missed throughout, and an ultra-clean, polished feel oozing from the stage. However, the ever-present danger with instrumental music is the prospect of losing the audience, and unfortunately this became a reality towards the end of the set. It would appear that much of James‘ material is centred around his technical ability as a player rather than his ability to write songs, and after 20 minutes of live performance, that begins to show. However, anyone familiar with Andy James will know that his job is to dazzle, and dazzle he certainly did.

Rating 7/10

ANNOTATIONS OF AN AUTOPSY – LINE 6 Stage

Having recently made their return after an eight-year hiatus, ANNOTATIONS OF AN AUTOPSY‘s set was undoubtedly one of the weekend’s most anticipated. With brand new EP World Of Sludge in the arsenal, the UK slam band took to the stage as if they’d never left, proceeding to rattle the festival site with a series of chuggy riffs, down-tempo breakdowns and terrifying guttural vocals. Had we not already been aware, it would have become immediately clear that this act are an old-school, underground favourite, sending the main stage crowd into utter bedlam from the get-go. Slam is a niche, divisive sub-genre of metal, but this performance made that feel irrelevant. Overall the display was unbelievably tight, devastatingly heavy and undeniably engaging, serving as a poignant reminder of why this band were once so highly revered in the scene.

Rating: 8/10

ARCHSPIRE – Fireball Stage

Having swapped from a Sunday evening main stage slot at last minute, Canadian death metallers ARCHSPIRE were appointed as Friday’s second stage headliner – a title undoubtedly compatible with their high status. Despite some sound issues having plagued other bands on this stage during the festival so far, ARCHSPIRE shrugged this off effortlessly, sounding immaculate as they rattled through an hour-long set. In short, the five-piece proceeded to drop jaws across the room, delivering a flawless rendition of their spellbinding, face-meltingly technical interpretation of tech-death, each note struck with perfection and each instrument deftly balanced in the mix. Spencer Prewett put not a single hand or foot wrong in delivering his array of 300-BPM blast beats and fill patterns, bassist Jared Smith and guitarists Tobi Morelli and Dean Lamb dazzled all the way through with their arsenal of soloing, tapping and riffing, and critically acclaimed frontman Oliver Rae Aleron didn’t falter even once with his ultra-fast, rap-style, ‘circular breathing’ delivery and assertive, charismatic crowd control. Unsurprisingly, the mastery was met with equal enthusiasm from the hundreds of people present, with heads banging, arms swinging and circle pits spinning right the way through. Simply put, this was a performance that did absolute justice to the mind-bending technicality ARCHSPIRE offer on their records, and proved to be one of the most compelling displays of the entirety of UK Tech-Fest.

Rating 10/10

BLACK TONGUE – LINE 6 Stage

Patently one of the UK scene’s most beloved acts, Hull four-piece BLACK TONGUE made their long-awaited UK Tech-Fest return this year, being handed a prestigious slot and duly laying waste to the main stage in utterly typical fashion. Opening with old fan-favourite Eclipse, an evil, gloomy aura immediately coursed through the room, with each black metal riff, down-tempo breakdown and gutteral piercing the ears of the attendees and ensuing complete chaos. The outfit proceeded to smash through a finely balanced set of material new and old, paying homage to EPs Born Hanged and Falsifier, in addition to debut full-length The Unconquerable Dark and latest effort Nadir. Closing on modern classic HCHC, the aggression, tempo and energy in the room epitomised the entire set, with nearly every person in the room yelling the lyrics and banging their head, signing off what was ultimately a singularly heavy, destructive performance. BLACK TONGUE achieved everything that was expected of them and more, and set a truly fine precedent for their return to the scene and their extensive, forthcoming tour cycle for Nadir.

Rating: 9/10

DYING FETUS – LINE 6 Stage

Undoubtedly the most celebrated name on this year’s UK Tech-Fest lineup, legendary death metal act DYING FETUS arrived at Newark Showground with expectation and anticipation resting heavily on their shoulders. Spanning from 1997’s Killing on Adrenaline right the way through to latest effort Wrong One to Fuck With just two years ago, this band have well and truly built a legacy, and have helped shape a genre along the way. With the context in mind, this was probably Simon Garrod‘s most prestigious booking ever, something that became abundantly clear in the performance. One would expect any band with more than a two-decade-long history to appear consummately professional, and DYING FETUS did exactly that, rattling through a lengthy roster of old and new favourites, sending the eager crowd into delirium in the process. The performance, as expected, was strikingly tight, with John Gallagher‘s vocal and guitar work in particular proving to be the main spectacle; both elements shining in equal measure. This was an undeniably an accomplished performance but one ultimately let down by a few mixing issues. Word spread across the site in the build-up to the set that the band had been delayed getting into the country, and consequently had to hurriedly load in and soundcheck: in the circumstances, their performance was particularly impressive, but it must be acknowledged that the drum sound (particularly the snare) came across as poorly balanced and lacking in impact, and was perhaps a result of the last minute logistical issues. In any case, this was a proficient showing from a legendary act, and one that certainly matched their status, ultimately pleasing all in attendance and aptly topping off UK Tech-Fest 2019’s first full day.

Rating: 8/10

And that closes our coverage of the Friday of this year’s UK Tech-Fest! Keep posted to Distorted Sound as we bring you our coverage of Saturday and Sunday’s action soon!