LIVE REVIEW: Desaster @ The Underworld, London

As the nights draw in and temperatures plummet, winter gig season is in full swing. Matching the seasonal darkness, the unholy trinity of German blackened thrashers DESASTER, Czech black metallers ROOT and Finnish war metal horde ARCHGOAT arrive to The Underworld in London for a celebration of darkness.

DESASTER, ROOT and ARCHGOAT alone is enough to warrant a bill of epic proportions but tonight’s show is only bolstered by the additions of MORK and VALARAUKAR as supporting acts. VALARAUKAR are tasked to kick off proceedings and despite the venue being far from capacity, the UK duo do an amicable job of setting the tone for the evening. The racket this duo make is devilishly sweet as rampaging riffs from Vagath collide head on with routine blasts from the drums, laced with d-beat influences. Although they may lack the scope and notoriety of the bands that followed them, VALARAUKAR did enough to whet appetites for the rest of the show. A solid start to the evening.

Rating: 7/10

MORK‘s stock in the modern black metal scene has boomed as of late. Having released the excellent Det Svarte Juv earlier this year and received plaudits for a stellar outing at this year’s Damnation Festival, the brainchild of Thomas Eriksen is striking a chord with black metal fans, especially here in the UK. Arriving to a much more packed room at The Underworld, Eriksen and his backing live band justify the good faith with a wicked execution of their brand of Norwegian black metal. Whilst stylistically the band firmly align themselves to their homeland’s infamous second wave, the soundscape MORK forge with their time on stage at The Underworld is simply superb. Crunching riffs from Alex Bruun and Eriksen ebb and flow from mid-tempo headbangers to rapidly dense passages that are utterly vicious whilst Eriksen‘s range of shrieks and growls hold their own against the thick wall of sound. With a bountiful selection of material from this year’s Det Svarte Juv sounding absolutely brilliant alongside several deep cuts from older records, MORK gave a performance of real might, one in which surely showcases why the band are taking the black metal world by storm.

Rating: 9/10

ARCHGOAT‘s appearances on our shores have been sporadic to say the least. With only the odd show here and there, the chance to witness the Finnish bestial war metallers in the flesh is a special occasion and by the time the band hit the stage, The Underworld is absolutely rammed. And from the moment the trio proceed to unleash aural hell, the wild crowd respond appropriately and it’s incredible to witness. In a set that spans the breadth of their discography, ARCHGOAT intend to take no prisoners and rarely let the intensity dip throughout their performance. Material from last year’s The Luciferian Crown sounds absolutely colossal in the live environment, with the sharp grooves of Messiah of Pigs being a particular highlight, whilst the Satanic chants and mid-tempo chug of Grand Luciferian Theophany holds the crown in a trance-like state.

A slight negative however is the fact the set is marred by technical gremlins, particularly to Lord Angelslayer‘s bass. Eventually, he abandons the instrument altogether, opting to deploy just his guttural snarls and act as a frontman. Whilst disappointing, what’s remarkable here is that the loss of bass didn’t impact ARCHGOAT‘s live impact, if anything, it only enhanced it as Lord Angelslayer‘s increased stage presence and focus towards Ritual Butcherer‘s bestial riffing kept the intensity of the performance sky high, particularly in a razor-sharp execution of Nuns, Cunts & Darkness. Whilst technical issues could have easily dampened their impact, ARCHGOAT gave a performance that was as dangerous and aurally vicious as one has come to expect from the Finns. We can only hope that it isn’t too long before they grace our shores once more.

Rating: 8/10

ROOT have been at the forefront of the Czech black metal scene for over three decades now and any preconceived notions that the band would simply be another trademark black metal band were quickly extinguished as Big Boss and co. gave a performance that was quite unlike anything we have ever seen in extreme music. Sure, the dynamic riffing that switches from a blistering assault to sustained chugs with absolute ease, thundering drumming and snarled vocals from Big Boss ticks all the boxes of the black metal rulebook but it is in fact their stage presence and how they portray themselves in both their music and in between songs that makes ROOT such a bizarre spectacle.

This is largely down to Big Boss himself, equipped with a walking stick, he spends a large portion of the set propped up a chair reading from a lectern resembling a leader of a sermon before gibbering and laughing away to a receptive crowd between songs. It’s hilariously brilliant, with one of the standout moments being where he allows his bandmates to take up vocal duties as he prowls the stage shouting the lyrics to those gathered front and centre, but there’s a feeling that the Satanic themes explored within their music is far from just a gimmick. With ROOT, and especially Big Boss as the founder of the Czech branch of the Church of Satan, that they are the real deal and it’s as intriguing as it is a match made in heaven. As they close their set with a triumphant rendition of 666, many in the audience were left scratching their heads at what they had just witnessed, but one thing is for sure, ROOT have made a lasting impression.

Rating: 8/10

Upon reflection, ROOT‘s placement between DESASTER and ARCHGOAT is a curious one as their lesser intensity has staggered the aural onslaught and as such, it takes some time for DESASTER to restore the ferocity that ARCHGOAT had so effectively built and unleashed. But these German thrashers are no novices, tonight marks a celebration of over three decades of their brand of blackened thrash and their experience is apparent from the get-go.

Roaring through an hour-long set, the quartet are on scorching form as they dispatch razor-sharp riffing with their trademark blackened edge in absolute abundance and their clever use of melody through tasty twin guitar harmonies works a treat whilst the drums are beaten into a inch of their life from new drummer Hont. With his bandmates operating as a tight musical unit, frontman Sataniac excels with his guttural snarls, keeping the energy of the rampant crowd sky high throughout their time on stage. Performing material from across their extensive career, songs from 2016’s The Oath of an Iron Ritual are a particular highlight and go down a storm, showing that their last full-length studio outing has only gotten better with age, and the performance of Black Celebration, a new single celebrating their three decade milestone, is just reflective of the mood of tonight’s show. This is a celebration of their Teutonic blackened thrash, and judging from the absolute frenzy from the crowd who gave the band absolutely everything they had, for DESASTER, it’s a job well done. Here’s to the next thirty years.

Rating: 9/10

Check out our photo gallery of the action in London from Karolina Janikunaite here: