It was 1991. I was getting a little bored with the “heavy” music my bandmates were listening to. One of them leaning more towards the virtuosos of the time, Yngwie Malmsteen, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai. And the others leaning heavily into bands like Alice In Chains or sticking to the roots of Heavy Metal with the likes of Iron Maiden. A cassette landed in my lap titled Grindcrusher. Not only was I in awe of nearly every song on the album but there was one track in particular that got played over and over again, Malicious Intent by Napalm Death. Saturday night at The Palace Theatre in Calgary, I feel like I’ve come full circle being able to not only finally see the band that really pulled me to the heavier side of Metal, but to also photograph the experience. I’m getting ahead of myself here though, let’s start at the start.
The opening act, one of Alberta’s most vocal bands, in more than just the lead singer’s presence and his ability to belt out vocals that can shatter your spine, Culled. When I see this band on the roster for a show, even if the rest of the bands are unknown to me, I know I’m in for a good night catching their set. Unapologetically political in their music and their message. I feel like it’s what puts them over the top for me as an act I not only love catching live but respect for their push back against today’s political landscape. I know a lot of you will say that politics and metal don’t, or shouldn’t, mix but to that I just say fuck that. Metal at its very core is a push against societal norms. To say that bands like Culled need to just stick to music and not push a political agenda just sounds like you don’t really understand the roots of the music you’re listening to. That aside, these guys just know how to get a crowd moving. I’m always impressed by the blend of personalities on the stage. A lead vocalist that is just a beast on the mic. An explosion of rage you can feel from the first deep, throaty, scream. Then you have the laid back bass and guitar players. Very talented, but they’re just these chill dudes hanging out on stage. No theatrics just there to play their music. Lastly the guy holding it all together behind the scenes, the drummer. I always get the slight feeling that he’s the joker or comic relief in the group. Which, when you have politically charged heavy music on this level I feel like need someone like that.
Next up was Calgary’s own Dying Remains. If you’ve been following me on socials for any length of time then you’ve no doubt heard me talk about this band or maybe you’ve checked them out from one of my posts. To say that this band is Alberta’s answer to the Florida Death Metal Scene is an understatement. This would be my 3rd time catching them live, I honestly wish I lived in Calgary so I could see them play more often. Their set always impresses. The depth of tone from a 3 piece like this just shouldn’t be humanly possible. Guitars aren’t just the heaviest death metal distortion we’ve come to love from bands like Obituary, Morbid Angel and Death – but there’s something else in there that just makes it stand out a little more. Add to that some serious technical skills and you can’t help but get drawn in. Lead vocals and bass have this same nod to the origins of the genre, but again aren’t just a carbon copy of the bands that laid the foundations for bands like this. You can’t have the kind of groove and neck breaking worthy songs without a solid foundational beat, and these guys have plenty of that. Ridiculous double bass, fills and tempo changes complete the sound. Don’t sleep on this band for either catching them live on their next tour or just grabbing their album that dropped last year.
From chest-blasting death metal we slowed things down a little. But by no means did this next band lose the heavy for the night. Honestly, you’ll hear other bands talk about “wanting heavy”, you know who I’m talking about – but they don’t have anything on Primitive Man. Like the name suggests, this was some caveman shit. But not the stompy, chunky, rhythm-based caveman music you’ve heard this phrase used to describe in the past. This was more like the lead neanderthal standing on the rock speaking in some unknown language, explaining the birth of the universe, everyone entranced in what they were hearing. It was such an odd experience to go from the rage and brutality of the two opening acts where the crowd was spinning, slamming against each other with fists in the air to this level of heavy. The weight of their sound was felt by everyone. A calm, almost restful, feeling set over The Palace during this set. The visuals that were tied to the set were just as weighted as the music. It was a full-on visual and auditory experience that was unlike anything I’ve witnessed. I’ve seen the shows with the blood, and smoke and cloaks. Nothing will match the substantial feeling of nothingness that fell over me while watching this set. It was like my thoughts were being pulled into an abyss, but not in a way that made me feel uneasy. At one point the bass player even used feedback as an entirely separate instrument. I felt like I was being shown just how small I was in the universe, but by the music. I don’t know that just listening to a Primitive Man album can really have this same effect, so get out to one of their live performances if you ever get the chance. You’ll see what I mean.
Closing out the night, and the reason I know many people were there, came the pioneers of the Grindcore Genre, Napalm Death. After the opening song there was talk about this being noise metal. If this is what noise is I’m all for it. For anyone that hasn’t listened to Napalm Death, first, why are you on a media site all about metal? Second, why are you on a media site all about metal instead of leaving right now to go listen to their near 40 year discography? This is a band that has not only held it together over all of these years, but doesn’t appear to be missing a beat in their live performance. With a vocalist in his mid-fifties who could outlast any toddler in energy expenditure based on what I witnessed. A drummer who just looks to be comfortable with ridiculous paced beats to a point where they’re like breathing. A bass player, oh wait – we can’t really talk bass players for this set, while amazing, he was a temporary fill in for their regular bass player. A guitarist with chops and just the quintessential metal guitarist look and stage action. I’m all for a show with costumes and other theatrical elements every now and then, but to see a band skip the theatrics and just be present in the music, no light show or other distractions, it was a fresh approach I haven’t seen before. There were chats in between tracks that took a political direction, not unexpected from a band with lyrical themes including animal rights, inequality and other sociopolitical issues. I was a little disappointed to hear some people after the show talking how they wished he would “just stop with the political bullshit and sing, I came here for music not a speech,” like do you even know the history of the band and what their music represents? The crowd, while fully enthralled in the music, wasn’t as wild as I was expecting them to be. I don’t know if it was the barricade, the venue or just that Primitive Man had a more lasting effect on them than they expected, but there was only a single crowd surfer during the set. Even the pit was only just over a dozen people. They did, however, manage to play their infamous track You Suffer twice. If you know, you know.
Overall, this was one of the better shows I’ve attended from a lineup, experience, and stage presence perspective. I got to see two of my favourite local acts on the same night. I got to experience a set that will be with me until the day I die and something I don’t feel like I’ve really been able to fully describe the immense power of. Lastly, I got to see a band I’ve known and loved since I was still in high school. 30-plus years of hearing songs, but never getting to experience them live. True bucket-list-type shit was achieved on this night.
