Libertine Promotions – 2 Years 2 Shows Night 2

Friday May 16 2025 I attended night 2 of the Libertine Promotions: 2 Years 2 Shows, a 2-year anniversary event celebrating not only their second anniversary of promoting local shows but, the Lethbridge Heavy and Hardcore Music Scene as a whole. If you missed my write-up on night 1 you can find it here.

Night 2 was so many things, but I feel like one of the most fitting words I can use to describe it is chaos – and I’m going to use this word, in one form or another, a few times throughout this article – yes, I have a thesaurus, but it’s the best choice for what I witnessed. Night 1 may have been turned up to 11, night 2 was 22.

Joy, Chaos, and Two Bass Guitars: Perra Kicks It Off Right

Perra started the night not so much with a bang but with an ethereal, melodic track that incorporated two bass players, a first for me. This is the only portion of this night that was in any way, lacking in aggression or chaos (I told you I was going to use that word a few times). At first glance you wouldn’t expect this unassuming, self-proclaimed grrrl gang Calgary-based punk band to have the raw energy that started this night on its inevitable rager ending, but holy shit would you be wrong. I can’t remember the last time I watched a band that looked like they just purely enjoyed what they were putting out into the world. While there was a rawness to their songs – you really need to have a listen to tracks like Boy Pain and Pussy Blood – there was also just this sense of joy behind everything they did. As for their sound, we’re not talking Technical Death Metal or Progressive Metal here, no virtuoso, no horns or backing tracks – just raw riffs, beats and vocals. The crowd ate this band up. The lead vocalist had a give no shits attitude and seemed to enjoy getting in peoples faces. The pit was dragging its feet early on, but halfway into the second track, a guitarist took matters into her own hands and dove in. That was the cue the crowd needed. From that moment forward, it was full-throttle chaos. I think one of my favourite things about this set was the almost shy or socially awkward appearance and mannerisms of the band combined with their ass kicking sound – it was such an incredible combination that I had never experienced from a live performance before.

Precision-Fueled Fury: Entwine Doesn’t Hold Back

Next up was Entwine. This Calgary-based hardcore band isn’t new to Lethbridge. I saw them open for Maul a while back, and while I never did a proper write-up, I still remember the chaos they brought. Just like this time, the energy was fucking ridiculous. Their guitarist? I ended up awkwardly telling him how amazing his playing was while he was just trying to grab a drink. I came off like a giddy kid meeting their favourite band. But the truth is, I wasn’t wrong. The guy can shred. Pinch harmonics, but not overdone like some bands, placed perfectly and fitting to the songs. Also, riffs for fucking days; fast but somehow some of the chunkiest sounds a guitar can make. I would go so far as to call them a Technical Hardcore act. Everything about them is precise and clear. The bass wasn’t drowned out, the vocals were on point and the drummer was a beast. Their set was a little late to get started, due to some drum throne issues, but their precision set made up for the late start. This set was no different than the first for the crowd. I’m still a little stunned to be attending metal shows at a small brewery the size of Theoretically Brewing and seeing a mosh pit in full force like this, but good luck holding the crowd back when the band is this good. It was mayhem from the first riff to the last of this set (you were expecting chaos, admit it).

Mathy, Queercore, and Unrelenting: Chaser Leaves a Mark

Chaser started their set around 8:30, the third band of this 5-band night. This was my first time seeing Chaser, a band that describes their music as “mathy metalic queercore.” This band, hailing from Edmonton, Alberta, came with an amazing stage presence – there was no denying they came with one goal in mind: to fuck Lethbridge up. Their lead vocalist had such an amazing range, from spoken word to low gutturals, to tight controlled screams into an almost out of body experience that felt like they were miles away from where they stood, not in their presentation but in the mood they created with their voice. This was another band that had zero issues with keeping the pit rowdy, in fact I don’t recall a single moment of this set where there wasn’t someone, including members of the band, in the pit – floor punching, spin kicking, crowd killing or two-stepping. The queer positive message, which we need more of in the Metal community, both in the songs and during the stage banter between songs, was inspiring to everyone. Just like with any band I have never seen before, I had zero expectations going into this performance but feel like Chaser really left an imprint of themselves on this venue and not just with their sweat.

Sick Vocals, Shattered Limits: Abrupt Decay Wreaks Havoc

Abrupt Decay took us into the second last set of the night and what a set it was. Chaos. Pure fucking chaos, you had to know that word was coming this time if you’ve seen this band perform. This was my second time seeing this band live, they also opened for Maul – told you I should have done a write-up for that show. I’m about 95% certain, unless he has an evil, or possibly just as talented twin, this is the same guitarist as Entwine. I don’t feel that I need to wax poetic any longer about the amazing talent in this guitarist, but seriously if you get a chance to see this guy perform it’s well worth the cost of admission. There were sounds coming out of that guitar that sounded truly otherworldly… okay, enough on that. There were other people in the band, of course. When I mentioned at the start of this article, and then stressed it again at the start of this band that the night was Chaotic, I mean – during this set the pit was so unhinged someone nearly broke the bar. To talk a little about devotion to the music, the event and their craft, the lead singer started the set by mentioning they were actually sick, but couldn’t let down their fans or Libertine, thanking all for their support for not only this show but over the past 2 years – which is what we were there to celebrate. That said, if this guy was sick there was no telling, he gave everything he had on every track.

Two-Piece Deathgrind Destruction: Jisei Ends It with a Headshot

We ended the night with Vancouver’s Jisei, a “post MySpace deathgrind” band. This two piece band blew my mind. Again, always doing my best to go in to every show with zero expectations with bands I have not yet heard live and so happy I made this decision at the start of what I hope becomes a long run in this scene. I’ve experienced very few bands that have this kind of sound live. While their drums and other elements were all provided electronically, the guitarist put out some of the best riffs I’ve heard outside of bands like Whitechapel, Fit For An Autopsy, The Black Dahlia Murder, and others in the Deathcore genre I love so much. The lead vocalist hit gutturals on par with the best in the genre and even threw in some pig squeals that would have made Phil Bozeman’s jaw drop. If you like deathcore or grindcore this is a band you need to experience live. The set started with the vocalist smashing their mic so hard into their forehead it left a welt for the rest of the set and you could see the top of the mic was concave from the force of the strikes. This didn’t stop or slow them down one bit. This was another band that took the time to recognize both how shitty the queer and trans community have it in Alberta, while also promoting acceptance in the Metal and Hardcore communities for queer and trans bands. Heavy music, starting with Punk back in the 70s, has always offered a home for outsiders and seeing queer and trans fans and bands thrive in that space today is powerful as hell.

Final Thoughts: Two Years of Mayhem, Unity, and Noise Worth Celebrating

This was such an incredible night to celebrate more than just 2 years for Libertine Promotions. It was a celebration of freedom, acceptance, heavy music and inclusion. Something I truly hope keeps growing across the heavy and hardcore music scenes. One final note, did I mention how this second night was just pure fucking chaos…?