So Saturday May 30th there was this festival in youth centre Rondpunt 26 in Genk, Belgium, organized by Rebel Rock called Souls of Ancient Warriors Fest. They programmed seven Metal bands, who played all different kinds of music, all seven  with their own qualities. Metal-Temple was there to witness the happening and the atmosphere of several great, Black, Death, Trash and other genres of Metal shows.

The evening, or actually the afternoon, started of with PICTURA POESIS, a Dutch Symphonic Death Metal quintet. They played very loud, very hard, and the singer produced the kind of growl you can remember until you try to go to sleep at night, but kind of fail to do out of fear that he might be hiding under your bed. The musicians kept it all very basic, especially the drummer and the lead guitarist, who didn't produce any guitar solos. The synthesizer player, however, made it all sound symphonic, which was a real surplus to their music. Also, they had something that looked like charcoal smeared across their faces, which made them look even more dangerous. A great way to set the mood of the day
 

After that it was INDUSTRY OF SLAVES' turn, another Netherlands based band, a foursome from Landgraaf this time. In the beginning they played a lot of Hard Rock and Progressive Rock sounding songs. It wasn't really comparable with other bands, except for the guitar solos, which reminded me a lot of RUSH at times. Near the end they started to play what resembled Trash Metal, with heavy METALLICA influences, for instance in their next to last song called "War". The singer even sounded a little like James Hetfield in that one. Also, there was something peculiar going on with this band. They played pretty good, especially their instruments. The singer was a little bit off at times, he didn't sound very solid. But it felt like there was something missing, it felt a little bit forced. It was like they weren't quite good enough yet to play their own songs, or maybe that they had just started the band, even though they have existed for several years. But all in all, it sure wasn't a drag to listen to, due to all the different kinds of genres they mixed together.
 

Then came on NECROSIS, also known as NECROSISHORDE, a local four-piece Black Metal band from my own province of Limburg. From the beginning it was quite clear what they were aiming to achieve; bring the public a heavy, fast, head banging Black and Death Metal experience, in which they succeeded. Especially the keyboards were an essential part for the atmosphere the band created, which breathed death and destruction, enhanced by the ominous sounding choir music they played in between songs. The lead guitarist, however, sounded to me like he was quite irreplaceable. He switched between slow and heavy and sickly fast riffs, all played with an air of utmost comfort and relaxation. He was just incredible, with a lot of tapping in his guitar solos as well. Pretty brutal stuff. Also he shook his head so hard I almost thought it would fall off at some point. After the first few songs, sadly, the show got kind of repetitive. The semi-fast drumming and the monotonous screaming from the vocalist got pretty old near the end, but it was a joy to see this guitarist doing his thing.
 

Another set of Belgians was next, going by the name of INSANITY REIGNS SUPREME. They had my curiosity even before they came on to their heavily decorated stage, which was lined with bright red pentagrams, and wafts of frankincense smoke waved down into the crowd already beforehand. When they actually came on while a sinister intro was playing, it became clear very soon that it was much ado about nothing. Smoke started to cover the people in front of the stage and then the two vocalists, with two complementary different kinds of screams tried to steal the show. But neither of them did, nor did any of the musicians, who played very slowly, which became boring very soon. No, it was the female guest vocalist, who came on just a few times during the show, who left the best impression on me. Her very clear and high voice shrunk the rest of the band to tiny little men and made the show worthwhile just on her own.
 

At that point the evening was more than half way, and then something very cool happened. And that something was a British Heavy Metal band that goes by the name of TOLEDO STEEL, and which resembled IRON MAIDEN in every way they could, except maybe for the Dave Mustaine look-alike lead guitarist, who shook some really great riffs and guitar solos out of his sleeve. Actually, as I learned later that evening, his T-shirt even said 'Shred Freak'. The real deal, ladies and gentlemen. Anyway, comparisons with the British new wave of Metal kings. The singer, Rich Rutter, kind of a little guy but great in presence, pulled of the signature Bruce Dickinson I-just-came-back-from-riding-my-horse-for-a-week-straight signature stance a load of times. His voice, which resembles the IRON MAIDEN lead singer as well, was very clear, high pitched and very powerful. Also the riffs and solos from both guitar players resembled Dave Murray and Adrian Smith's playing style a lot, and a special reference for bass player David Lovell, who played the crap out of that bass guitar, is in place as well. Song titles also sounded a little bit familiar, with names like "Children of the Sun", "Speed Killer", "Black Widow" and the self titled "Toledo Steel". Anyway, their show was loads of fun, even though it wasn't very original, and you could see on the band member's faces they had fun too. Really enjoyable.
 

With the next, and also the next to last band called HERFST, which means 'Autumn' in Dutch, it became clear that the organization had saved the best for the second half of the evening. I guess they chose that band name because everything starts to die in the fall. Anyway, HERFST pulled off a show like no other band did that evening, even INSANITY REIGNS SUPREME didn't come close to their general presence and charisma. And they didn't need any Satanist symbols or long black hooded cloaks either to pull it off. No, they kept it simple. Well, in a way I guess. They were all dressed in black and wore heavy make-up, and their faces and arms were smeared with blood. The singer looked very frightening and the  guitarist displayed an air like he had just bitten the head off some kind of small rodent, just for the hell of it. The music was great as well. First of all, they had an insanely fast drummer, who banged those things like his life depended on it. The singer interchanged between clean singing and screaming, and at the right times as well. It actually reminded me a little of SLIPKNOT. The rhythm guitarist's playing did so as well, even though HERFST played something that resembled Horror Metal rather than Nu Metal. The lead guitarist and the bassist played more like SLAYER, but the combination of these four compartments made for a great whole. A great, gory and memorable show.
 

Then it was finally time for the main act, the legendary Belgian Death Metal band ANCIENT RITES. When their dark and sinister intro started playing, the whole room went quiet. Then the drummer appeared, followed by the rhythm guitarist and the lead guitarist, who started to play immediately, and then finally they were followed by the singer, who announced his presence with a loud, low growl. They went on like that during the first song, with a very heavy and present lead guitar, a cool riff and a fast, catchy guitar solo blazing at the crowd. Before the second song they played an ominous sounding intro song as well. I learned later that they used to have a keyboard player, and that the song intros where all his. The singer then disappeared for a while, leaving the musicians to shine, which they did, even though it was a bit more of the same. Then I started to notice the sound technicians didn't really do their job well, as the vocals sounded very soft. It lasted through the whole show, sadly, but luckily it wasn't really that big of a deal.
 

There was something else missing as well, and after a couple of songs I realized what it was; they had no bass player. It didn't really bother me, but it was noticeable anyway. Then came the third song, which was a new one, called "Mother Europe". In this one, singer Gunther Theys sang partly in Dutch and about a couple of the biggest Flemish cities, like Bruges, Antwerp and Ghent.  At that one the crowd went really crazy, probably partly because of the presence of a group of Flemish separatists. At that point there were probably little over 200 people present, which made the small concert hall pretty filled and populated in a cozy way. The closer you went to the stage, the more of the general atmosphere you witnessed. Then there was a slow intermezzo and another intro song, which actually started to get a little old by then.
 

During the next couple of songs, the singer really won the crowd over. They started shouting 'hey' and raising their fists at will. The music went pretty brutal and a little more symphonic, and they even sang about 'de Bokkenrijders', a gang of thugs in the 18^th century who roamed certain parts of Limburg and made sure the coast was very unclear at that point. In the second half of the show the guitar playing became a little heavier, and they slowed down a bit. The lead guitarist used a lot of tapping in his solos, which sounded cool, but he did it all very slowly. After a song about the 300 and Sparta, they began to play some of their older stuff, which were all visible crowd pleasers. For me, it got a bit old by then, it was all more of the same. All in all, the show was enjoyable, even though it wasn't the best I saw that day. But it was definitely a good ending to a great day full of music, people and, of course, Metal.