As Storm Isabella ravaged the South coast of the UK on Monday night, a hardcore of metal fans descended on the Victorian Concorde2 venue right on the seafront. The fare for the evening was all loud, high-speed and aggressive; metal full of rage, tempered with a massive groove.

First up was Arizona-based four-piece INCITE. This newer band cranked it out completely, raging around the stage with a set full of chunky, meaty riffs and gloriously harshly roared vocals. Ahead of their upcoming album, "Opression", these guys are ridiculously hard-working, having been on tour with CANCER BATS round the UK before starting on a second run with SOULFLY. This means they were completely locked in from playing every night, with little sign of fatigue. Led by vocalist Richie Cavalera (Step-son of Max), I think it is safe to say that the dynasty is going to carry on raging for a long time into the future. While the group's songs were all short, to the point and incredibly heavy, this was a band who just wanted the crowd to get up and have a good time. They kicked off the show in fine style and are definitely a group to look out for.
 

What is there to say about KING PARROT? This madcap group of Australians brought the insanity to the night. Their tracks never let up the pace, with frantic pace, crushing grooves and mental lyrics. Vocalist Youngy spent most of the gig running across the stage ensuring that as many people as possible were soaked with water (from bottles). The vocals ranged from deep roars to a higher-pitched screech which exemplified the sheer insanity of the group . This band was loud, crude and rude. The energy that the vocalist in particular was immense, grabbing at audience members and running around making the stage seem a lot smaller than it is.
 

And finally, the group of the night: SOULFLY. Lead by someone who is regularly referred to as "the hardest working man in metal" (with good reason), Max Cavalera's thrashy groove-oriented group's final date on the UK leg of their UK tour in support of latest album "Archangel" offered up a set of new tracks; opening with the killer "We Sold Our Soul to Metal" and then taking more selections of high speed thrash and groove metal. Highlights though, came with the addition of a few classics from Max's previous project, SEPULTURA. "Roots" had the entire place eruption with people jumping up and down, circle pits, the works. The set ended with a tribute to Lemmy, with members of both SOULFLY and KING PARROT taking to the stage for a frantic and heartfelt edition of "Ace of Spades". Any crowd would have gone ballistic, and ours was no exception- ever word, ever lick, every roar was returned to the group with passion.
 

To close the night off, SOULFLY ripped through a few minutes of the main riffs to IRON MAIDEN's " The Trooper before leaving the stage; with the audience left exhilerated and thrilled. This was modern metal done right full of energy and aggression, stripped back and raw. Go to see them. Trust me.

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