Greetings Metal Monks!! It has been quite a while since I have the pleasure of attending a show and writing a live report. This being my first show in roughly a year, I am more than pleased to say that it was the perfect show to get back into the swing of things. It was a night of firsts, my first time at the The Metro Gallery, my first time seeing TAAKE live, their first major tour in the US (not counting a one time performance at The Maryland Death Fest), and the first time I had actually heard any material from the excellent bands that were a  part of the lineup. It is unfortunate that I was not able to secure any interviews, due to the fact that I got my press passes at the last minute.

There is one thing I can assure you of, and that is the fact that this has been one of the best shows that I myself have attended. When you remove the stage theatrics of the greats such as KING DIAMOND or ROB ZOMBIE, the energy, performance, and crowd interactions are the deciding factors of what makes a show fantastic. The raw energy that was pumping through this small intimate venue was just over the fucking top. Even I, who general will stand there and quietly scrutinize every aspect of the show, could not help just getting swept up in the current. The bands were filled with it, the crowd was equally filled with it, and despite having to keep a strong stance to make sure my photographer didn't get her camera broken; I still had time to push back as the pit pushed me around a good bit.

The first band to take the stage was a local number right from Baltimore that went by the name CEMETERY PISS. Now peaking of firsts, this was the first time that I had ever heard of these fine gents and lady. They started the evening off the right way. While a lot of openers will seem a little nervous on stage, and lack the energy of the seasoned performers that follow, this was not the case.
 

It is my dismal regret to say that the audience had not filled up anywhere close to where it was when the headliners took the stage, but those who actually showed up early got a fantastic treat. As I watched and scrutinized their performance, I could tell that CEMETERY PISS is an irrevocable force of Black Brutality that will certainly climb their way to greatness within the Black Metal scene. I did have a chance to speak with their Bassist, Rebecca Chernoff and Vocalist, Adam Savage.
 

It kind of made my night to see how it made their night, when I introduced myself, and Metal Temple. As far as there performance went, they were on fire. Everybody was right on cue, and they started the night with incredible energy. Being from an area, where black metal is certainly not in the lime light, it was very pleasing to see a local band throwing all that they had, heart, mind, body, and soul into the music that were playing.
 

I am absolutely proud to say that they are local to me, and I cannot wait till such times come when I can review their album (which will be released soon) and help to promote these black-hearted fiends in every way that I possibly can. To the Black Metal fans who haven't heard them yet, go to their Facebook, go to their Bandcamp and listen. You will be glad you did. To the band, keep it up, you guys fucking rock, and I look forward to working with you in the future!!!

Setlist:
1. Rest in Piss
2. Blood Black
3. Astral Souls
4. Corpses and Lye
5. Sex and Metal
 

Taking the second spot in the lineup was another band that I had not previously heard of, BASTARD SAPLING, out of Richmond Virginia. Richmond is a few hours away from me, but still close enough to be considered local. Now these guys took the stage with force. If I didn't know better, I would swear that these guys came straight from the cold regions of Scandinavia, where Black Metal was birthed in the very beginning.
 

They were Black in every sense of the concept. Their energy was phenomenal. The vocalist did not stand still for a second. Their up-tempo, raw sound was enough to send the audience into a frenzy. Even though it had still not filled up to what it was by the time TAAKE came on, I thoroughly believe that those of us who were there to see them, were glad that we were. By this point, there was a bit of moshing going on, not a whole lot, but the ones who were, sure made a ruckus.
 

This is another band that band that has real potential in the darkened realms, and they didn't even need Corpse Paint! No, but their long hair flying in the air certainly told us that they were there to slam. This was only the second act of the evening, but you couldn't tell, they could have been the headliners of their own tour. I expect that they will be sooner rather than later. This is another quality band that any of you who call yourselves Black Metal fans, seriously need to become acquainted with. To the band; do not stop what you are doing. I could see in just 4 songs that you are a force to be reckoned with. ROCK THE FUCK ON!!!

Setlist:
1. Every Life Thrown to the Eclipse
2. Splintering Ourobouros
3. Subterranean Rivers of Blood
4. My Spine Will Be My Noose
 

By this time we are reaching the middle of our evening with VATTNET VISKAR. Also at this point, we are entering the realm of those who have been on the tour for the whole run. There is no question why these guys were chosen to tour with TAAKE. To look at the guys, at first glance you wouldn't really guess that were would be so ferocious, but that's what I get for judging a book by its cover, haha, shame on me. To be frank and serious, these mother fuckers are downright brutal.
 

The energy that they projected and incited was through the roof. By now, the crowd was beginning to fill out, and the moshing was getting serious. You could see that these guys had a decent fan base, and it's no secret why. Although they don't call themselves Black Metal, they can certainly contend with any established band in the genre. As was proven Friday night.  It is unfortunate, that this was yet another group I had never heard before, but I found out exactly what I had been missing. Honestly, the metal scene in New Hampshire should be proud to claim these fine musicians. You could not ask for a more energetic, spot on performance. They were on fire.
 

The drummer was all over the place, fast, and hard hitting. The guitars and bass were fierce, excellently executed, and the solos were to die for. The vocalist certainly has some awesome power to him. One thing that can be disappointing at shows, is when the vocals are drowned out by the rest of the band, but he sure as hell did not have that problem. I would definitely see them again. To anyone who hasn't seen them live, what the fuck are you waiting for?!?!

Fourth in the line-up was a band that I had heard the name, but never gave a listen because I took their name the wrong way, YOUNG AND IN THE WAY. I went into their set thinking that I wasn't going to care for them, and that were chosen just to please the American mainstream opinion. Again, I WAS SO WRONG! These guys fucking dominated. In the growing trend of astounding brutality and building energy, they took the stage and got right down to business.
 

The crowd, which was all but filled by now, took to them with the same slamming onset of which they took the stage. They were fast, they were in your face, and they were absolutely fucking brutal. The precision in which they executed their art was rivaled by none, and the way they riled up the mob of black hearts in the audience was equally impressive. The moshers were rampaging in full as these guys played there music with the cleansing fires of hell burning from their souls through their amplifiers. There was even a fight that broke out in the pit behind me. I did catch a few glances, but fuck those idiots. They got there punishment, and the rest of got to enjoy the madness. At this point, it was easy to see why this show sold out so quickly. This was another group that was just all over the stage, and I could surely see the passion that these guys had for their music. They did not hold back, and that made their performance absolutely incredible. Yes, these North Carolinians make me proud to a part of the American Metal scene. To the band: you guys fucking ROCK, and I cannot wait until you return to Baltimore!! I will be there, whether you are headlining or not, hopefully you will be.
 

So, with 4 bands up and gone, we had a few moments of down time, which was probably necessary for us all to catch our breath for a few moments, seemed like a long drawn out wait of anticipation for what was coming next. As we waited and chatted with the people around us, I myself starting growing quite impatient. I started yelling in my best Black Metal vocals for our headliners to take the stage. After what seemed like an eternity, the lights went out and the filler music was silenced. Here it came, a roar of anticipation from the crowd behind me, and you could feel it growing to such intensity that it infiltrated every fiber of the soul. And there it was, a spoken intro in the beautiful Norwegian language. As we watched the shadowy corpse painted figures ascend to the stage, the crowd went fucking apeshit. This was it, the moment we had all been waiting for.

The lights came on for us to see the members of TAAKE starting to play the intro to their opening song. Hoest took to the stage running as the music began. That was it, all hell broke loose. TAAKE started with the brutality, kept up the brutality, and ended with the brutality. I must admit that even I completely lost myself. This was my first show since growing my hair out long again, and I had that shit flying in the air. At one point I collided with someone behind me. I'm not sure if we hit heads, or if it was an elbow, but he didn't seem to mind, and I was high on the energy and the music, so fuck it. I can say, that those crazy mother fuckers on stage made it all worthwhile. What did you expect, it's fucking TAAKE.
 

I have to admit, it was better than I had anticipated. The whole crowd seemed to be one big pit, at least the main bulk of it. I even took my glasses to head bang as violently as I possible could, I just couldn't help myself. By the end of their set, even though we were all pretty much worn out, none of us wanted it to end. Sadly there was no time for an encore. What was absolutely awesome, was that at one point they busted out the banjo. I do have to say, and this was no fault of the band, that the banjo was a bit hard to here. That was just a minor thing though, it in no way affected the awesome perfection that was their performance. As with the previous bands, the energy was on fire, though Hoest topped it all. He jumped, he punched he kicked, and the rest of the group was equally energetic and just nuts on stage.
 

It's true that this was the perfect show for me to get back into the swing of going to shows, and writing live reports. It was a thorough reminder of why I love Metal, and why I love concert journalism. The very first band hit the stage with great energy and it only grew from there. It was enough to get me high as a kite without needing any kind of drug. Even though we did have a mosh pit fight that apparently went into the street, it certainly didn't run it for the majority of us in the audience. I had the pleasure of meeting lots of great people, including some band members. If I had to rate this show out of 10, it would get a 666,666,666,666! Every band was just fantastic. It was certainly a perfect way to spend a Friday night. HAIL, MOTHER FUCKERS!! BLACK METAL FOR LIFE!!