Music / Previews
Metal & Prog Picks: January 2023
2023 gets off to a fairly sluggish start, with the big gigs all taking place at the end of January, followed by a packed Feb. Further ahead, Bristol’s ArcTanGent festival is already assembling a stellar line-up, headlined by the mighty Heilung – playing their first ever show in the west country.
Fleece, Jan 10
is needed now More than ever
Halo-fixated deathcore/symphonic metallers from Connecticut, Shadow of Intent have knocked out four increasingly successful self-released albums since 2016. The latest of these is 2022’s Elegy (described by one reviewer as “one of the most over-the-top symphonic deathcore albums of all time”), which lays down the gauntlet to the likes of Dimmu Borgir and Fleshgod Apocalypse. The Fleece show is the fourth date on their January European tour.
O2 Academy, Jan 21
Who are these masked men? Nobody knows, and thus far they’ve been pretty successful at concealing their identity, though some murky corners of the internet are devoted to unmasking this self-styled musical collective, who are fronted by a figure know only as Vessel. Their self-generated mythology has it that they worship an ancient deity known as Sleep. Naturally, they’ve drawn comparisons with Ghost, who became so popular that founder Tobias Forge eventually had to out himself. Musically, they should appeal to anyone who enjoys prog-metal and post-metal. Second album, This Place Will Become Your Tomb, hit the UK top 40 on release, and this is the band’s biggest ever UK tour. Needless to say, the Bristol Academy show has been sold out for months.
Exchange, Jan 26
Last time we saw drummer Ryan Van Poederooyen on stage in Bristol was at the Hall Formerly Known as Colston back in 2017 as part of the Devin Townsend Project. His own project, Imonolith, which originally included former fellow former Devin sidekicks Brian Waddell (guitar) and Byron Stroud, (bass) isn’t too far removed from their previous employer’s blend of prog-metal and catchy modern rock. Covid stymied the Canadian five-piece’s early attempts at international touring, this much-delayed Exchange show being originally booked for March 2020. Still, they’ve been busy in the studio, notching up two albums so far: State of Being and Progressions.
O2 Academy, Jan 30
Another of those tours that was originally supposed to reach us in 2020, this co-headliner sees Dutch prog-metallers Epica team up with Finnish cello-metallers Apocalyptica. Epica, who last played here with Myrkur and Oceans of Slumber back in 2018, certainly had a productive lockdown with 2021’s Omega Alive – which was described as “the most bombastic livesteam event of the year”. They also released The Alchemy Project album, featuring collaborations with hordes of special guests ranging from Uriah Heep to Myrkur, Charlotte Wessels and Fleshgod Apocalypse. Helsinki’s Apocalyptica, meanwhile, seem to have given up on their misguided guest vocalist experiment, releasing Cell-0 (pronounced ‘Cell Zero’), their first fully instrumental album in nearly 20 years. The only guest is Nightwish’s Troy Donockley (yep, the same fella who used to play in the Bed Shepherds with Ade Edmondson) on uilleann pipes. That said, their latest release is Rise Again, a reworking of Rise with Epica’s Simone Simons on vocals. Wonder if she’ll pop up to perform it with them at the Academy.
Main pic of Epica: Tim Tronckoe
COMING SOON
Here’s our essential diary of upcoming gigs that should be of interest to anyone of a rockin’ disposition.
Karnivool, O2 Academy, Feb 3
Kris Barras Band, Thekla, Feb 4
Dying Fetus, SWX, Feb 5
Tubular Bells 50th Anniversary, Bristol Hippodrome, Feb 8
Leprous, SWX, Feb 11
Katatonia/Solstafir, Marble Factory, Feb 12
Revocation, Fleece, Feb 16
Black Star Riders/Michael Monroe/Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons, O2 Academy, Feb 22
Beast In Black, Fleece, Feb 22
Avatar, SWX, Feb 23
Damian Wilson and Adam Wakeman, Chapel Arts Centre Bath, March 1
Dub War, Thekla, March 6
Napalm Death, O2 Academy, March 7
Lamb of God/Kreator, O2 Academy, March 8
Boss Keloid, Exchange, March 9
Ville Valo, O2 Academy, March 10
The Answer, Thekla, March 19
Sons of Liberty, Thekla, March 22
WASP, O2 Academy, March 23
Haken, SWX, March 23
Devin Townsend, O2 Academy, March 29
Bloodywood, Fleece, March 29
Steve Hillage, O2 Academy, March 30
Tubular Bells 50th Anniversary, Bath Forum, March 31
Finntroll/Skálmöld, Fleece, April 4
The Zombies, Fleece, April 13
Goat, SWX, April 15
Massive Wagons, Fleece, April 15
Cannibal Corpse, O2 Academy, April 18
Tragedy/Nanowar of Steel, Thekla, April 29
Graveyard/Kadavar, SWX, May 3
The Quireboys, Exchange, May 20
Steel Panther, O2 Academy, May 21
The Aristocrats, Fleece, June 15
ArcTanGent Festival: Heilung, VOLA, Cave In, Elder, etc., Fernhill Farm, August 16-19
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