Exhibition

The Biltmore was packed full yesterday to see a decimating 4 band bill consiting of locals Baptists and Black Wizard, plus Saviours and the legendary Corrosion of Conformity. With intermission tunes heavy on the hardcore and sludgy metal being provided by myself along with my collegues in the Knights of the Turntable, the crowd was in for an ear-bleeding good time. It's just too bad that the place only filled up after the best performance of the night had already finished -- leading things off in front of a mostly empty house, Baptists proved once again that they are the best band going in Vancouver right now.

Their short set was as intense a display of musical aggression and power as you are likely to witness. Baptist's drummer gave an absolute clinic in how to play heavy, covering everything from slow, groovy riffs to ferocious d-beat hardcore. The band has proven themselves equally adept at wallowing in sludgy pits of filthy morass as full throttle breakneck ragers, and on this night they blasted away at the audience with a demeneted ferocity that most bands are simply incapable of matching. As the opener on a 4-band bill, Baptists coming out with all guns blazing was exactly what was needed to kick the show off right.

New Westminster's Black Wizard replaced one of their guitarists within the past year, and this was my first time seeing them with the new lineup. Their 2009 self-titled debut was one of my favourite albums of the year, but I'm still waiting on a full-length follow up. Although they seemed a little shaky out of the gate, their tightened up as the show went on. The highlight was the set-closing holiday themed pean to the messiah - "JESUS WAS A BASTARD CHILD!!!" set to as beefy a riff as you could hope to hear. Their classicist metal still hits all the right pleasure points for me. Great vocals, mean dueling lead guitars, gut punch rhythm section and tons of sludgy riffs. Still a force to be reckoned with onstage once they get going, I look forward to hearing some new music from them soon.

Saviours came on next and proceeded to bludgeoun the audience with their tight, well-arragned groove metal. Like Black Wizard, they seemed to get hotter as their set progressed. They ran the gamut from sludgy lows to thrashy highs, spiced up with some tasty harmonized guitar leads. A particular highlight was a set-closing performance of a track from their most recent album, a song the name of which escapes me. It was a 7 minute riff collossus complete with some shredding leads that Lucifer would surely approve of. Bonus points because three members didn't wear shirts and their bassplayer looks like Derek Smalls from Spinal Tap.

C.O.C. took the stage as a 3 piece, longtime singer and guitarist Pepper Keenan having not appeared on their recent eponymous album. Original vocalist Mike Dean instead handled the mic and bass duties as the band ground out a set heavy on huge, groovy riffs and featuring a few hardcore sprints the like of which the band get their start with. A definate strain of southern sludge is still present in their veins despite the departure of Keenan, bringing to mind one of his other bands, Down. Their faster numbers ignited a moshpit briefly in a venue not known for being particularly friendly to slam dancing or metal or punk shows in general, and a couple of ruffians had to be helped out the door. Corrosion's set was heavy on stuff from their new and quite good new album as well as some '80s tracks that would have pleased longtime hardcore fans. Unfortunately it was a bit of a disappointment not to hear longtime standards like "Albatross" or "Vote with a Bullet." Setlist quibbles aside, it was a solid set from a band who has made a living punching the clock with their particular brand of heavy, fuzzed out hardcore. They left the stage shortly before 1am, after many fans had already decided to head out into the cold Vancouver night with ringing ears and a satisfied craving for the heaviness.