Suffocation & Decapitated – Kings Arms, 5 May 2015

Last night was the highly anticipated Decapitated and Suffocation show at the Kings Arms, wrapping up a 3-show tour of New Zealand. Doors were super early and once again I was pleasantly surprised with the large turn out; although I think I’m turning into a crotchety old woman, because there were a fuck tonne of kids there wearing fuzzy hooded puffy jackets with baseball caps and I was confused and disturbed by the look.

Opening the night was the always enjoyable Dawn of Azazel, who again destroyed. They were joined by Nik Davies as second guitarist, his first show as a permanent member of the band. I’ve always dug that Dawn had such a great sound as a three piece, but Nik definitely brought the noise (and Dawn were in need of something to look at :P) and added a great depth to the already heavy sound. Rigel (Walshe, Vocals/Bass) as always had a great presence. I think I need to get a clicker thing to count the uses and impressive derivatives of ‘fuck’; my favourite fuck of the night was of course when he thanked ‘Suffo-Fucking-Cation’. They played a few more tracks of the newly released The Tides Of Damocles (a great fucking album, I have been thrashing it all this week) and my only complaint: the set was way too short!

Decapitated were up next and made up for Dawn’s short set by playing for over an hour with astonishing energy; they never waned. I was a bit surprised by the opening synth stuff (synth music has it’s place….in 80’s pop) but that soon vanished under the relentless beat of the drums. Seriously, the drums were LOUD, no bad thing of course, although perhaps it drowned the vocals a bit too much. Once again the audience disappointed in their participation when vocalist Rafał Piotrowski asked, but other than that the crowd played pretty nice. There was a massive pit going, the sorts of which I haven’t seen in a while, and there was a fuck load of excitement and energy. Decapitated are a great live act with an impressive presence and dedication. Technically brilliant of course, they also bring a lot of fun to the set; you never once felt this was just another gig for them (despite their being totally professional). The crowd was hyped and stayed hyped, and the pit was going the whole long set, which is again, a rarity.

Suffocation had a hard act to follow, and they rose to the challenge with aplomb. Another long set, yet once again never once did they fall short. A lot of attention is paid to the fact the Derek (Boyer, Bassist) plays the bass in an unusual way but I think it should be because he is fucking good. Seriously heavy and not once drowned; you know he is there, and not just as a back beat. More should follow this example! Front man Ricky Myers had a brilliant presence and was a LOT of fun to watch, and as a short arse I’m glad he moved around a lot. I’m usually the spectre at the side of the stage, so it’s always nice when I feel involved from the spot I haunt. The only complaint of the gig was that I kinda hate the contrived encore thing; it just seems like such an egocentric wank. Everyone here wants to see as many songs as they can, the crowd was fucking loving it, so you don’t need to pretend to walk off stage so we can call you back. I mean, I know he’s just the drummer, but if you were really leaving the stage you would pack him up and put him in the back of the van at least. Perhaps it’s an American thing, because it only ever seems to be American bands who do it, so what do I know. I just know that the crowd loved the band and I figured it was pretty clear without the extra ego boost!

I always find it kinda sad when bands come all the way to NZ, yet spend their time in the green room and hotel. Most of Suffocation and Decapitated were mingling with the crowd the whole night, actually watching the local act and each others’ performance. They did this despite being swamped by teenagers and drunks, posing for endless selfies. It was great to see and they all seemed like really down to earth, good dudes, and they went to the after party despite the fact that flying on a hangover is hell. I understand when bands stay cloistered, but it was fucking refreshing to see bands making the most of the opportunities to meet new people (and get drunk with them) and engage. Fucking full credit lads.

Tove Partington

Here is a slideshow of photos taken at the gig for The 13th Floor by photographer Damien Neems at the Tenth Circle.

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