Rivers of Nihil
Rivers of Nihil from Pennsylvania are alluring souls from the grave with their brutal death metal. Their style is technical death metal and they are giving all metal heads their money’s worth during live shows. They are currently on tour in support of Darkest Hour, with other acts like blasphemous Tombs, Ringworm and Black Knight. These acts all have one thing in common, they create pure mayhem on stage. The Regent once more was a witness of some destructive forces being propelled towards lovers of pain and sufferance.
Black Knight
The night got started with a couple bands one of them being Black Knight. The trio dishes out an aggressive relentless beating on stage. Their sound is hardcore, and the unit pumps up the crowd with post-punk hardcore metal. These guys can wreck the stage with the force of a quintet piece. The following act was a fast and thrashy one, Ringworm from Cleveland, Ohio. This band has been on the trenches for 26 years, and they have been giving us some brutal hardcore metal. The vocalists, James “The Human Furnace” Bulloch energy resonates in everyones heads after each gruesome track. Both guitarist completely shred and give you powerful riffs that will make you mosh. Mark Whiterspoon and Matt Song mix a classic thrash metal energizing one another with their unique styles. Bassist Ed Stephens perpetuates evil on stage with his deep bass lines and amazing headbanging. All this takes place while Ryan Steigerwald relentlessly smashes those drums.
James “Human Furnace” Bulloch
This band has captivating energy and their sound should be reckon, as their brutality and aggressiveness will instill euphoria. These guys have released a plethora of albums, some of which are packed with classic sounds of old school thrash metal and nonstop violence. Their most recent strive to create mayhem was Snake Church, out last year via Relapse Records.
Rivers of Nihil were the catharsis to the entire set, they lit the fire that burned the stage and fans souls. Rivers of Nihil have toured with acts like Beyond Creation, and The Zenith Passage, a brutal display of melodies. The band is composed of four talented Pennsylvanian thrashers. Their sound is perplex, as the bass is at its highest volume and the notes an tapping can shake the meager earth we live in.
Brody Uttley
Adam Biggs is a skillful player, who both slaps the bass and taps strings like a guitarist providing mind bending tones. Guitarists Jon Topore and Brody Uttley, shred on guitars bringing neck breaking riffs. Their guitar solos are melodic and destructive. Frontman Jake Dieffenbach projects a guttural vocal sound which seduces demons in the fiery pits. With each roar and energy released from within a demon awakens, and starts moshing. Their chemistry on stage is undeniable, as the most recent addition to their line up is Alan Balamut thrashes the drums, giving depth to their astonishing live sound. The stage was blazing, and they final act was inevitably ready to destroy and punish those who dared join the festive night.
Darkest Hour
The band Darkest Hour has savaged the stage many times, and this night they were not holding back on their vicious attack. Straight from Washington D.C., Darkest Hour brought their melodic death metal to California. They just released their ninth full length album titled “Godless Prophets & The Migrant Flora”, another well produced brutal record. The band came out slashing and thrashing with killer drum work and amazing melodic guitars. The energy from all band members is astonishing and their sound is incomparable. Micheal Carrigan and Mike Scheibaum shred like guitar gods. Each guitar pick and solo amps the crowd, who freely rage on the pit and hail metal. Vocalist John Henry wears a blazer, as he exhumes some raspy goring sounds to each track and punishes you with mesmerizing rhythm. All members run from one end of the stage to the other, bringing pain and sweet metal to your ears. The bass line in each track is executed majestically by Aaron Deal, accompanied by the explosive drums by Travis Orbin. If you are a fan of bands like Periphery and In Flames make sure to check this band out. They are worth every particle in your ear canal that will expire as their loud melodic death metal is played. This intense night had a taste for all metal heads, from hardcore, thrash to melodic death metal; each act bled on stage showing dedication and respect for one another.
Reviewed by: Hostile Jo
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