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HX24 ARTISTS: Evil Blood, Melted Messiah, GoodHuman, Nassau, Ac
Hordes X is always a hotbed of the best in underground heavy music.
The lineup is curated with quality and real metal culture at the front of the mind, so we’re working on a breakdown of some of the artists appearing this year. If you want to keep your finger on the pulse, get stuck in…
Words: AVZD
EVIL BLOOD (FRIDAY)
Voted top thrash band for five consecutive years in their original homeland of Croatia, the now local lads, Evil Blood, bring Hordes X four decades of songs, experience, and hilarious tour stories.
Name changes aside, (Lord of Darkness in the 80’s, Djinn until 2007, and then Beneath until 2009), Evil Blood could play the full Friday with material spanning Midnight in Sodom (Edicija Lvxor Design, 1989) to Netherealm (Nil By Mouth Records, 2023). The latter, the latest release is typical in sound, thrashy, old school beats, FFO Death Angel and Kreator – both of which they’ve shared stages with no less – buy Bat Connan a pint and he might tell you more!
And maybe it was recording with Steve Hoggart’s (Abaddon UK, Ardkore) in Teesside, that brought out a little of that blackened Venom-esque feel that earlier releases held fast. What remains to this day is Malcolm Dome’s take on the band. “raw, positively feral and brutal”, (Thrash and Burn Issue 2, 1992), and we look forward to the next release.
MELTED MESSIAH (FRIDAY)
Checking back when Some Good Riffs was released, I’m astonished it’s been a year and a half of wearing my imaginary turntable needle down into ash.
Fife duo Mark Golder, (Guitar and Vocals) and Jon Holt, (Drums), a.k.a, Melted Messiah deliver a local smorgasbord of blackened metal, burnt to a crisp with Nordic influence, crusty punk irk and haunting riffage and I’m sure there will be a couple of tracks played in the set from their last release.
Personal favourites include Diznaeland Nightmare Puppy and Black Agnes. The latter, cannibalism aside… or not… is a fine slice traditional black metal, an easy listen with furious guitars, crashing drums and scathing vocals. Diznaeland Nightmare Puppy is onomatopoeic. Trudging stoner sludge and a grim bleak message of the treatment of dogs in European ‘shelters’ might not be everyone’s dance floor go to, but it’s a hell of a track. And that’s what Melted Messiah do.
HX24 Artists
GOODHUMAN (SATURDAY)
The self-acclaimed Deathcore Dads have had quite a year and all here at Slowdragon HQ are glad to hear that everyone is fighting fit for Hordes X. Starting their autumnal tour with fellow Hordes X-ers The Zealous Chieftains in tow, Aberdonian progressive metal / deathcorers, GoodHuman hit Beat Generator on Saturday afternoon. With the new album sat on the tip of the studios tongue, what better way to catch up then revisiting some teaser licks from single, Afflictions.
Afflictions showcases a powerhouse rhythm section, tripping bass beats keep you on your feet with quick changes whilst guitars pound equally hard, yet contrastingly melodic and delicate at times. Connor Milne’s vocals penetrate the canvas with effortless malice, sparring with the instrumental before concluding in a nod to the neo-industrial, almost operatic – thank f*ck the Facebook rumours weren’t true, Linken Park doesn’t deserve him!
NASSAU (THURSDAY)
Release of their self-titled debut, Nassau hit Edinburgh’s Cowgate earlier this year and it fair shook the cobbles off – but not for the first time…
Well established in the Edinburgh scene, Nassau may be familiar to Horders further afield, as Bloodstock’s Metal To The Masses, Scotland Winners in 2021, playing the legendary La Belle Angele before gracing the unholy New Blood Stage.
The album is naturally a mix of genre and influence. Macabre growls, Lovecraftian rasps and gravelly chirrup from singer Sin gambols a gypsy dance through metal, BM, tech, funk, blues, rock, prog… you name it, it’ll be in there somewhere!
It’s safe to say the debut has been a while in the making. “It was worth the wait” feels somewhat blasé so I shall quote my first encounter, demo Lich King, back five, six, years ago, and now prodigy on this album. The growth, depth and melodic camaraderie cement Nassau’s place in the capitals metal folklore “Pick up the banner of woe, Sow your seeds, Close your eyes, Forsake your soul, Awake to call on”
HX24 Artists
ACIDSAURUS BONG (SUNDAY)
Edinburgh’s finest sludge stoner trio, Acidsaurus Bong are releasing their album Dank Broth Ritual just days before Hordes X this year so come down and expect a good dollop of that!
First single, Shots, Lines and that Country Twang plays exactly as it sounds. Andy Cairns vocals sound like a cross between Clutch’s Neil Fallon and the late, great Herman le Roux of Juggernaught, (SA). The production is a dream, fittingly of course for having a sound engineer in tow. The bass is beefy, and drums are crisp, allowing for every note to be heard but not detracting from that deep, swampy, sludge metal. It’s murky territory yes, but you can hear the foghorns.
Like so many bands in the Scottish scene Acidsaurus Bong and Melted Messiah have strong ties. Andy recorded both Melted Messiah albums, they’ve shared Jon Holt (keep it out of the gutter!) and are firm gig buddies – it’s great to see both bands on the bill this year. Affirming the Slow Dragon pledge that chosen family is everything in this scene, check them both out!
SOLAR SONS (SATURDAY)
It’s been a year since Solar Sons’ Another Dimension album was released and about time to look back on something crafted a little different to the norm.
The Dundonian trio, all together, live in one room, recorded the nine-track album in just over a week. Let that sink in. Along with studio documentary from Richy Walsh, (Deep Storm Productions video studio) and artwork by Ryan Locke, the betrothed thematically connects lyrics, vision and concept.
The album is a mix of rock, prog and traditional metal. I don’t believe Solar Sons wish to reinvent, just to provoke it. Opening track Alien Hunter feverishly sets forth the album concept. “In the not too distant future, an Automaton is created by the greatest minds of a dwindling humanity. A sentient robot, bestowed with all the knowledge, wisdom and history of mankind and it’s planet Earth. The machines mission is to voyage into the deepest reaches of space, through endless dimensions and universes, in an attempt to seek new knowledge and understanding of life. Programmed to return to Earth with its findings, and save the human race, the Automaton arrives only to find the Earth is now a wasteland, ravaged by the wars and spoils of man. Is it all too late, or can the fires of civilization burn bright again.”
HX24 Artists
THE GALLOWGATE MURDERS (SUNDAY)
“We are the dire streets of Glasgow, the mucky waters o’ Leith, polluted Silesian coal mines and the 3am sway of the Dublin pubs. We are The Gallowgate Murders. Yer booze fuelled gang of Celtic bastards, immigrant vagabonds and travelling rovers, boasting male & female fronted duel* vocals.”
2022’s Dead, Gone and Living On is six-tracks of Celtic punk / metal fun. Lively and raucous in the first half, (FFO Flogging Molly, Dropkick Murphy’s The Dead Pets), Cry Rosie and Operation Neptune offer a slower midway pace, so might be ones to catch your breath if played live. Operation Neptune goes back to traditional roots with marching snare beckoning throughout whilst last track Scáthach fools with a tin whistle opener, before guitars let rip.
A perfect way to throw your last dance moves, kiss goodbye old and new acquaintances alike, and sup up last thing on Sunday before the real-world hits.
* I don’t know if this is an intentional typo in the quote, duel or dual would be fitting, but I had to make note for my OCD coz I’m weird like that.
KURNEL FIST (SUNDAY)
Having released their album Floating in Motion earlier this year, Dundee’s stoner rock legends Kurnel Fist help us to “cool down” on the Sunday.
To Mr Slowdragon, you’ve been in the crowd at a Kurnel Fist show right? To be fair, Floating in Motion is a slower pace than some of its Hordes X peer’s work. I’ve reviewed whole albums shorter than track Anita / Arabella at 14:16, so with a thirty-minute set at Roots, I’m intrigued to see the set list.
“This album was created using tracks that we had formed over a period where band members changed and the process of writing and finding our sound started again. The songs on this album show the journey we were on and how that evolved into what we are today.”
Bluesy guitars provide an honest and humble offering. Drums are trippy yet poignant, gesticulating psychedelia and nuance. With one foot still tightly gripped in nostalgia, Floating in Motion, and excuse the parody, feels like the other foot is pursuing extravehicular activity.
HX24 Artists
THE ZEALOUS CHIEFTAINS (SATURDAY)
Hailing from very far up north, The Zealous Chieftains Dundee debut kicks off the Saturday at Hordes X, “Gotta start solid!” explains Mr Slowdragon himself. Cosmic 12 Gauge, released only last month, is the four-track debut E.P. from Fraserburgh’s finest and includes single Round The Bend.
Opening track Hail To The Chief is a soon-to-be fan favourite. High energy, heavy rock and roll with a catchy chorus that won’t take us long to chant back with. Lazarus The Dude makes me reminisce over early Bootleg Booze Records days; sleazy garage riffs complimenting Izaac Morrisons quick Doric tones.
Opening with George Hanson’s, (Jack Nicholson’s) iconic line “They’re not scared of you. They’re scared of what you represent to ‘em.”, Round The Bend fills the room. Full throttle, the rhythm section eggs you onto the dance floor and if played live, will be a definite floor filler – so get down early – you’ve been warned!
Closing the E.P. is title track, Cosmic 12 Gauge starting slower, luring with 60’s / 70’s style guitar, it’s the epitome of the whole E.P.; a roadhouse classic in the making, slick, smooth and dripping sex.
HX24 Artists
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HX24 Artists
