By Bastion King
I'll admit, it isn't often that I see line ups where the crowds energy levels are kept at 100% from start to finish. With a band like Bodysnatcher headlining, and being supported by Ingested, Psycho-Frame and Big Ass Truck, all on the same bill, it's no surprise that this wasn't a quiet evening. This was my first time seeing all four bands live, this time at the Rescue Rooms in Nottingham, and the show delivered some brutally heavy music, plenty of bodies flying, and a crowd that never stopped moving, despite being packed like sardines AND having a massive circle pit in the center of the room.
With a band like Big Ass Truck opening the night, I was admittedly intrigued. Based purely on the name, I half-expected some tongue-in-cheek southern or country influence along the lines of Moonshine Bandits, but instead we were treated to straight up, no nonsense hardcore brutality. The band wasted no time getting the room moving, firing out thick riffs and punishing breakdowns that felt tailor made for chaos in the pit.
Despite being the earliest slot of the night, they had no trouble getting the crowd on side, immediately encouraging pits to form. Even though it was a heavy, blunt set, it was extremely crowd pleasing. Admittedly, there’s a raw simplicity to what they do, from big riffs to big energy, and absolutely zero subtlety, but I think that’s exactly what an opener like this needs. By the end of their set, the room was properly warmed up and already looking a little worse for wear.
With Psycho-Frame, the intensity jumped up another notch, just as much on stage as it did in the crowd. This is largely due to their two vocalists constantly bouncing around the stage, swapping positions and keeping things both audibly and visually interesting. The contrast between them is just as striking, as one lurks almost entirely hidden away in a thin black rain coat (which he must be sweating inside of!) and baseball cap, with only a sliver of his face visible. The other is far more animated and commanding on stage, and despite the different stage presences, both vocalists are brutally loud and aggressive. Admittedly, this dynamic between them works incredibly well, as they bounce off of one another, adding an extra layer of personality to an already energetic performance.
Whilst the set was chaotic, it was probably at this point that the security at the venue realised they were in for a rough evening. For saying how much moshing and crowd surfing was happening, two members of security at the front barrier is a bit understaffed for the size of the room, so I'd definitely like to see Rescue Rooms prioritising crowd safety a little more in future as it only got worse from here. Don't get me wrong, there were some people in the crowd who were enjoying it obviously, but there were just as many concerned, scared or too preoccupied with whats happening near them to be able to focus on the band and their music. Though perhaps that's to be expected at a gig like this.
When Ingested, one of the more established names on the bill, hit the stage, the room was ready for a bit of carnage. The guitarists delivered wave after wave of crushing riffs and spent just as much time headbanging and flicking their hair around as most of the crowd did. As a result, the crowd responded accordingly with some of the biggest pits of the night.
Ingested's experience showed as their set felt well polished, right down to the lighting choices - which is impressive when you consider their new addition for the tour, Adam, replacing their previous frontman. This absolute brick wall of a man gives off some strong 80's dad vibes, and admittedly he has one hell of a commanding presence when he sings and clearly loves what he does. Vocally he goes incredibly hard, belting out lines with an intensity that matched the band’s crushing sound. It’s never easy stepping into a band after a line-up change, but judging by this performance, he’s fitting in just fine.
Right from the moment Bodysnatcher started their walk on, the crowd was clearly pumped and ready. They easily lapped up the relentless assault of downtempo breakdowns and heavy riffs. Even from the beginning, it didn't take long for people to crowdsurf, which security had their hands full with. Since the pit rarely stopped moving, the energy was kept high, making the entire room feel hot, sweaty and chaotic, even if you weren't bouncing around in the crowd.
From a photographer’s perspective though, Bodysnatcher were surprisingly hard to keep up with. The lighting was intense and constantly shifting, mixed with thick smoke that made visibility tricky. That said, musically the band were excellent, delivering a crushing and energetic performance that easily justified their headline slot.
Overall, the fact that the energy levels didn't dip for the entire night was impressive. Whilst it was good that every band on the line-up kept that momentum going - encouraging pits, circles, and crowd movement throughout the evening - one thing that did stand out was the overall lack of crowd safety awareness. Sure, that is something that’s usually part of shows like this, but with only a handful of security staff dealing with constant crowd surfers. It meant those of us on the barrier (myself included when not photographing the bands) were often left acting as an unofficial safety net. Several people around me took heavy boots to the head and many surfers were almost dropped, only to be saved by the barrier. Myself and a number of others also raised concerns with security about several people in the crowd who appeared injured, disoriented, or heavily intoxicated. Unfortunately, those concerns didn’t seem to result in much intervention, which was worrying given the intensity of the crowd throughout the night. Still, bruises aside, it was an undeniably intense night of heavy music and a memorable first experience seeing all four bands live. Music wise, I'm likely to recommend it, though I'd likely throw a cautionary warning out there if you're planning on seeing them live.
If you’d like to find out more about any of the bands playing tonight, just tap the links below:
Photography by In My Lens on behalf of Get Heavy UK. Images are not to be redistributed, reproduced, or used elsewhere without prior permission.
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