Author: Rok Klemše
Photos: Nina Grad
Venue: Gromka, Metelkova
Concert date: 14.03.2015
Gromka has kicked off this year’s season with some new organizational reinforcements, who will be taking care of regular (monthly) metal events going forward. Nothing special, you could say, and that’s totally true, but with all those gigs by bigger-name bands, smaller underground events in holes like Gromka are in short supply. Last Saturday, a thrash triple bill called people to Metelkova – a third young thrash blood, a third foreign forces, and a third local thrash veterans.
The fairly well-attended night was opened by the Ljubljana-Grosuplje alliance Sober Assault, who are slowly but steadily racking up stage mileage. The guys kicked things off with some brutally inclined thrash metal that sounded close to Sepultura and early Slayer. What works in their favor is the confidence radiating from the stage and the tight playing, which wasn’t spoiled even by technical problems. They also handle solo excursions well, mostly courtesy of guitarist David. On top of that, he forms a solid vocal tandem with Enej, and the two of them spew out a varied double-vocal assault that, with all its rawness and aggression, blows a good gust of primal, primitive wind through Sober Assault.
The friendship between the bands has borne fruit. Since Enclave had already hosted our Eruption in Vienna, it was time for our guys to return the favor to the Austrians. They clearly answered the invitation with pleasure, and already during Sober Assault at least half the band had taken up positions on the front lines, cheering on the thrash youth. In a good half hour, Enclave presented their vision of thrash, spiced with elements of heavy metal, and the one who won me over first and foremost was vocalist and bassist Rainer (Horns of Hattin). Why? First, because of the skullet-style cap, and second, because of the fretless bass, which delivered some bone-rattling slides. Not as convincing as DiGiorgio, but definitely a nice bit of spice that, thanks to the not-so-original riffs, breaks up the monotony and slight sameness of the whole. But considering that good Austrian metal bands are even harder to find than Italian ones, Enclave were a really pleasant surprise, and any lack of a bigger authorial stamp is successfully hidden behind real stage energy, which they passed on to the crowd without much effort.
After a few months of hibernation, the champions of Slovenian thrash, Eruption, finally returned to the stage, this time renewed and reinforced. Tim Tajić, the band’s stage mascot and live energy bomb, recently left the lineup, but sometimes you have to sacrifice even the best warriors to survive. Still, there’s no need to worry about Eruption’s survival, since their ranks have been bolstered by one of the better guitar talents in the country, Grega Kamenšek (ex-Crossbreed, Gonoba). Grega proved once again that he’s a truly excellent guitarist, attacking the stage with Eruption after only a few rehearsals. Despite some initial reserve, it was more than obvious that he’s hungry for stages, and the same goes for all the Eruption guys, who after a few months off the stage erupted like a volcano in Gromka. They confirmed their top form again, and with excellent sound, the walls were shaken mostly by Tegla’s drumming, which puts the cherry on top for Eruption, while Čuk handled the demanding task with his left pinky, having taken over most of the solo excursions for now, Škof rattled stomachs with a reliable bottom end, and Buco shredded eardrums with high screams, thrash barks and growl excursions. Eruption passed their baptism by fire with the new member with “flying colors”, and it’ll be really interesting to hear how the songwriting partnership with Grega works out going forward. His melodic riffs and “Annihilator-style” solos, which we remember from Crossbreed, could work remarkably well alongside the more brutal styles of Čuk and Tegla. So we’re waiting for new material with open arms and open ears!
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