Author: Rok Klemše
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Location: Škofja Loka / Pri rdeči ostrigi / Slovenia
Concert date: December 7, 2013
Attendance: 100
Ticket price: €3.00
This year’s crop of homegrown studio metal was incredible, and if we draw a line under the dying year 2013, we could probably call it the most fertile year ever for Slovenian metal production. I don’t think a single month went by this year without at least one release from the local metal scene. To close out the year, the veterans of homegrown thrash, Sarcasm, struck with their simply but effectively titled sixth studio album, Thrash!
The old cats dropped the excellent Something To Believe In the year before last, proving that old thrash bones are still up for mosh pits and stage dives. This summer the band’s home label dug through the cult archives and reissued Crematory, Igra narave and Divja kri. With those selling well, Sarcasm are wrapping up the year on a huge high with a brand-new record, which they officially unleashed in a »toxic waltz« last Saturday at Pri rdeči ostrigi in Škofja Loka.
This was a release party in the true sense of the word, as the band had lined up a varied program. First Mucy took us through some entertaining video clips, followed by a »listening party« for the whole new album, with commentary and backstories on the individual tracks. It turned out great, and more of our bands should present new albums this way. The big minus, though, was the gaping hole where the spot to grab the new record should have been. A release party kind of misses its whole point if the platter is nowhere to be found, right?
At nine it finally kicked off for real, as Eruption hit the stage. Their last show at the same spot stuck in the memory mainly for bad sound and Tim’s guitar troubles, but this time, in my opinion, Eruption played one of their best gigs ever. The guys blasted through tracks from their debut Lifeless Paradise (reissued just now by Xtreem Records) and its follow-up Tenses Collide, proving they’re definitely one of the best live bands in Slovenia. Tim and Čuk once again served up impressively stacked guitar lines, and this time Andrej was the surprise with some really good solo excursions. The rhythm section was as reliable as ever, Tegla pounded the drums as angrily as if someone had stolen his Lego bricks, and Škof thrilled a few times with dynamic, lively bass lines. Buco once again convinced as a confident, commanding frontman, putting the cherry on top of a great performance by the whole band. Just, Buco and Škof, save the homoeroticism for intimate moments in the rehearsal space, hehe.
Around ten it was time for the guests of honor, who’ve been raging on stages (with a break or two in between) for almost thirty years! Sarcasm made it clear right from the start what was in store – Thrash Tonight! The veteran thrash beast once again showed Škofja Loka its big, sharp tusks and claws in the form of guitar work from riffmaster Aleš Blaznik and his sidekick Klemen Renko. In the role of the guy in charge of rubbing the fat strings, Vito Stričevič (Skarabej) stepped in for Yoldi and proved he’s slotted into the band successfully, despite a few flubs and some visible stage fright. That melted away with every song, and with the title track of the new album Vito has already joined in on the band’s songwriting side too. Sarcasm played five tracks from the new record live, with the destroyers Thrash and Sarcasmatron standing out, while the crowd, which packed the Ostriga hall to the brim, clearly went wildest for the iron and eternal classics of Slovenian thrash, Crematory, Sarcasm and the closing anthem Road Warriors. Funny that the guys didn’t play the already known singles Z mano je slabo and Pravica from the new record, and I especially missed Ghosts In the River from the previous one, which should become a live staple for the band. Sarcasm proved once again that they’re still good old THRASH maniacs!
Setlists
ERUPTION:
1. Democracy
2. The Forlorn
3. Celestial God
4. UFO
5. The Auditors
6. Selfcaged
7. Fractured
8. Monumental Mind
9. Empty Shells
10. Playing with Matches
SARCASM:
1. Thrash Tonight
2. Divja kri
3. We Are At War
4. Vitez teme
5. Thrash
6. Something To Believe In
7. Litr na mizo
8. Sarcasmatron
9. Terrorist
10. Metalski blues
11. Crematory
12. Sarcasm
13. Zdravljica
—encore—
14. Road Warrior
Photo gallery
