Holy Grail, Razormaze, Amadis, Distrot At Nectar’s For Metal Monday July 8, 2013

Words by Tim Lewis.

I grew up as a heavy metal fan, but over the years, metal has grown rougher and my tastes in music have widened.  I still like music loud and fast, but some of the grungy death metal, is a bit much for me.  I’m not quite sure what clued me in to this show, but I’m glad I noticed and went.   I had wanted to see Amadis again, but also saw Holy Grail listed as playing Montreal.  I hung out with Nathan a day or two before the show, and we watched a couple of videos from HG and they looked like old Priest or Maiden.

Monday was a long work day.  I almost blew it off, but Nathan called and said let’s go.  We did.  Distrot were playing when we walked in.  I’m not a fan of the cookie monster vocal, and they were using it to full effect.  Both guys who were singing (guitar and bass), and the woman singer were growling it out.  It’s a bit too bad, ‘cause otherwise, I absolutely loved the band.  They had a smooth, deeply heavy, richly textured sound.  The music was blisteringly fast, went through lots of great changes, and they were completely spot on.  I hung out by the bar, since people were dancing aggressively, but security had things well in hand and people could dance hard without bothering anyone.  Their set was short and wonderful.  If only they just sang the songs, instead of growling them.

Next up was the heavy metal band Amadis.  They are a bit over the top, but quite fun.  They were dressed to the metal 9’s with denim, leather, spiked armbands and a flying V guitar.  The bald singer seemed to be doing his best Rob Halford, and the whole set had a Judas Priest vibe.  Their usual bass player was out for the night, and they guy filling in did a great job.  He was noticeably dressed more like a Burlington musician, than a member of Amadis, but sonically, he was locked in.  Their set seemed a bit short, maybe because the fill in guy only had time to learn a few songs, or maybe it was because there were four bands on the bill.  Either way, it was a pretty good time.

After that bit of metal fantasy, things got back to real, straight up metal when Razormaze took the stage.  With a grungy bass, blistering guitars, and screamed vocals, they rocked the place to its core.  There was lots of great soloing, and the riffs were tons of fun to ride.  The set was a relentless attack, with every song a furious slice of joy.  I think they are from the Boston area, so hopefully they will come back again soon.

It has been a great night so far, but things only got better when Holy Grail hit the stage.  The twin guitars, bass, drums and singer band, reminded me of Paul Di’Anno era Iron Maiden, without even remotely sounding like a rip off.  Seeing the dark haired singer leading the band through the magnificently stunning set was pure joy.  The only song I remember them playing was Ride the Void, but really, every note of the show was exhilarating ride, to try and keep up with them.  The harmony guitars blended beauty and power.  The rhythm section pounded out the songs, and the singer’s voice was rich and strong.  They had the audience enrapt from first note to last.  Their set seemed too short, but it might have lasted forever.  Time did not matter at all when they played.

After they wrapped up, it was time to settle up and head home.  I’m so glad I took a chance, paid $5 and saw four bands that I really liked.

This post was originally published by Tim Lewis at his personal blog, https://timstriangletribune.wordpress.com.