 Photo: Alex Stojanovic (C)2018 All rights reserved www.metalmasterkingdom.com Next up: The Curse Within. Being an ‘anything-core’ fan, they immediately captured my attention. Gazing at their performance from the back of the audience, I tested their ability to gage me towards the stage – and they did. Their mix of clean and guttural vocals with catchy choruses and lyrics like “I’m not afraid to die” had me having Bullet For My Valentine flashbacks – though they also brought some thrash and straight-up heavy metal to their sound. In my notes that night, I wrote ‘fantastic band’, and truly – there were. Young, modern, and loud, they got the first pit of the night going and drove a hard bargain battle-wise. As they closed their set and exited the stage, in my mind they’d already won the battles. Photo: Alex Stojanovic (C)2018 All rights reserved www.metalmasterkingdom.com Taking a trip back down the old-school road, Blastomycosis came up next. Their brutal death metal meets grind style veered away from my personal taste in metal, yet they impressed me none-the-less. With song titles like “Rape Shark” and a dead-inside vocalist who tore through the sound system with minimal movement and a curtain of hair over his face, the band brought old-school alive. Oddly, the bassist stood out as well - with his neon green bass strings and unique stage presence. While I found it hard to immerse myself in their vibe, they played well in the name of their genre. Photo: Alex Stojanovic (C)2018 All rights reserved www.metalmasterkingdom.com | Written by: Amina Abdelwahab Photographed by: Alex Stojanovic (C)2018 All rights reserved www.metalmasterkingdom.com @ Coalition Toronto, ON Canada February 23, 2018 Battling Bands: Skull Goblet The Curse Within Wind Cries Mary * BLASTOMYCOSIS Official Plethorametal *winner Guest judges: Andrew Epstein (Zombitrol Productions, Alan Cross' A Journal of Musical Things) Oscar Rangel (Operus, Ex-Annihilator) Cory Hofing (Crimson Shadows) Round two of the Wacken Metal Battle Canada in Toronto happened on the 16th of Febuary at Coalition T.O. As the cold Friday night began, the bar filled with black outfits, dark music and determination – both from the bands competing and the audience watching. The line-up teased my curiosity with names like Skull Goblet, The Curse Within, Wind Cries Mary, Blastomycosis and Plethorametal. I ordered a drink, took a seat at the bar, and waited for my curiosities to be assuaged. First up: Skull Goblet, a Mississauga born death metal band. Taking the stage with confidence and fervor – they brought intense riffage, pristine growling vocals and beats to make your head bang. Skull Goblet’s sound echoed that of your favorite old school death metal bands, cutting straight to the music and – as they put it – skipping “all the bells and whistles shit”. Having known this band for a while, their chemistry has always been (and continues to be) their greatest weapon. On stage, they read each other as well as they read the audience – and us watchers feed off that energy. Although they didn’t break open a mosh-pit, they broke open the night – and that is a feat to be admired. Photo: Alex Stojanovic (C)2018 All rights reserved www.metalmasterkingdom.com But, I was proven wrong. Wind Cries Mary, a cross-genre band from London, Ontario, drove an even harder bargain. With influences from nu-metal, post-hardcore, melodic deathcore and progressive metal, they instantly drove the crowd to the pit. With each member owning a unique style – from the modern hardcore vocalist to the rocker guitarist – their “grimy riff-filled breakdowns and aggressively uplifting chorus” stylings made them potential prize-winners. Though their most impressive attribute was that despite their young age, they were tightly rehearsed, musically skilled and emotionally developed. Their vocalist oozed stage presence, and was not left unaccompanied by the cool, detached routine by the lead guitarist. All in all, I’d say this band were not only great musicians, but also great performers. Photo: Alex Stojanovic (C)2018 All rights reserved www.metalmasterkingdom.com Last up, were Plethorametal from Mississauga, Ontario. Describing themselves as “groovy aggressive disciplined angry metal”, they were just that. A tight, well-rehearsed band that pulled out all the right stops – from catchy choruses to an aggressive guitarist and an energetic front-man. They even had a hype-man in costume to get the crowd going – who even jumped into the mosh pit at some point during their set. To me, they stood out as the most ‘tour-ready’ of the five bands (in terms of rehearsal, music, and stage performance). If I had to describe their set in one word, I’d say they were ‘solid’. The night closed on an unquenchable high as the bands waited for the results to come in. As I hoped, Wind Cries Mary made it to the next round. Yet, all the other bands truly made the night their own in a unique way, while bringing people of all musical tastes together – and that is the true beauty of the metal world. |
| Skull Goblet (9:30) Dotta - Drums Deezer - Bass QP - Guitar Jerry - Guitar Kevin – Vocals Label: Unsigned Website: www.facebook.com/skullgoblet/ soundcloud.com/skullgoblet | The Curse Within (10:10) Eric Favot - Guitar/Lead Vocals Johnny Mele - Drums/Vocals Andres Carpio - Guitar/Vocals Matt Schumacher - Bass/Vocals Label: Unsigned Website: www.facebook.com/thecursewithinofficial/ |
| Wind Cries Mary (10:50) Keiryn Jacobs - Vocals Malcolm Lamont - Guitar Michael Arounlasy - Guitar Randy Mead - Bass Devin Nickles - Drums Label: Unsigned Website: www.facebook.com/Windcriesmary/ windcriesmary.bandcamp.com/ | BLASTOMYCOSIS (11:30) Tristan Biggar - Guitar Colin Attlesey - Guitar Dave Black - Drums Peter Weinrauch - Bass Michael Bain - Vocals Label: CDN Records Website: www.facebook.com/blastomycosisdeath/ blastomycosis.bandcamp.com/ |
| Plethorametal (12:10) Jordan Stevenson - Drums Mike Nasso – Guitar Trevor Friday – Bass Gary Walsh – Vocals Label: Unsigned Website: www.facebook.com/Plethorametal/"/Plethorametal/ Event link here: www.facebook.com/events/338778403269170/ Metal Master Kingdom has been a dedicated media sponsor since the first season of battles back in 2013. |  |
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