The Night That Was Behemoth (literally)

Behemoth. The very sound of that name is enough to give you a chill down your spine. It creates visuals of a beastly power that has an inevitable magnificence and can grip the minds of people in an instant. Needless to say, that is exactly the persona of Polish blackened death metal band Behemoth. The moment Soundworks touring dropped this announcement, I felt an array of emotions rush through my head all in a matter of seconds. I could hardly believe it yet again that the year I get to Sydney, a band I go crazy for was heading my way.

The first act of that epic night were Sydney's five piece death metal outfit Exekute . I had never come across these guys before but that's the beauty and advantage of getting to a gig early, you discover some pretty amazing bands/musicians which you may have been previously ignorant to. How were Exekute you may ask? My favourite phrase, 'Sheer Brutality', wouldn't even begin to define how good they were.  The rather large crowd were already losing their shit as the band came on stage., I was taken by surprise when I saw a rather peaceful, looking and short human take to the front of the stage, and I couldn't help but think stereotypically for a second, because he did not seem to look like the frontman of a death metal band. Oh, how insanely wrong I was, because looks are truly deceiving. From the very start, Fred Jaya  unleashed the power of his brutal vocals, with me having to constantly lift my jaw up off the ground. For a person just walking in, no one would've suspected that this was just the start of the show. Circle pits had broken out, fans head banging all over the place, it was insane! One song that stood out to me was 'Sledgehammer Symmetry', crushing vocals, mad heavy riffs , drumming at a supersonic pace,  it was a masterpiece. You do not want to miss out on these guys the next time they're playing.

 Italian metal maestros, Hour Of Penance were up next and being a big fan,  I was beyond psyched to see this band live.  After a few minutes of sound-check, the band graced the crazed fans gathered in high numbers at the  Manning Bar. As hoped by me, the first song of the set was 'Ascension' which is one of my all time favourite HoP tracks, and my favourite off their 2012 release 'Sedition'. Truth be told, I was a little bummed when there were issues with the sound, with the usually powerful Paolo's voice not being heard quite clearly. Moving away from his mic, there were random sounds, the backing track being heard more significantly than the sounds of the instruments. But Hour Of Penance being Hour Of Penance, they moved past the sound problems soon enough, only to put on a show deadly enough to brutalize your eardrums. These guys are the epitome of perfection live! 'Decimate the Ancestry of the Only God', another epic track left my brain rattling inside my head, because decimate is what they did. The band's music has a sound that can bring you to your knees and the way in which they delivered this song was not only perfect, but so friggin effortless that it just makes you think. I really hope they come back to our side of the hemisphere again soon.

Post Hour Of Penance, I was getting so restless, as was the rest of the metalhead bunch, all of us anticipating what was most certainly going to be one of the most memorable nights of our lives. Minute after minute with the tension of waiting increasing, and after what seemed like an eternity, the lights dimmed. Death growls, roars and whistles pierced through the Manning Bar as it was filled with the doomish melody. Thus appeared on a Sydney stage for the second time in their illustrious career, the hooded, ghostly figures of  Behemoth, taking majestic strides, heads bowed down. It was absolutely magical and the show hadn't even started yet. To call it a show, to me, would be criminal, because it was so much more than that.

Nergal, the man is a legend and has an aura about him that just orders respect. Corpse paint, a chickenfoot garland and his ghoul-like black hooded glory, he yells to the crowd, "It's good to be alive!", the response being the deafening roars of Behemoth's devotees. I could feel a tear roll down my face, inspired by a man who for over a year has given Leukaemia the finger and come back more powerful, more brutal and brought it out in Behemoth's music. As the majestic figures of Orion and Seth took their place on either side of the frontman, and former Decapitated drummer Krimh, there was an intense feeling floating in the air as the well known opening to 'Ov Fire and Void, ripped out sending the maddened crowd into an absolute frenzy.  With every song that was played, the energy kept rising, my neck unforgivably losing all sensation, the blood rushing to my head. Never before had I been in such a crazy atmosphere, but I wanted more. Everyone did! Just when I thought my life couldn't get any better, the polish death metallers burst into their newest song 'Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel' off their upcoming album 'Satanic'. Needless to say, I lost it. Fist pumping, screaming, I literally am at a loss of how to describe what the scene was like that night. This was only half-way through the set.

Playing more favourites, Decades of Therion, At The Left Hand Ov God, Chant for Eschaton 2000, there was just so much emotion, energy and power at The Manning Bar. Orion and Seth blasted their respective guitars delivering riffs that melted face and made you want to break something. They play with such a deadly speed, the stage presence commanding the utmost respect for one of the greatest black metal bands in the world. Inferno being absent was filled in by Kerim 'Krimh' Lechner who was a first class beast on that drum kit. I swear when you see this man drumming, you have no idea what is going on because you can see no feet, no hands and no fingers, beasting his drum kit at a shattering speed, his muscles and demonic face bringing the hearts in my eyes out. Suddenly, out of nowhere, painted in white and adorned in fake blood comes a figure who beat the shit out of the drums, adding an indefinite tribal flavour to the night. Ending their amazing set with the likes of 'Lucifer', Nergal wearing his famed Apostasy mask, looking more brutal than ever, Behemoth ripped through their final track of the night, the crowd going crazy one last time. Dramatically slowing down, the lights dimming until we were left in complete darkness, the sounds of the guitars fading out, the heavy breathing of fans, it was an absolute blessing to have witnessed what we did, and with a limp body I left, The night that was Behemoth.