It’s Friday again, and I find myself back at the beautifully renovated Bully’s Studios, where a solid crowd greets the opening offer of the night, the quintet KIDNAP THE CANDYMAN.
Dishing out their blend of nu-metal/hardcore with all sorts of thick noises directly into my earholes. There is lovely distortion from the guitars, thick bass riffs that evoke the likes of KORN, and great screaming vocals full of passion.
The lead singer would regularly come down into the crowd to bounce around with us lowly maggots, which was always a great way to connect with the crowd. More people joined in on the bouncing as they went along. Great fucking set.
Making their third offering, it was a visitor from the faraway lands of Chilliwack, ARTHROPODA, and their hardcore blended with just about everything. I fucking love their sound.
Until this set, I have yet to receive a hardcore offering where songs have shades of country or rockabilly. One song in particular can only be called Hardcore Hoedown. It was rad to get vibes from that end of the spectrum while flailing around, head banging.
The crowd had thickened more, with a whole whack of fellow flailers joining in, very much on board with their widespread sound. They had a few melodic spots that serviced the inevitable kick to the face. Killer.
Next, it was a delicious repeat offering from VAMPIRES AND LEECHES, who once again dosed out a killer set full of metal goodness. Each quartet member is a skilled musician, with the set giving each of them a moment to shine.
The bassist fucking owned that five-string, making it their bitch, and gave us the most beautiful moments. They had a bit at the end of a song where it was just them, finger-picking, and had the whole place enchanted.
The lead singer would dole out the most wonderful of screams, raspy and gnarly, though I found it stronger when they didn’t have the guitar, obviously. The crowd was at its peak here, with a really good-sized pit active for most of the set.
Killer evening, and another win at the new Bully’s. He was most certainly pleased.