DAY ONE – THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2013
DICKENS PUB + LORD NELSON’S BAR & GRILL
Tanner Wolff:
Noctis 666′s first night may not have been the night I was most excited for, but it was by no means a slouch. Jumping between Dickens and Lord Nelson’s Bar & Grill (and of course the drunken void that was the parking lot between the two venues) gave the night a distinct and memorable feel. Both venues had a completely different energy; Dickens being a lot more death and thrash oriented while Lord Nelson’s had a raging heavy metal party feel, and managed to keep a large amount of people at both venues.
I suppose it goes without saying that the mighty Swiss duo Bölzer was my personal pick of the night. The mixture of dissident death doom and ferocious blackened death was executed with a commanding confidence from both band members that I haven’t seen in a long time. Let the drunken haze of hell metal continue!
Bölzer
Brandon McNeil:
I’m so hungover that the very lights in my house are burning my eyes. That’s definitely a sign of a successful first night at Noctis. I didn’t realize it immediately, of course, it took three long minutes of stretching out my moshpit wounds and throwing up all over my bathtub.
But I digress.
The night started off with a trip down to the Ramada Inn to watch Sarah Kitteringham deliver a presentation about women in metal. That was about as much class session as I wanted to take for the night, so as soon as the speech ended, I travelled en masse with fellow writers Wolff and Lemke to Dickens, where several beers and a full pack of cigarettes was consumed.
We arrived right in time for Savage Streets, who were admittedly garnering an awesome crowd reaction. I had never been a fan of theirs, but it’s impossible to argue with that kind of vibe.
Then came Satan’s Satyrs and Bölzer. Bölzer was the more intriguing of the two, being that are a two piece band and sound as heavy as any five piece can ever get. I don’t know how they do it, but it works.
And then The Cadavor Dog. They are, without a doubt, one of my favorite Alberta metal groups. Those dudes tear it up every time they get up there and are always super rad to talk to. I even bought a shirt. You should to.
And then of course Exciter, who haven’t aged much for being around for 30 years. It was an absolute treat to see John Ricci and company play those classics. It’s just a shame I didn’t make it to the end of the set.
I’ll do better tonight.
Exciter
Ian Lemke:
When Noctis season rolls around it’s almost hard to believe. All year we wait for our gods to grace our soil, and make the rest of the year worth living. So after the appropriate amount of yard beers (three or four seems to do the trick), I was headed down to Ramada to grab my pass from Sarah Kitteringham and take in her lecture. As part of the “Women in Metal” conference, Kitteringham touched on a few important topics, some seemingly self-explanatory, others less so. One idea that really stuck was the concept that women have to earn validation as musicians, whereas men are typically seen as competent from first glance.
After the conference I made it over to Dickens just in time for Savage Streets’ set. If you’ve seen them before you know that their war-themed death crust is among the best acts in Alberta, easily. Satan’s Satyrs followed them up with a punky take on ‘60s psychedelia, albeit to a slightly less enthusiastic crowd. This quickly shifted when the indefinable but definitely deathy Bölzer; hit the stage. Of the few two-piece (guitar and drums) acts I’ve seen live, Bölzer; blew the doors off in experimental structure and pure volume. The Cadavor Dog, another local favorite, delivered a safe but energetic set after just recuperating the costs of this summer’s flood damage, and Exciter left the room saturated with sweat and heavy metal nostalgia: A pretty kickass kickoff for what is sure to be another legendary Noctis weekend.
Sarah Kitteringham:
Satan’s Satyrs
Presenting my research on the rise of female performers in extreme metal to an audience made me a bundled mass of nerves. No matter, the speech went well enough and the heated question session ended just in time for me to run frantically to Dickens. Satan’s Satyrs were delayed by a busted string; after a quick fix they jumped back on stage and delivered their wicked blend of Electric Wizard and Black Flag that had the crowd dancing. I ran over to Lord Nelsons in an attempt to fulfill my photography obligations. Upon entering, the room erupted in laughter. Rav “The Arab Villain” was delivering a scathing review of an air guitar attendee, whose performance was apparently less engaging than watching a man fuck a goat.
Back and forth, back and forth. I refused to do anything but headbang in the front row during Bölzer; they were unequivocally the best band of the evening. It was skull crushing blackened death/doom, esoteric and battering with a wicked vocal delay that made mountain man vocalist and guitarist KzR all the more intimidating.
The smell of marijuana permeated the air; it appeared many were taking a break while Edge of Attack performed. It’s not my thing, but the band delivered power metal efficiently. The same can be said for Striker, though they certainly upped the pizzazz. The Cadavor Dog was more my scene. Then, of course, Exciter kicked the crowd into an outright frenzy. Fuck yeah, Canadian speed metal!!!
By this point, my photo card was full and my body was shaking. Hairspray Heroes and Ryan Stock did their thing; but as demonstrated by the hordes of drunken fans in the parking lot, organization was no one’s strong suit. It was party time. Kudos to Terese Fleming and Joshua Wood and Scarab for pulling off a fantastic first evening of Noctis 666. The beginning of the end was a blast.
By Team Shrapnel: Tanner Wolff, Sarah Kitteringham, Brandon McNeil, Ian Lemke
Photos: Sarah Kitteringham
STAY TUNED ON THIS PAGE FOR DAYS TWO AND THREE, TO COME TOMORROW AND SUNDAY!
