Doomanoid Records: November 2012

Back From Malta Doom Metal 2012

by Steve Wilson

Please Note:

The following is an account of what I experienced during Iron Void's first overseas trip. I may not cover every band that played at the festival, but these are explained in each days' write up (there were periods where I was simply outside chilling out for example). This is my 'Fear and Loathing in Malta.' I salute those of you with the patience to read the whole thing!

***

We have returned safe and sound from our trip to Malta. I would like to take some time to share my thoughts on the trip, and the experience of playing there with Iron Void. The journey to Malta Doom Metal really started back in January of this year. I saw a facebook page for the event and sent a message to festival organisers Albert (of Forsaken and Nomad Son) and Glen. To my surprise, my audacity paid off, and we were offered a place on the bill. I told my band mates and we started rehearsing and saving money for the trip. So far, so good.

The months that followed would see both our drummer and then our second guitarist leave the band. They each had their reasons for leaving, which I won't go into here. The problem for us was having to cancel all our gigs as well as the recording sessions for our debut album (now planned for 2013) because the drummer had left. Myself and Sealey vowed to go on, and began trying out new drummers in an effort to make the festival booking as planned. We eventually settled on My Dying Bride drummer Dan Mullins.

He lives close enough to make it to rehearsal, knows how to play doom metal. What can go wrong?

Sealey went ahead and booked our flights. We did a couple of rehearsals, then - disaster struck. Dan would not be able to make the festival due to his MDB commitments. His friend Damien was interested and Dan put his name forward. We gave him a CD to get him used to the tracks, then did an informal rehearsal/audition. We instantly warmed to him, and his playing suited us perfectly. We had one final setback before we could prepare for the festival. We had to cancel Dan's flight and rebook a place for Damien. The system forced us to pay for a new flight, and we didn't get a refund for the cancelled one. Despite this expense and the bitterness it caused us, we managed to get Damien booked on to our flights and all was well again. After all we have been through this year, his joining was quite literally a miracle. We were all set to go and I was finally able to face my fear of flying head on. Not as bad as it seems, as things would turn out (I enjoyed it, which surprised me as much as anyone else). So, here is my account of our Maltese adventure from my perspective. There were many moments that will never be shared online. Some were ridiculously funny, some very personal (important things certain people told me in confidence). Those with the patience to do so can read about everything else below. I have used some photos that are not mine, as my phone didn't have as much battery life as I would have liked. These ones are credited accordingly.

Wednesday

After spending most of 2012 worrying about flying (I hadn't flown since a Spanish holiday as a child, almost 25 years ago), the day was finally upon us! I got up before dawn, and got a 6am taxi to Doncaster train station. All went well and I arrived at Manchester Airport rail terminal an hour early. After a couple of quick phone calls to Sealey, I met him and Damien and we made our way to check in. It went quicker than I anticipated. Customs was a bit scary, but at least my jeans didn't fall down when I was forced to remove my belt. My wah pedal showed up on the scan and had to be examined and swabbed (I would later find out this is a check for concealed explosives). We had a couple of beers for courage then it was time to board. I had had a cold all week, and a cough which was getting worse by the minute. I hoped it wouldn't get in the way of our performances. I put this thought aside and boarded the plane. Not too bad. Take off has a bit more of a kick than I expected, but we survived and arrived in Frankfurt in good time. All fears aside by this time, I was ready to push on to flight number two and reach Maltese soil (or should that be rock?).

===Intermission - The 'Frank Fart' Airport debacle===

We arrived in Frankfurt and adjusted our phones to local time. There was a very amusing incident with a female toilet inspector which doesn't really merit retelling. It was a shock to see a tall blonde woman stride straight into the Gents, bold as brass and shout "Inspection!" It's a good thing I had already peed, or I would have done so laughing. She muttered something in German and smiled. We will never know what it was but I can guess. You had to be there really.

After a few moments of confusion, we found our bearings and went through another customs check (Wah pedal swabbed, shoes removed this time too!). We then decided to eat. We had a three hour-plus wait for our connecting flight to Malta and felt like a beer and some food. We found the airport restaurant in our terminal and checked out a very nice fruity ale. I wish I could remember the name of it (Sealey and Damien, if you are reading this-help me remember!). We had a couple of these then ordered our respective meals. This where it began to get wierd.

We did not get waitress service, yet all the surrounding tables did. We had to go up to the counter and order our food, pay up front and carry it back to the table ourselves. After finishing our meal, we sat and watched as business men in suits came and went with their various female companions and colleages. No one cleared our table. We headed to the bar (again - no waitress) and got a few more beers. After around two hours, the waitress magically discovered our table and asked "would you like this to be cleared?" Well, yes, we would as it happens. Maybe it was our scruffy clothes, mine and Sealey's long hair or just the fact that we were loud and English. Either way, they got no tip, and we made our way to board our Air Malta flight.

To our disappointment - another customs check! We'd just had one, but there you go. Out came the wah pedal again. "Follow me sir. Must be swabbed for explosive." What is this? Anyway, I complied. After 5 minutes, we got out of there (no explosive was found). Then came our first and only near-miss of the journey.

We arrived at the boarding gate, breathless and tired. A young member of staff pulled a face at us and asked in his best Herr-Flick voice, "Why have you delayed my flight?" A dangerous-looking middle-aged security guard blocked our way, and agreed with the guy behind the desk. Sealey to the rescue! He pointed out there was eight full minutes left in which to board. The shuttle bus was still there and we finally were allowed to pass. The desk clerk/secret policeman reluctantly allowed us passage. He said he'd called us three times but I swear I never heard a single announcement.We eventually boarded the plane to disapproving looks. We had no time to load our carry on baggage (the overhead racks were already full anyway). We spent the best part of three hours cramped by our hand luggage and just about managed to survive our wierd chicken meal and complimentary alcohol. Air Malta were great - Frank Fart were not. Oh well, who cares. We were in Malta and it was boiling! We met Albert and Glen and were driven to the Europa Hotel on Sliema sea front by them.

***

Because we had to book our flights relatively late due to line up changes, we were forced to fly out on wednesday before the festival and return home the following monday. This turned out to be another minor miracle as it allowed us to visit Muddy Waters Rock & Blues Bar on wednesday night, which is down the road from Europa Hotel, where we were staying. Albert invited us to a Halloween jam night for a few beers with the guys from Hooded Priest. Why not? Nothing else to do. This was a really hot night and the idea of drinks was music to our ears. We had low expectations but headed off in Albert's car to try our first ever taste of Cisk beer - on sale literally EVERYWHERE in Malta!

We walked through the small doorway into a small, dark, smoky bar. A three-piece band were playing obscure doom metal songs without a bass player. I would soon be told that these were the guys from Hooded Priest, and the bearded guy singing was their front man, Luther. We were impressed with his theatrical delivery and doomy vocals, and spent much of our stay drinking, talking and larking about with him and the band's drummer.

Luther & friends dooming out at Muddy Waters Bar

Glen then suggested that we do a couple of our songs. We thought it would be cool and got up on stage. After some minor tuning changes, we played new song The Burden of Regret and old favourite Suicide Sorcerer. We would then go on to play a cover of 'Sign of The Wolf' by Pentagram and also Black Sabbath with Albert on bass. A real honour for us! Mr. Robert Azzopardi was in attendance with his phone, and captured both songs on video. I think our cover of Black Sabbath is the heaviest soiund I have ever had live. Here they are:

The night ended with us agreeing to meet Robert and his friend Noel (I hope I got your name right!) for a sight seeing trip and then radio interview the following afternoon. We then staggered back across the harbour/sea front and attempted to find the Europa. Somehow, we managed to get lost, but a kindly taxi driver stopped to help. Turns out we were right round the corner all along! Staggered in, got room key from reception and had a drunken sleep.

Memorial graffitti by Luther

Thursday

After attempting to eat breakfast leftovers at the Europa (got up late/hungover), we went for a full English breakfast at the Times Square pub, just round the corner from the hotel (This would end up being a daily hangover curing ritual throughout our stay). We then assembled outside the hotel at 1pm to meet Robert. Time passed. It got to 1.35pm and he still hadn't showed. Us being cyncial Englishmen, we assumed he had stood us up. Maybe he was drunk last night and forgot all about us? Maybe he is busy or had to work? Let's go off on our own instead. He won't show now. Turns out he did turn up - at 2pm! Missing this guided tour of local sights and also the chance to do a radio interview is one of my regrets from the whole trip. Never mind. Maybe next time.

The beautiful sea view from our hotel balcony

We spent the afternoon on a sight seeing bus tour of the south of Malta. We went to Valetta, Three Cities etc. We saw a lot of churches and fortifications. It was a pleasant enough afternoon until the bus hit rush hour traffic. Thank God the driver stopped for a food/piss stop at a small local pub halfway. Total bus time: 4 HOURS! We would then return to Times Square for an evening meal and beer. I logged onto their Wi-Fi using my phone's remaining battery. A quick check of Facebook revealed that Aldo and Simon from Arkham Witch had just landed in Malta. they would be at the Void Moon release party at V-Gen that night. What the hell is V-Gen? One Facebook message later (thanks to Mark Scerri), we had some info. It's a rock venue in Pacevile.

A couple of photos I managed to snap from the moving bus.

After a quick stop at the hotel Sealey and me got a taxi to V-Gen and met Aldo and Simon. Damien stayed in bed. We were worried he might be ill, but he turned out to just be tired and he was fine in the end. While at V-Gen, we got nicely drunk on Hop Leaf ale, Malta's other beer. A fine alternative to Cisk, and highly recommended if you get the chance. It was nice to see Jowita and Simone of Metal-on-Metal Records there too. Robert and friends were also there, which gave us a chance to explain why we didn't meet them. They understood, no worries. We rounded off the evening by sitting on the rocky beach opposite the hotel sharing Sealey's duty-free Jack Daniels with a Swedish metal head and some time metal journalist called Daniel (Again, apologies if the name is wrong. Whiskey isn't a good aid to memory!).

Friday - Festival Day 1

Buskett Roadhouse, Rabat. Home of the MDM Festival!

Friday had finally arrived! Sealey and I woke up hungover and joined a well-rested Damien at Times Square for our ritual breakfast. My cough was getting worse but my voice was OK. The big gig was coming up and we were grateful for this fact. We hung around for the rest of the afternoon, had a beer on the hotel room balcony and then got into a rickety old mini-bus/taxi at around seven pm. To our surprise, we survived the drive and we were soon at the venue. We were getting really excited now (and I was feeling pretty nervous to be honest). The biggest gig of our career to date, and it happened to be our drummer'd first show. I was grateful for wednesday night. At least we'd had a chance to play together in front of an audience before the festival.

Albert took to the stage, addressed the crowd and introduced the first night of the festival. Soon after, local band Griffin Device opened the festival. This band are very heavy but have a melodic side that came to the fore towards the end of their set. Well worth checking out. Their singer's voice sounded great and made me even more nervous. We had to follow these guys?


Griffin Device (Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

After Griffin Device had offloaded their gear, we started to set up. Damien and Sealey had no real problems but I had a few technical hitches with my pedals. I couldn't get the 9v adaptor and leads to work. A loose wire somewhere perhaps? Anyway, the guys from Griffin Device came to my rescue with a 9v battery and I abandoned my boost pedal and just had the wah pedal. It had survived so many customs checks that I was determined to get some use out of it. Luckily, it fired up ok with the battery and after some help from Albert and friends, I had sound and the gig could start.


On stage (Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

We blasted through 'Spell of Ruin' and were greated by shouts and applause. All was well! We went on with 'Tyrant's Crown' and the rest of the set before the biggest crowd we have ever played to. I felt a bit out of place on such a large stage, but the reaction from the crowd was like a dream. I couldn't have wished for a warmer welcome. The t-shirts and CD's sold well too, which helps fund our next batch of merch (probably some embroidered patches).

I've lost count of the people who came up to us, shook us by the hand and bought us beers (even on the 2nd day!). We have never signed so many CD covers either. Incredible.


(Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

Friday's set list:

Spell of Ruin

Tyrant's Crown

I Am War

The Mad Monk

Final Resting Place

Black Mirror

Suicide Sorcerer


Damien behind the kit (Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

Hooded Priest followed us, and we got to see Luther's full stage act. A very heavy and inspiring set it was too. One of the highlights of the festival for me. I bought their CD, but regret not getting the LP version.

Hooded Priest (Photo by Damien)

Their use of a full-sized double bass for live shows is particularly interesting. Luther would later tell me that they have to hire them locally, as the cost of transporting an instrument of that size from country to country is too high.

Hooded Priest were followed by Malta's legendary Forsaken, who feature festival founder Albert Bell on bass. They are one of my favourite bands and I had only seen them live once before now (at one of the Doom Metal Inquisition all dayers in Bradford a couple of years back). They were on form, mostly playing songs from the Dominion and After The Fall albums. I bought the latter on vinyl on saturday night and I'm listening to it as I type. Sounds pretty damn good on vinyl.


Forsaken (Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

I spent much of the remainder of friday night milling around, drinking beer and talking outside. I was already doomed out after Forsaken and needed a break. I joined my band mates backstage for a well earned burger and chips. The band food tokens were much appreciated! As time drew on, 2am quickly came around. We sorted out our merch with Chris of Nomad Son (many thanks!) and were pleased to have sold a decent amount of CD and T-shirts. We got on the bus at 2am and missed The Black. With hindsght, we could have stayed but never mind. We had saturday to look forward to. Once we reached the hotel, I went to bed, leaving Damien and Sealey to return to Muddy Waters Bar.

Saturday - Festival Day 2

Missed breakfast at the hotel. We had to turn the maid away as we were still in our beds. Woke up to find I'd lost my voice. I began to worry about sunday's V-Gen gig. After much coughing and drinking of water, I got some use of it back. Eventually, we left for Times Square for the hangover buster breakfast. Got picked up at 4pm and started a day of drink and music.

I spent most of opening band Oblique Visions' set outside with Damien, and only caught the last bit of it. What I did hear was slow and heavy, which is always a good start. They provided the power and volume needed to wake us all up ready for MDM day two. I was feeling a bit rough but I perked up after a couple of bottles of Blue Label ale and it was soon time for Children of Doom to play. I'd been looking forward to seeing this band play after hearing their promo clip on the MDM line up YouTube video. We'd jammed with part of the band on wednesday too so I was curious to hear what they were like live.

Children of Doom (Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

Their singer guitarist uses a lot of wah, similar to Dave Chandler of Saint Vitus. In fact, the band reminded me of early Vitus but with a rockier sound. They sound like Vitus, but at the same time they have their own sound. I'm listening to their CD Doom,Be Doomed, ör Fuck Off! as I type and I can heartily recommend it - especially if you dwell in the more drunken side of the doom spectrum. We bonded with these guys throughout the weekend (even though their singer speaks little English when he's not actually playing) and there is talk of a European tour with them next year. I hope this works out.

It Came From The Desert were on stage next. I caught 90% of their set. Kind of a mix of stoner rock, doom and straight up heavy rock. They had an even clearer sound than Mortalicum. They singer was very professional, and the whole thing had a coregraphed, well-rehearsed feel to it. They put on a good show, but it all felt a bit too cliche for me. They kept up the high quality of the other bands, but for me, the laughs and silly moments you get with more underground acts are more entertaining (But then again, I could just be a fool!). Also, I had the Amiga computer game of the same name. Remember? The one with the giant ants?

It Came From The Desert (Photo © Michelle Sullivan)

I was outside cooling off and having a bit to eat during Tethra's set. I missed the first half, but I caught the last few songs. Very heavy, solemn doom that didn't mess around with any silly gimmicks.

Next up were our old friends from last year's Doomsday IV mini tour, Sweden's Mortalicum. This was the first band of saturday's bands I got close up to the stage for. The sound for their set was a perfect balance of volume and clarity, and they played a blinder too. I'm a big fan of fellow Swedes Grand Magus, and just prefer bands that really sing melodies in general. To me, it's a purer form of heavy metal and moves me more than the death growl style. Here's some video footage of their set:

Forest Stream followed. There was a long delay before their set, which I believe was due to some technical troubles with a laptop (used for backing track purposes). I ended up talking with some of the bands and didn't venture back inside until Dawn of Winter played.

It was a pleasure to finally see Dawn of Winter on stage. I have been listening to this German band on record for a few years now and I was beginning to wonder if I'd get to catch them live. They played many favourites, old and new, taking a good few songs from their recent album The Peaceful Dead and new vinyl-only EP (which unfortunately sold out in a matter of seconds - before I could get to the merch tables!). I have to agree with Albert on this one - The Music of Despair is now the official 'theme-song' of MDM!

"In the loneliness of winter..."

Doom Metal is the best thing that ever happened to me since I discovered rock music. It has taken me to places I didn't think existed. And the above video is a slightly comic tribute to the way this music means those of us who folow it. Sabbath, Vitus, Pentagram, Trouble. Repeat.

Unfortunately, Sorcerer were forced to cancel their appearance at the festival. This was disappointing but I'm sure they had a good reason. They were replaced by a last minute addition to the bill - The Maltese Dio Disciples. Close the festival with a late night Dio tribute set? Go on then...


Dio tribute (Photo by Damien)

The Dio Disciples had a variety of members, and alternated vocalists a few times. Highlights for me were Leo of Forsaken doing a couple of songs. Albert played bass on a couple too. 'Follow The Tears' from The Devil You Know album stayed in my mind. I thought it was cool that the two backing singers that joined halfway through the set then took turns on lead vocals. They looked like token backing singer girls then just devasted the crowd doing the main Dio vocal on a few songs. I know the audience wanted to hear Sorcerer, but the Dio tribute was a light hearted and fun way to end the festival.

Each band had one of these engraved on sat night. Many thanks to the craftsman! Sealey took this one home

Sunday - Post Party Gig

Sunday saw us return to V-Gen, this time to join Mortalicum and local band Myopic Destiny. Russia's Forest Stream were also added to the bill, after the flyer was printed.

We arrived early in the afternoon to get everything set up. Thanks to Myopic Destiny for providing all backline and drums. We really couldn't have done it without them!

V-Gen, Paceville (Photo by Damien)

After a few hours of soundchecks, waiting around and take away trips (Try Chick-King in Paceville!) Myopic Destiny got the crowd warmed up with their own brand of politically aware metal. Mortalicum followed. While the sound wasn't as good as the larger PA we enjoyed at Buskett, it was good to see/hear the band on a small stage. I like small venues where the band is really close to the audience and this one delivered the goods on that score. Henrik's voice was fading a little, but mine was in much worse shape. I still wasn't sure if mine would even allow me to sing! Time would tell.

Forest Stream took to the stage shortly afetr Mortalicum. The majority of the crowd went outside to smoke, talk or attempt to cool off (I tried but it was futile. I went back in and made do with the air con. It was a hot night!). Having missed their set on saturday, I was determined to give them a listen. A mix of folky black metal and doom. Not really my cup of tea but the laptop based backing tracks sounded good. If they could find a way to play the whole lot live they may be on to something.

After a brief change over, it was our turn to play. I had avoided beer all day to preserve my voice and I'm pleased to say that it paid off. I somehow managed to play through the pain and sing all my songs with at least 50% vocal capacity. As we started off with Spell of Ruin, more and more people came back in from outside, until the small are in front of the stage was full. The crowd were really into it. Full on headbanging, punching the air, singing along. you name it. This is what we flew to Malta for! Musically (but perhaps not my voice), this was the best set we've ever played. Don't ask me where the energy came from. We just got on stage and did our best.

Photo by Damien

Afterwards, I had to quickly pack my guitar stuff away and race back to the merch tabel. People crowded round wanting CD's and T-shirts as well as requesting we autograph the CD cover for them. It was an amazing end to a great few days and made us feel like rock stars for the rest of the evening. We then had to pack the remaining merch and get into our 11pm mini bus back to Europa.

Sunday set list:

Spell of Ruin

Tyrant's Crown

I Am War

The Mad Monk

Final Resting Place

Those Who Went Before

Black Mirror

The Burden of Regret

Suicide Sorcerer

All three of us were hyped up from the gig and agreed that we couldn't sleep on the last night of our stay. So, off we walked down to Muddy Waters Bar. We were greeted by a drunken Finn who proceeded to pour Jack Daniels and coke down my throat direct from a jug. I mixed this with a few pints of Cisk and felt like a king for a few hours. We had good company with the Finn's room mates, Luther and his drummer, and the owner of the bar. In the end, we had to go. He wanted to close up and go to bed, and we had to fly back to England early the next day. We finished the night with a final walk across the harbour and Sliema seafront before crashing out in our room at the Europa.

We will never forget our short time in Malta. I'm looking for an excuse to come back very soon!

Monday - Travel Day

We reluctantly checked out of Europa then had one last Full English breakfast at Times Square, which I really needed (My JD hangover was terrible!). It made us feel a little better. We left some surplus cents we wanted to get rid of as a tip and then prepared to leave the island. The flights back were routine, and Dusseldorf airport proved to be a lot easier than our Franfurt connection. Before we knew it, we were back in Manchester and feeling the cold. I said farewell to my bandmates and boarded a lonely train back to my home town. We had survived our first overseas trip as a band and all we could think about was the next one.

Special thanks to:

Albert Bell, Glen Gaucci, Chris of Nomad Son, Griffin Device (That battery saved my life!), Robert Azzopardi & Noel, The Buskett Roadhouse, All staff at V-Gen (Paceville), Mark Screrri for telling us where it was, Dennis and all staff at The Europa Hotel (Sleima), Michelle, Jowita and co. for taking so many photos of the festival, all merch people, Luther and Hooded Priest, Mortalicum and Goran, Myopic Destiny for backline and drums, all Iron Void fans old and new, Air Malta, Lufthansa, First Trains, Dial-A-Car and Apple Taxis (Doncaster), Muddy Waters Rock & Blues Bar (our new local. We're coming back!), Cisk lager, Hopleaf ale, Jack Daniels, Times Square Pub (Full English every day!), Kebab Ji (Sliema) Go here and eat a lamb wrap!, Sealey and Damien for putting up with me, and everyone else who helped to make this trip possible. Sorry to anyone I forgot to mention. We love you all!

Thursday 29 November 2012

Updates to Big Cartel shop

Sunday 11 November 2012

Interview with Steve Wilson

Tuesday 6 November 2012

Back from Malta Doom 2012

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