Tailgunner, Helldown, Madicide, Rites To Ruin
Tailgunner, Helldown, Madicide, Rites To Ruin
Fuel, Cardiff
26/10/2023
Live Review by Simon Black
Tailgunner Photography by Rob Lindesay and Bee Alicia-Photography
I really didn’t want to come out and play tonight, after a gruelling few weeks at work and being in much need of a quiet night in, but needs must and as it turned out, serendipity ruled the night. I’ve also been a little disappointed at the turn out at Fuel for the last couple of gigs I’ve been to here, as it’s really depressing on a four-band bill when the only other people in the room seem to be there to review it. I needn’t have worried, as tonight Cardiff did the right thing and turned out in support and were rewarded as a consequence.
With four acts to squeeze in, Rites To Ruin were always going to be a bit squeezed at the bottom, but that did not slow them down in the slightest, and being fairly locally based had the hometown advantage. I hadn’t seen them before, but with two of their alumni hailing from the excellent Triaxis, I wasn’t disappointed. The style is very much Trad Metal, but with a vocal powerhouse like Krissie Kirby, a lady whose vocal cords and diaphragm could fill the venue without the aid of a microphone the music does tend to take a step back as you can’t stop watching her effortless performance. Admittedly, the music’s impact is also somewhat lessened by the first of quite a few mixing desk gremlins tonight, which meant that guitarist Lee Cartner was totally inaudible throughout, but having subsequently sat down and given their fantastic “Fire” EP it’s clear that he can shred with the best of them. Having built a local following from last year’s Metal To The Masses run, the audience support was good, and the night got off to an excellent buoyant start.
Madicide continue the South Wales flow tonight, and with their more stripped back retro Thrash sound are proof that sometimes mixing musical styles completely on a night like tonight can do no harm. They are, despite their considerable youth, clearly huge fans of the early days of Thrash, where energy and enthusiasm contributed massively to forging that musical movement. One of its other distinguishing features in those early days was something of a dearth of anything vaguely approaching production values, driven by the fact that so many of them were recorded in very short order and with archaic kit. Lots of acts from this young generation are trying to ape that sound on their recordings, but Madicide are definitely the first time I’ve seen someone try to do that onstage…
The energy, the enthusiasm, the sheer bouncing aggression are all there, but with all the stringed instruments being presented in such a way as to ape those old analogue recording techniques. This is odd to say the least, because with only the bass and two guitars getting that treatment, you have the unique situation at Fuel of the vocals sounding very clear and present in the mix, along with the drums, whilst everything else sounds like it’s being routed through one of those old mono four track cassette recorders all we old farts cut our demos on back in 1989… Anyway, wackiness aside, these boys deliver a full throttle set that is what it needs to be tonight, which is bucket loads of fun.
Helldown, like Rites To Ruin are no strangers to this stage having fought it out at this year’s Metal To The Masses and have a much more modern sounding Post-Thrash style, but with a clear salute to the Big Four Gods of yore. Unlike the raw edginess of Madicide, these folks are all about blistering technical precision, and again are playing to a room that knows them well and with absolute proficiency deliver a shredding short and sweet set that leaves me once again knowing I’ve got some catching up to do here. The audience is loving every minute, and with some manic circle pits forming, this old hack stays safely at the back of the room to enjoy the carnage. The future is in safe hands, it would seem when young bands are still unafraid to take those old influences and wear them so loudly and proudly…
Tailgunner then take this to the next level… Given they’re a relatively new act, with only one album and an EP to their name, the fact that this crowd has come out to see them as much as for the three local supports is a testament to how hard they’ve worked to pull this off in such a short period of time. Okay, so like many acts formed from experienced players there are a bunch of shortcuts that can be taken, fresh contacts and networks utilised, and mistakes avoided, but this is an act that only formed last year, and yet here we are.
I’ve been aware of the name and had to say in my mind I had them down as some kind of late 80’s era Maiden tribute act, and while their influences absolutely include this and other straight ahead Heavy Metal from the period, they do it so, so very well. And again, their youth is what strikes me hardest. Maiden, Dio, Priest – these are the acts they are wearing on their chests, and absolutely on their sleeves, but at no point tonight does this sound like some cobbled together tribute. This is a love letter to that period, and for those of us who lived through it the first time round, I feel like someone who attended some early NWOBHM gigs in the East End must have and realised that they were witnessing the birth of something really rather special.
‘Zorba The Greek’ may not be the most Metal introduction track to open with while you find your places on the tiny stage, but it certainly warms the crowd up well, and by the end of it everyone is definitely ready to throw a few proverbial plates into a through proverbial fireplaces as the band explode with ‘Guns For Hire’, which is probably the strongest song on their beltingly good debut album of the same name. Four act nights like this often means the headliner only gets an hour to play, but Tailgunner were having none of it, and a full set is what we get. Given that they’ve only got the ten original album tracks to play (the material on the Crashdive EP all gets redone on there) the set needs some bolstering, and clearly the influences are the prime place to start, with a roaringly good rendition of ‘Painkiller’ proving what an incredible set of pipes Craig Cairns is blessed with.
The sound challenges unfortunately have continued, meaning his mike keeps dropping in and out, but this young fellow is clearly one hell of a talent with an incredible vocal range, and the capability and charisma of a natural frontman born and raised on a diet of Halford, Dio and Dickinson… lots and lots of Dickinson. And he does it remarkably well too. And let’s not leave the rest of the band out of this, all of whom play with aggression and energy the likes of which this venue does not see often enough. Often these excessive stage moves mask gaps in the playing, but not Tailgunner – these boys and girl really can and do play very well indeed, and this old Metalhead is grinning from ear to ear all the way through it.
You can always tell the acts that are actually going to make it, because they all play the small shows as if they were headlining Wembley, regardless of how many or few show up, but no-one left here disappointed tonight. And given that they are headlining next year’s Stonedead festival, Wembley does not look too far away, from a band that really, really have the chops to succeed. The future is definitely in very safe hands…
LINKS
Disclaimer: This review is solely the property of Simon Black and Ever Metal. Photography the property of Rob Lindesay Bee Alicia-Photography. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of both parties. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities
