Easter Sunday is a spiritual day for Christians as they celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Metalheads in Cambridge, Massachusetts celebrated with their own spiritual gathering of sorts this Easter Sunday as death-thrash titans Revocation returned to their hometown for a headlining show at The Middle East Upstairs.
Local band Coagula opened the show. I'd never heard of them prior to the show, but considering the mediocrity of a majority of the bands in the Massachusetts metal scene at the moment, I wasn't expecting much from them. Within seconds of the start of their performance, Caligula proved me wrong. Their energy level was through the roof and their grimy hybrid of crust punk and thrash (they reminded me a lot of Trap Them) was pretty damn infectious. Coagula was a really solid opener and managed to restore some of my faith in the Massachusetts metal scene.
The second local opener, Sexcrement, came out shortly afterwards. These guys have become notorious in Boston-area metal circles because they have go-go dancers and strippers join them on stage during their performances. The use of scantily-clad women as part of their stage show may sound like a stupid gimmick, but Sexcrement is no joke. These dudes play some of the tightest, heaviest and badass brutal/slam death metal I've ever heard. The pig-squealing vocals are top-notch and each song is loaded with an abundance of memorable riffs. Their set was honestly one of the most pure fun performances I've seen in quite some time. For my money, Sexcrement is the best local band Boston has to offer at the moment and I will continue to be elated anytime they open a show.
The first national act on the bill, Black Crown Initiate, took the stage after a roughly 15 minute setup period. These guys have been on the road constantly since the beginning of last year, but this was somehow the first time I'd seen them. Outside of the puzzling choice to open the set with "The Malignant"- which is arguably the most melodic song in their entire catalog, Black Crown Initiate put on a pretty solid performance. Just like on record, the biggest strengths of their live shows were the performance of vocalist James Dorton and drummer Jesse Beahler. Dorton's powerful vocals carry the death metal side of their sound and Beahler is one of the most gifted, unique and underrated players in the genre today. On the downside, their choice to open with two of their slower songs was pretty questionable considering the nature of the other bands on the bill and their relatively restrained stage presence drained some of the absurdly highly energy level Sexcrement had established before they took the stage. That being said, Black Crown Initiate is still a very good live band. Between their work ethic and remarkable cohesiveness for a band that's still in its relative infancy (they formed in 2013), I have little doubt that Black Crown Initiate will be a fixture in the extreme metal genre for years to come.
After a pretty quick sound check, it was finally time for Revocation to take the stage. One of the perks of living in Massachusetts is getting the opportunity to regularly see Revocation (this show marked the seventh time I've seen them. Despite getting frequent chances to see them live, this was somehow only the second time I got to see them headline. Getting the chance to see them headline again paired with the fact that the Middle East Upstairs- with a capacity of under 200 people- is the smallest venue I've ever seen them perform in, made this the best Revocation show I've ever seen by far. Further solidifying the quality of this show was the absolutely sensational setlist. They played a majority of the best material from their most recent album Deathless as well as longtime set staples ("No Funeral", "Dismantle the Dictator") and a couple of prime cuts from their back catalog ("Leviathan Awaits", "Bound by Desire"). As a self-admitted Revocation fanboy, I especially freaked out over "Leviathan Awaits"- which has been one of my favorite songs by them since the release of Existence is Futile in 2009. Considering the fact that pretty much entirely ignore playing material from Existence is Futile live, I figured there was pretty much zero chance I would ever see them perform "Leviathan Awaits" live, so it was completely surreal to actually hear them play it. The only minor complaint I have about their set is that they played pretty much the same exact new material (save for the set opener "A Debt Owed to the Grave") that they played when I saw them open for The Contortionist in February. While the four repeat songs from Deathless were amazing, I would've loved to hear some of the other material from Deathless such as "Scorched Earth Policy" and "The Blackest Reaches" that I hadn't previously seen live. Petty complaints aside, Revocation put on a ballistic, technically-flawless and consistently exciting show that is the standout performance amongst the plethora of standout performances I've seen them give over the last four years.
Scores:
Coagula 7.5/10
Sexcrement 8.5/10
Black Crown Initiate 8/10
Revocation 9.5/10
Setlists:
Sexcrement included:
Glory Hole Casserole
Beef Curtain Call
Colostomy Bag Condom
Black Crown Initiate:
The Malignant
A Great Mistake
The Fractured One
To the Eye That Leads You
Stench of the Iron Age
Revocation:
A Debt Owed to the Grave
Deathless
Madness Opus
No Funeral
Invidious
Labyrinth of Eyes
Bound by Desire
Dismantle the Dictator
Witch Trials
Leviathan Awaits
Empire of the Obscene
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