God Damn // NS&V - Artrocker Stage @ Hog in Armour - 11/10/13
What to say of the gig? Well, first of all, it was loud, very, very, loud.
It’s pretty difficult to express the amount of admiration I have for God Damn. My new favourite band, I first saw them playing a support slot at the NAC a few months before NS&V, since which they’ve released a cracking EP, and also suffered the temporary loss of their guitarist due to a horrific car crash. But instead of packing it in (which would have been perfectly understandable) Dave, left with a lot of hope but not much else, spurred his band onwards from his hospital bed. And sure, it sounds like a bit of a sob story, and it’s hella clichéd, but it’s his spirit which seems to have driven the now two-piece to even greater heights.
Playing a late slot at the Artrocker (aka upstairs at the Hog In Armour) couldn’t suit the no limits, balls to the wall, crush everything in their way attitude of God Damn any better. But that’s not to say they’re destructive, or aggressive, they’re just so awe-inspiringly good at what they do that those elaborate metaphors flow almost involuntarily. What to say of the gig? Well, first of all, it was loud, very, very, loud. So loud in fact, and I’m saying this without a hint of poetic license, that my ears were still buzzing the next morning. But it wasn’t that grating kind of volume – it was the guttural, corporal kind that physically moves you; Thom’s pitch-shifting, octave dividing, distortion wailing guitar forcing you to tilt your, already banging, head to assuage the onslaught on your ears. And as if the riffs weren’t enough, Ash’s grooves were so replete with rumbling toms, barraging fills and splintering cymbals that there was nowhere to hide.
Early cut I’m a Lazer, You’re a Radar’s machine-gun hook fired relentlessly, and Red Checker was thrashy and punishing too, before it settled into it’s groove. It’s a shame the venue wasn’t fuller when there was a brief respite from the band, as tame applause and a few echoing whoops felt incongruous with God Damn’s beautiful racket. Standout single Heavy Money’s chorus screams “You are a terroriser/What are you terrified of?” I’m not sure about my fears, but one thing I do know is God Damn aren’t scared of anything. Playing out with the dazzling, metamorphic, haunting-then-deafening Dangle Like Skeletons, God Damn were a reminder that smaller bands can still achieve vast performances, despite having to get an early-ish night as they both had work the next morning.
Alex Throssell
It’s pretty difficult to express the amount of admiration I have for God Damn. My new favourite band, I first saw them playing a support slot at the NAC a few months before NS&V, since which they’ve released a cracking EP, and also suffered the temporary loss of their guitarist due to a horrific car crash. But instead of packing it in (which would have been perfectly understandable) Dave, left with a lot of hope but not much else, spurred his band onwards from his hospital bed. And sure, it sounds like a bit of a sob story, and it’s hella clichéd, but it’s his spirit which seems to have driven the now two-piece to even greater heights.
Playing a late slot at the Artrocker (aka upstairs at the Hog In Armour) couldn’t suit the no limits, balls to the wall, crush everything in their way attitude of God Damn any better. But that’s not to say they’re destructive, or aggressive, they’re just so awe-inspiringly good at what they do that those elaborate metaphors flow almost involuntarily. What to say of the gig? Well, first of all, it was loud, very, very, loud. So loud in fact, and I’m saying this without a hint of poetic license, that my ears were still buzzing the next morning. But it wasn’t that grating kind of volume – it was the guttural, corporal kind that physically moves you; Thom’s pitch-shifting, octave dividing, distortion wailing guitar forcing you to tilt your, already banging, head to assuage the onslaught on your ears. And as if the riffs weren’t enough, Ash’s grooves were so replete with rumbling toms, barraging fills and splintering cymbals that there was nowhere to hide.
Early cut I’m a Lazer, You’re a Radar’s machine-gun hook fired relentlessly, and Red Checker was thrashy and punishing too, before it settled into it’s groove. It’s a shame the venue wasn’t fuller when there was a brief respite from the band, as tame applause and a few echoing whoops felt incongruous with God Damn’s beautiful racket. Standout single Heavy Money’s chorus screams “You are a terroriser/What are you terrified of?” I’m not sure about my fears, but one thing I do know is God Damn aren’t scared of anything. Playing out with the dazzling, metamorphic, haunting-then-deafening Dangle Like Skeletons, God Damn were a reminder that smaller bands can still achieve vast performances, despite having to get an early-ish night as they both had work the next morning.
Alex Throssell
