Oigs Fest 6: The Curse of the Oigs! Returns to the Avenue Cafe in Lansing, bringing horror and mayhem in terrifying technicolor.
Oigs Fest 6
The crowd was sizable when I arrived at the Avenue Cafe in Lansing for Oigs Fest 6. Clearly, the Lansing metal scene is alive and kicking. It takes some serious dedication and great bands to fill up a room at 3 in the afternoon. Once again, our host is Brad from Cavalcade. As I’ve said before, Brad is not only a wonderful person, he is an excellent musician and a massive supporter of local music. In particular, music of heavy caliber. My deepest thanks to Brad as well as the killer staff at The Avenue, for a wonderful night of music.
The line-up for Oig’s Fest never fails to impress. From my first time to last year, Brad rounds up a diverse mix of heavy music and always finds a few new bands to mix with the established heavy hitters. This year is no exception. While I looked forward to seeing my friends in Ommnus and Hate Unbound, I was very keen to check out the reunion of Blind Haven. On top of that, I’d finally be able to witness the power and glory of Room 101, whose debut album stole my invisible orange clutching heart.
Misery Bay
Opening up Oigs Fest 6 is Misery Bay. As I mentioned, the crowd was impressive and steadily growing when Misery Bay unleashed an avalanche of doom. The punishing drums and bass were accented by savage and mournful guitar. Black Sabbath would be proud of the children of the void they have spawned.
Slugchild
Holy shit. That is what I thought when Slugchild tore the stage apart with a tornado of rage. With only guitar, drums, and vocals, these guys are crushing and sonically assaulting. I found myself thinking of them as the bastard child of Converge and Inter Arma. Word has it that they are looking for a bassist to add to the explosive violence of this band.
Witchfist
The Saginaw hags of sludge known as Witchfist took up residence for a spell at Oigs Fest 6. Despite their advanced years and playing in the light of day, they found no problem in sharing their tales of loathing. Their crusty headbanging epics “Throne of Toads” and “Babylonian Bitchslap” entranced the crowd. All hail Witchfist!
Flood The Desert
Flipping the switch and shifting gears is Flood The Desert. They are a high octane progressive metal power trio from Grand Rapids. In minutes, they captivated the crowd with their impressive rhythms and fretboard wizardry. The magnum opus “Where The Red Poppies Grow” had many standing in awe with mouths agape. Fans of bands like The Ocean should check these guys out.
Ommnus
There is only one way to describe the sound of Ommnus, and that is devastating. For a two-piece, this band creates an avalanche of heaviness. The guitars roar from the mammoth green monoliths of metal as the drums topple the foundations of sanity. Twin vocals of brutality fill the air with the sound of dying worlds. Ommnus conveys a blast wave of agony, despair, and suffering. Do yourself a favor and pick up their latest split LP that they did with My Pitbull Lucifer. The production is incredible, and you can relive their crushing performance over and over again.
The Mound Builders
Delving into the primordial roots of heavy music is The Mound Builders. Bellicose and bombastic, the sludgy guitars meld with the hammering iron of the drums and bass to create a wall of sound. When you throw furious vocals into the mix, you have music that turns mountains into dust. High On Fire fans will surely want to pick up The Mound Builders’ new LP today.
Room 101
I’ve been dying to witness the colossal teeth-gnashing beauty of Room 101 ever since picking up their album called “Sightless.” They have that compelling and gargantuan sound that calls to mind bands such as Cult Of Luna and Neurosis. Their performance was flawless. Not only did Room 101 play heavy, their performance also captured all the atmospheric nuances that make their recordings so good. Word has it that a new album is in the works. I’ll be waiting eagerly and keeping an eye out for the next time I can witness their greatness.
Blind Haven
I won’t lie; one of the primary reasons I was stoked for Oigs Fest 6 was the first reunion show of Blind Haven. Words fail me when trying to convey the force and magnitude of Blind Haven’s music. With roots deep in the vein of the Black Sabbath, Blind Haven takes the worship of the riff to another universe. The tortured vocals, the titanic drums and bass, and the growling guitar threatened to overwhelm us as we intently watched the performance from Blind Haven. I couldn’t help but smile and shake my head in stunned wonder at what I had experienced.
The Glorious Dead
Vintage death metal never sounded so good as that played by The Glorious Dead. These guys traveled all the way from Traverse City to unchain the beast that lies within their music. Guitars and bass blazed as the blast beats shattered our minds. Enthusiasts of the hellish sounds of Massacre and Bolt Thrower will surely love The Glorious Dead.
Hate Unbound
Not only are the people in Hate Unbound talented and technical purveyors of metal music, but they are also awesome people. A lot of headlining bands show up late in the day, closer to their set time, and miss many of the opening bands. This is not the case with Hate Unbound. They were at Oigs Fest 6 when doors opened and were up front to check out and support every band. As usual, Hate Unbound did not disappoint. They attacked the stage with their jaw-snapping blend of thrash and death. While shredding us apart with their razor riffs and face-pulverizing rhythms, they shared smiles on stage. Clearly tearing up the stage brings a lot of joy to Hate Unbound. Once again, they blew me away with an amazing performance that was super heavy and a ton of fun.
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