FEMME METAL FESTIVAL 2011

DATE:

VENUE:

Sunday 29th May - Monday 30th May 2011

The Asylum in Birmingham, UK

SUNDAY

MONDAY

REVAMP; WHYZDOM; APPARITION; SOLSIKK; FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH; WINTER IN EDEN; SCARLET'S WAKE

THEATRES DES VAMPIRES; SARAH JEZEBEL DEVA; DIE SO FLUID; REGARDLESS OF ME; THE MARIANA HOLLOW; DYONISIS; WINTER STORM

Solsikk in The Asylum, Birmingham, 30th May 2011

Photograph copyright © 2011 Mark Holmes - www.metal-discovery.com

Reviews by Mark Holmes & Hannah Sylvester; Photography by Mark Holmes

SCARLET'S WAKE

Nottingham’s Scarlet’s Wake are first to take the stage on the final day, with their self-styled ‘dirty filthy rock metal’, which isn’t too far from the truth really. Musically tight, with excellent strong rock vocals from Emma Gunn, they play a solid heavy groove and riff-laden set, and are a perfect opening band. With Gunn encouraging the crowd to sing along and keeping momentum going, drummer Adam Jones pounding the kit so hard that it looked like it was going to wobble apart at one point and a noticeable gorgeous guitar tone and well-penned guitar licks, the only real minus point was that you couldn’t hear any bass, but hey, that’s not the bands fault. Well worth checking out, especially if soulful strong female rock vocals are your bag. (HS)

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MONDAY 30th MAY - PART 1

WINTER IN EDEN

Hailing from the North East of England, Winter In Eden are next up with a half hour set of mainly down/mid-tempo quasi-symphonic metal tunes with occasional bursts of faster paced passages. Fronted by Vicky Johnson, the smooth tones of her vocal delivery and anguished facial expressions as she sings are apposite for the melancholic vibe at the core of their compositions. The melancholy is largely derived from the varied soundscapes created by Steve Johnson's keys although, at the same time, his keyboards sporadically sound too high in the mix thus nullifying some of the metal bite of Winter In Eden's overall sound. And while they're musically tight as a unit, they don't look entirely comfortable on stage as a band with little interaction with each other and the audience, and a discernible lack of confidence in their stage presence. That's always a bad thing as if you don't perform with a hundred per cent conviction then how can you expect an audience to connect with your music? Well, it seems many present in The Asylum do actually connect but with a scattering of Winter In Eden t-shirts worn by crowd members, some had perhaps turned out to see a band for which they were already a fan and familiar with their music so would enjoy it regardless. For me, though, it doesn't quite work and some sections of music where there are solely keys and backing tracks, it's ever so dull watching the musicians stand motionless with bowed heads. Ultimately, Winter In Eden's music, while garnering my interest in parts, washes over me for the majority of their set. (MH)

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FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH

Clad in what could probably be described as ‘20s gangster-style attire (think ‘Bugsy Malone’ and you’re kinda there – waistcoasts white shirts, ties – you get the picture), with front woman Kat in a tasselled flapper-style dress, Further From The Truth add a welcome element of fun to the day’s proceedings. Playing a slick set of hard rock tunes with a hint of blues in the vocals, including the rather catchy ‘Crimson Smile’, this is clearly a band that genuinely love what they do; with, refreshingly, all band members interacting with each other on stage (rather than just with the crowd as many do and it all seeming ‘for show’), the smiliest drummer in the world (playing a minimal kit, but jeez did he know how to use it!), and the singer getting off stage towards the end of their set to jump around and dance around the crowd whilst still singing. Impressive? Absolutely! Infectious? Most definitely! Seriously worth checking out live if you haven’t already. (HS)

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Reviews by Mark Holmes & Hannah Sylvester; Photography by Mark Holmes

SOLSIKK

Having never experienced Solsikk live previous to today or, in fact, heard any of their music, I had high hopes for the band knowing that two of their members used to play in Biomechanical, namely drummer Matt C and guitarist Chris Webb. Together with bassist Mark Mulcaster and vocalist Vykki Turner, Solsikk were apparently formed following some sort of mass walkout from Biomechanical after the recording of their most recent album to date, the rather awesome 'Cannibalised'. Well, thank fuck for said exodus as Solsikk are pretty damn fantastic. Musicianship is of the expected high standard with groove-infused prog-riffing, virtuoso leads and skilfully executed basslines aplenty to the accompaniment of some seriously adept, technical drumming and Vykki's ballsy, wide-ranging vocal styles. Slick and professional in their performance and impressively tight, Solsikk demand your attention with the might of their sonically heavy attack and energetic stage presence, and from observing the audience it's clear to see that they have their full attention with a deserved positive crowd response. My only complaint? With only a thirty five minute slot Vykki perhaps talks a little too much between songs which disrupts the flow of the set ever so slightly. Otherwise, I cannot fault Solsikk in any way whatsoever. Awesome stuff. A band surely with a big future. (MH)

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