METALWORKS MAGAZINE
w/The Swarm/Revile
The Temple, Dublin
Saturday 5th October 2002

When Revile took to the stage - over an hour later than scheduled, due to the ridiculously low attendance - my hopes for what I was about to witness weren't very high after hearing the less-than-great "Fists of Steel" recording. However, I was pleasantly surprised, as tonights show indicated what Revile are all about more than said recording did. The music doesn't have too much identity, but it is a very young band trying to find their feet and, given time, we could be in for a treat. It seemed like a lot of different styles and influences were showing through during their set, none defining the sound of Revile, but showing promise for the future nonetheless. A good set, in fairness, the highlight being a rendition of Danzigs "Mother".

I've been hearing a lot of enthusiasm from anyone who's witnessed Limericks The Swarm live and was eager to see why for myself. Indeed, the band stormed through a set of highly aggressive and melodic Death Metal that would leave many of the bigger names for dust. Nothing too original, but competent enough to make my ears pay attention throughout the set. Vocalist, Paul, prowled the floor like a madman, while the remaining three displayed a tightness and competence rare for a band in the early stages of infancy. One to look out for . . .

After being blown away by Scavenger's recent self-titled release, to say that I was looking forward to this performance would be an understatement. To say that I wasn't let down would be another. Scavenger is a rare breed - an Irish band playing Heavy Metal in its traditional guise. . . and playing their Metal with a level of professionalism scarcely found in new bands. There's little to separate Scavenger from countless other bands stylistically, but only a handful of the big names can match these lads on the stage. The twenty-or-so paying punters certainly got their money's worth, as Scavenger put on a performance that would have been as much at home on a massive stage in front of a massive crowd. Never standing still vocalist, Peter, was constantly dashing around and involving the audience at every given opportunity. The set was capped off with a medley of Black Sabbath favourites, which got the majority of the gathered heads banging. Scavenger's music is MASSIVE live, and it will be a crime if one of Metal's premier labels doesn't take notice in the near future, as this is one band that could go very, very far indeed.

Mairtin Mac Cormaic

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