I didn’t want to miss the chance to see Distant and Enterprise Earth, so I have been looking forward to this show. The latter in particular keep impressing me, to the point where they are now easily one of my favourites when it comes to the deathcore and related styles.
It’s not one of the busiest shows I’ve been to unfortunately, (although it certainly wasn’t as empty as some), but for those in attendance it was riotously good fun.
Harbinger
I haven’t encountered Harbinger since 2017’s Human Dust, and sadly I miss the first half of their set as I couldn’t get to the venue as early as I would have liked. The second half of their set I enjoyed though, and I certainly wasn’t alone. Harbinger give an energetic performance and get a good crowd reaction, particularly for the last couple of songs.
The band seem to have added a few different weapons to their metallic arsenal since I heard them last, so I think I need to check out what they’ve been up to on their recorded work as a result of this. This was a good way to open the show, warming everyone up nicely.
The Last Ten Seconds of Life
I have been interested to see what The Last Ten Seconds of Life sound like live; 2016’s The Violent Sound and 2022’s The Last Ten Seconds of Life showcased different sides of the band’s metallic onslaught, so I was wondering how they’d portray themselves tonight. The answer is unadorned, heavy, and devastating.
Boasting a huge heavy sound, the band get the crowd moving easily with their thunderous groove and beefy deathcore breakdowns. It’s music designed to get people moving, a (mostly) slow-to-mid-paced marathon of mountainous guitars and harsh vocals – the singer’s growls in particular sound like they could shake the earth. The music hits the spot, then destroys it. The band seem to be even heavier than on album, and there’s not a clean vocal in sight. They’re joined by the singer of Distant for one song too, for some extra brutality.
Absolutely crushing. Very good showing from The Last Ten Seconds of Life. The crowd seem to enjoy it a great deal as well.
Distant
Having been enjoying Distant since 2019’s Tyrannotophia, seeing them live seems long overdue. The crowd seem amped up as their intro track plays, and when the band unleash their brand of adrenaline-soaked deathcore, they’re massively heavy.
Distant play with enthusiasm and their songs translate to the live environment as well as you would expect, really coming to life. It’s a collection of huge breakdowns built on the back of electronics and synths and crowned by monstrous vocals; a formula that makes the crowd move, and move hard. Mainly drawn from their newest release Tsukuyomi: The Origin, (which I particularly rate), Distant run through their songs like they’re throwing out slabs of granite one after the other, growling and shouting at the people they’re crushing to a fine paste. It’s honestly great fun.
We get guest vocals from the singer of Harbinger on one song, (Acolytes of Damnation). We also get the first and only stage diver of the evening, although it’s less of a dive and just a jump really, as there’s not quite enough of a crowd to catch them. There’s enough for a decent circle pit though, and then even a wall of death, which the singer orchestrates shortly after. He also instigates everyone crouching down and then jumping up when the second to last song starts (Born of Blood), which I haven’t seen done in an exceedingly long time. The singer is a better-than-average frontman overall, and works the crowd well.
Distant have not disappointed and deliver a skull-smashingly good time. I’d happily go and see them again in the future. As much as I like them on record, it seems they’re even better live. Top stuff from Distant.
Enterprise Earth
I have been so excited to see this band. The more I listen to Enterprise Earth the more I just seem to like them. I never got to review this year’s new EP, (Descent into Madness), but trust me when I say it’s top tier, and tonight they play three songs off it. Of the rest, we get cuts pulled from Death: An Anthology, The Chosen, and Luciferous. It’s a set designed for maximum impact, and it works a treat.
Unlike a lot of deathcore acts who simply rely on a lot of breakdowns, Enterprise Earth have actual songs. They have riffs and hooks aplenty, and tonight they blast it all out with passion and presence. Of course, referring to Enterprise Earth as simply a deathcore band doesn’t do them justice really, as they offer so much more than the norm for the style. Regardless, tonight they are on fire.
Playing on a striped back stage, it’s all about the music and the band’s considerable presence. I’ll make no bones about it, the set was brilliant.
The opener is Reanimate // Disintegrate, and it positively explodes into action. Spineless follows, dedicated to the ex-singer of Ingested, who is in the crowd standing right in front of me it seems as the Enterprise Earth singer reaches down and shakes his hand, (as a side note, I had no idea he was no longer in Ingested until I put this review together). Up next is the enormous anthem The Failsafe Fallacy, with that chorus that’s even bigger than the rest of it. It’s a great song, and is rewarded by a circle pit and a wall of death. Stunning rendition.
Next we get the three tracks from Descent into Madness. I: The Descent is as relentless as a steamroller. Following this is the EP’s interlude track – V: Enough – which is a brief exercise in pure heaviness. III: Shadows Below is as shockingly good as everything else, with an earworm chorus, and also boasts one of the band’s best riffs. It’s so, so good. Also, at some point when I didn’t notice, the bass seems to have been taken over by a guest bassist for a while.
Ashamed to Be Human is fast and lethal. Except when it isn’t, when it just makes the pit explode. Psalm of Agony is an epic of deathcore majesty, and it is ruinously good. From its ridiculous breakdowns to its melodic death metal ferocity to its colossal vocal hooks, it’s just fantastic. Even the atmospheric acoustic middle section goes down a treat. And the closing riffs at the end…oh my. The set finishes with You couldn’t Save Me, which really gets people going.
Well, this has been one of the most enjoyable sets I’ve seen for a while. Really loved it. Enterprise Earth are an excellent band and put on a brilliant performance. Unmissable.
Wonderbox Metal 
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