October 23, 2012 by A.S. Van Dorston

How awesome is this, three bands from my Metal Sirens piece featured in one free showcase! I wish I could take credit for it, but we’re just lucky. For a rainy Monday night with people distracted by a big football game and the last Presidential debate, it drew a pretty decent crowd. First up were Mares Of Thrace, who originally hail from Canada, but have relocated to Chicago, where screamer/guitarist Thérèse Lanz is in school to design video games. I wasn’t sure if Lanz had her fabled customized baritone guitar. They now have a bass player and she may not need it. Her full-throated demonic glass-gargling wail was pretty amazing, stabbing through my earplugs like molten spikes freshly forged in Hell. The vocals were up front in the mix and kind of overwhelmed the music, which lost some of the more striking details that can be heard on their unique sounding debut, The Pilgrimage. Their mix of sludge, doom, noise rock with influences from the likes of Godflesh and Neurosis is full of great ideas that should blossom as they develop more stage presence with experience.

I was stoked to see Castle. After belatedly discovering their great debut In Witch Order (2011) in January, I was excited to see them quickly roll out another album, Blacklands, produced by Billy Anderson (Sleep, Cathedral) in April. Its distribution reach was limited with the German label, so fortunately it was issued in the U.S. last month by Prosthetic Records. They did not disappoint, actually surpassing my expectations with a raucously energetic show and sexy chemistry between husband and wife team Mat Davis and Elizabeth Blackwell. Often characterized as a doom band, their live show demonstrates how insufficient that label is, as the constantly changing tempos and riffs ranging from catchy to unsettlingly weird recall heavy psych, bits of New Wave of British Metal, and thrash. Throughout the show I was trying to read what Liz’s shirt said, but it was too dark. Photos revealed it says, “witch thrash,” definitely an appropriate label for them.

Liz’s vocals are truly outstanding in a live setting, ranging from husky melodies to growls and wails. While many doom shows can get boring with the plodding tempos, Castle’s energy levels just kept ascending while establishing a stronger, swinging groove than the recordings. When Liz, Mat and Al locked into a groove, horns popped up from the audience like gophers from their holes.
This is my second time seeing headliners Witch Mountain at the Empty Bottle this year. Their hard work is paying off, as their performance made the one last summer seem somewhat flat in comparison. Lead singer Uta Plotkin seemed more confident and animated, exploring subtle bluesy nuances a bit more deeply than I remembered previously. With some incessant shouts of “louder” from the audience, they seemed to deliver the volume and a heavy bottom than last time too. They’re not as spinecrushingly heavy as Electric Wizard, Conan or Elder, but for their particular style of doom, it was a perfect balance. I gotta be honest, it was midnight on a Monday after three solid hours of metal, and I was starting to fold, ready to go. But my Metal Meetup bud Laura had begged them to play “Never Know,” which could be as long as 13 minutes live, doh! They played it as the encore, and it was worth staying for. Uta teased us with some heavy, lower-register blues, building up gradually to the explosive payoff. I was revived and ready to party. Alas, I had to be up for work in six hours.

Now if we could just lure Christian Mistress, Spiders and Jess & the Ancient Ones (and/or Alunah, Black Moth) over for a tour. What happened to Christian Mistress? They toured Europe back in April, then nothing, no U.S. dates. Did they get lost in a Scottish bog?

10/23 – Cleveland, OH @ Now That’s Class
10/24 – Rochester, NY @ Bug Jar
10/25 – Toronto, ON @ Wreck Room
10/26 – Hamilton, ON @ Corktown Pub
10/27 – Ottawa, ON @ Café Dekcuf
10/28 – Montreal, PQ @ Katacombes
10/29 – Burlington, VT @ Nectars
10/30 – Boston, MA @ Great Scott
10/31 – New Haven, CT @ BAR
11/02 – Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus
11/03 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
11/04 – Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter
11/05 – Asheville, NC @ Static Age Records
11/06 – Knoxville, TN @ Pilot Light
11/08 – Birmingham, AL @ Bottletree
11/09 – New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jack’s
11/10 – Austin, TX @ Red 7
11/12 – Phoenix, AZ @ Yucca Tap
11/13 – San Diego, CA @ Casbah
11/14 – Fullerton, CA @ Slidebar (w/Ides Of Gemini)
11/15 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Catalyst Atrium
11/16 – San Francisco, CA @ Parkside
11/17 – Arcata, CA @ Alibi
11/18 – Portland, OR @ Ash St Saloon (w/Lord Dying)