Live Review : Distant + Extortionist + Dagger Threat + Abbie Falls @ Rebellion, Manchester on May 24th 2023

I'm going to give up trying to second-guess the musical whims of Manchester's metal hordes. I thought tonight would be heaving. I thought I would have to fight through battalions of metal warriors to get a decent shot at the front of the stage. You see in my head Distant are not just a buzz band, they got a bloody great air raid siren going off. They gave Lorna Shore a run for their money when they supported them last year and the new album is quite simply the last word in minimalistic brutality. I really thought everybody else had also got the memo that these are the new messiahs. 

Disappointingly and frustratingly Rebellion never comes close to even being partially full. The section up by the bar where the old farts and pit phobic usually hang out is empty for the entire duration of the evening. Down the front, the wasp-chasing hardcore kids are able to kung fu kick and karate chop to their heart's content without being in danger of even coming within a postcode of a fellow bystander. This is all positively heart-breaking as the promoters Tapestry Promotions managed to pull together a veritable smorgasbord of the finest cuts of prime deathcore.

Abbie Falls hail from the Czech Republic (or Czechia as it is now monikered) and whilst reminiscent of Danish deathcore heroes Cabal still manage to be ruddy brilliant. Clean, crisp and clinical, they perfectly mesh brutality with technicality. Those who have arrived early love them, flailing their arms and legs in euphoric adoration. They also get additional bonus points from me for leaving the stage to the Pokémon theme tune. 

Next out of the traps are Dagger Threat, a Germanic band who claim to be influenced by the likes of Slipknot and Code Orange. The latter influence is highly visible not only in the instrumental side but also from the way main vocalist Tim Rogler contorts his voice. The two-step fans are out in force, turning the majority of the downstairs in Rebellion into a seething pit of gesticulating limbs. The band loves it and seems to feed off the frenzy. They take a break from the constant noise to thank everyone for coming out to see them as they’re a long way from home and big up their newly released EP. There may be shades of derivativeness at play but on the whole, they are an interesting and intoxicating addition to the bill and the two-step brigade love them.

American deathcore big hitters Extortionist get the badge of honour of being special guests. Even before the band take to the stage the small gathering of fanboys up front are hyped beyond belief for the show.  From the get-go the intensity is turned straight to 11 and Rebellion doesn’t know what’s hit it. This is a special variation of deathcore where you feel every last bass hit straight in the chest. Extortionist are one of the few deathcore bands that successfully incorporate clean vocals in with the harsh. In other people's hands this combination can feel forced, but tonight the contrast works impeccably.

As well as being a seriously good vocalist it’s evident Ben Hoagland’s a nice guy who cares about the safety of the fans. He stops the set when someone slips in the pit and during the last song he wont allow a fan to stage dive until he is comfortable that the crowd are ready to catch him. That bond between band and crowd is so evident during the set and whilst the attendance is not what it should be for a show of this magnitude, you get the feeling that a lot of people have turned out specifically to see Extortionist.

Distant are a Dutch deathcore royalty and are currently promoting their quite incredible new album “Heritage”. I first discovered this band at the aforementioned Lorna Shore show but this time around they prove exactly why they themselves can headline venues. As they take to the stage they refer to the city as Slamchester and go full pelt into a blisteringly heavy deathcore set. Unusually for a band as heavy and technical as this they currently only have 4 members on stage but with more than enough guitar strings to go around to get the super heavy sound.

There is lots of encouragement from vocalist Alan Grnja to get a circle pit going and to get the crowd two-stepping, which of course the few who are here are more than happy to oblige in. The guitarist even decides to get involved, instrument and all, and ends up playing about half the song in the middle of the circle pit. They are guttural, powerful and utterly incendiary. For last number, ‘Heirs of Tomorrow’ they are joined by Ben Hoagland of Extortionist and that’s it. Short (all done by quarter to eleven), sharp and heavenly heavy, for those who made it, it certainly was a night to savour. After the sheer weight and heft of this performance, Distant can certainly be considered one of the heavyweights of deathcore, possibly even spearheading the new resurgence of the genre along with Lorna Shore.