Let it be known that the warriors of Rockflesh Towers will not be put off by a bit of wind! I am of course referring to the storms battering the nation at time of writing rather than anything more constitutional. Fortunately, the bands and a hardy few punters are also willing to brave the stormy weather for a bit of Sunday night experimental metal. I say experimental because much of what is on display tonight may be called challenging by some…and joyously unique by others. And, yep you guessed it, I’m in the latter camp.

First up are Manchester’s Lure In who immediately bring the energy to the room. The frontman prowls in front of the stage, while the guitarists stand tall and the bass player…is…everywhere! One minute he’s on stage, the next by the merch desk, then wandering out…to the toilet?! Ah the joys of a wireless system. Musically these guys are something really fresh, reminding me largely in parts like Feed the Rhino wrestling with Every Time I Die. The guitar tone is very reminiscent of Killing Joke, as are some of the spoken word elements, but we’re really talking more about chaotic punk metal influences. There is an impressive variety in their sound that is still held together by a cohesive feel, a genuine hardcore punk drive behind it all with jagged guitars and brutally rumbling bass. That balance is mirrored by their look and performance too. I’m thrown back to memories of Coma America by Amen on a couple of occasions, but then The Locust influences leap forward and smack me between the eyes. These guys are honestly really good, with some genuinely catchy songs.

Next up are In Depths who take to the stage accompanied by a creepy spoken word track. They power into an opener driven with techy, stompy guitar and bass, and the stall is set-out for their brand of death-laced-metalcore. The influence of bands like Bleed From Within and Thy Art is Murder are clear to see, and the delivery is exceptionally professional. The sound is full and vibrant, especially seeing as there is just the one guitarist, and whilst there aren’t that many hooks in the choruses the songs as a package are impressive and enjoyable. ‘The Rabbit Hole’ is a track that’s a great example of their signature sound, with technical guitar and varied vocal shredding and growling on show. When they step beyond the standard deathcore/metalcore elements they afford something more challenging and rewarding and have the crowd well behind them.

Main act Pupil Slicer have managed to plug this and a couple of other headline gigs into their packed tour diary, which sees them currently supporting Rolo Tomassi on a nationwide tour. A Hans Zimmer-esque sci-fi entrance track affords the crowd a moment to set themselves before the band leap straight into their fantastic mathcore/deathgrind extravaganza! There’s so much going on musically and visually it’s a smorgasbord of exciting and challenging art that we’re lucky to be able to drink in. It's definitely a welcome change-up from what you normally see. Their slot on Rolo Tomassi’s undercard is perfect for them as they deliver an even more extreme powerviolence version of Rolo Tomassi (you can Google ‘powerviolence’ but it’s basically the most full-on crazy challenging parts of hardcore punk). They are indeed superbly unhinged, challenging and raw. It's like pure avant-garde hardcore math-grind-punk music…that somehow makes complete sense. On paper it should sound like a crazed mess, but it is cohesive and simply amazing. Think organic non-digital digital hardcore. In fact, Kate Davies’ vocals remind me of very much of Hanin Elias’ unique Atari Teenage Riot singing. Kate is the visual personification of Pupil Slicer’s sound – thrashing around with controlled yet raw abandon, at one point down into the crowd, stripey leggings flailing as she thrashes through her riff. They run through the set with screeching guitars, bass funky and percussive, drums keeping this syncopated wonder devilishly rolling. Then it dawns on me that this is what Mudvayne would sound like if they were having a horrifically disturbing yet delightful fever dream – basically an amazing cocktail of music and visuals. Tell your friends very quietly in case they think you need help...but Pupil Slicer are a tiny bit tremendous.