By JCL
Taphos
First up was Taphos, whom I already had prior experience with on the same stage at Kill-Town Death Fest 2019, where they threw one hell of a concert, and this night proved to be much of a repeat of that formula. I was thoroughly enjoying the rotten melodic sound of this band, who feels like they could have been plucked straight from the early 90's. I must also commend the drummer for having to make due with at single bass drum pedal, with the result that whenever heavier footwork was required, he had to drum half of the beats on the floor tom. Audio-wise, I didn't notice any difference, so good job! The rest of the band made sure that their presence was noted, and singer/bassist H. was a shining example of great frontmanship, with no mindless banter between songs, and just pure energy when bellowing out the lyrics. All in all, my only wonder is why Taphos wasn't a main act of this evening, but being the newest guys is probably why, having only released their debut full-length "Come Etheral Sombreness" in 2018. If you like Necroticism-era Carcass and early Entombed, this band should be something for you.
We give Taphos 5.5/6
Deiquisitor
Taking the stage afterwards was Deiquisitor, a trio of experienced musicians hailing from a multitude of other underground projects. Unfortunately that experience didn't really show. While there was lots of activity on the instruments, the output was severely hampered in mixing and effects. Think early 2000's plastic-sounding Mayhem, but somehow worse. While I haven't heard any of Deiquisitors discography, this show probably didn't do it justice. Stage performance-wise there was much left desired, and a small exodus of the audience was seen from 10 minutes in. That combined with the atrocious sound made me leave halfway through the set. Hopefully their studio-efforts will translate better, and show if this band is capable or not.
We give Deiquisitor 2.5/6
Undergang
After some technical issue regarding the backdrop, Undergang finally took to the stage. Fresh of their recent EP "Ufrivillig Donation af Vitale Organer" and with over 10 years and 4 full-lengths under their belt, Undergang changed a few gears and breathed some fresh life into this event. This is, like Taphos, one of the best death metal acts currently in existence in Denmark, and Undergang made sure you didn't forget. Frontman David Torturdød has become an institution in his own right in the danish underground, and also one of of the driving forces behind tonight's event. Undergang did not disappoint me, nor the crowd, which really came to life during their show. While a great performance by all members of the band, David's vocals are some of the best I've heard, but I could have done without his indecipherable low-end grunts between the songs, which just came off as a bit comical. Yet, Undergang doesn't strike me a band you are supposed to take 100% serious, and they still delivered a high-caliber show with good energy both from the stage and the crowd. To me, I felt that this is what old school death metal is all about.
We give Undergang 5/6
Dead Congregation
Finally the headliner for tonight was the great Greek death metal act of Dead Congregation. Being the band which discography I was most familiar with, I had high hopes for their performance. After the high mark set by Undergang, I would have been happy calling it a night and go home, but Dead Congregation showed that they are among the greats in death metal, and equal to few, if any. My only regret is that I myself had to leave the show halfway through, so my review does only reflect the first half of the show. Again, playing in the wake of the great performance by Undergang would be a challenge for many bands, but Dead Congregation took to the stage like they owned the place and unleashed their foul and oppressive music upon us. While by far the most technical and fast band this night, their music is also full of slower, almost doom-like sections, which I'm always a fan of. Overall, when I left, there was lots of headbanging, a reveling crowd and all was foul in the rotten state of Denmark.
We give Dead Congregation 5/6
Overall, this night was, with one exception, a consistently high-level output of danish and international rotten death metal, and it goes to show that the genre is far from dead or forgotten.
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